Ethel Ayler | |
Birthname: | Ethyl Spraggins Ayler |
Birth Date: | May 1, 1930 |
Birth Place: | Whistler, Alabama |
Death Date: | November 18, 2018 (age 88) |
Death Place: | Loma Linda, California |
Occupation: | Actress |
Alma Mater: | Fisk University |
Yearsactive: | 1957–2018 |
Ethyl Spraggins Ayler (May 1, 1930 – November 18, 2018) was an American character actress with a career spanning over five decades.
Ayler was born in Whistler, Alabama[1] and graduated from Fisk University.[2]
In 1957, she made her off-Broadway debut in the Langston Hughes musical, Simply Heavenly.[3] Later that year, she debuted on Broadway in the multiple Tony Award-nominated musical, Jamaica as an understudy for Lena Horne (also making her Broadway debut).[4]
Another notable early performance was in Jean Genet's play, The Blacks: A Clown Show, which ran off-Broadway for 1,408 performances and received three Obie Awards, including Best New Play. The impressive cast of black actors included three future Academy Award nominees: James Earl Jones, Cicely Tyson and Louis Gossett Jr.[5]
Throughout her career, Ayler appeared frequently with the Negro Ensemble Company. This included notable performances in The First Breeze of Summer,[6] Eden[7] and Nevis Mountain Dew.[8]
On television, Ayler had a recurring role as Carrie Hanks, Clair Huxtable's mother on The Cosby Show.[9] She also made memorable performances in the films To Sleep with Anger (1990) and Eve's Bayou (1997).
For her work in To Sleep with Anger, Ayler received a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female.[10]
Ayler's last Broadway appearance was in another Tony-nominated production, The Little Foxes, in 1997.[11] On November 18, 2018, she died in Loma Linda, California,[12] at the age of 88.[13]
Year | Production | Role | Theatre(s) | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1997 | The Little Foxes[14] | Addie | Vivian Beaumont Theater | |
1987 | Fences[15] [16] | Bono Gabriel Rose (understudy) | 46th Street Theatre | |
1983 | Sons and Fathers of Sons[17] | Sister 3 | Theatre Four | |
1981 | Weep Not for Me[18] | Lillian Hendricks | Theatre Four | |
1978 | Nevis Mountain Dew | Zepora Philibert | St. Mark's Playhouse | |
1976 | Eden | Florie | St. Mark's Playhouse | |
1975 | The First Breeze of Summer[19] | Hattie | St. Mark's Playhouse | Also appeared in the 1976 Movie of the Week. |
Black Picture Show[20] | Rita (understudy) | Vivian Beaumont Theater | ||
1974 | Les Femmes Noires[21] | Mrs. Thompson | The Other Stage | |
1961 | Kwamina[22] | Naii | 54th Street Theatre | |
The Blacks: A Clown Show | Augustus Snow | St. Mark's Playhouse | ||
1960 | The Cool World[23] | Woman at the Beach | Eugene O'Neill Theatre | |
1957 | Jamaica | Island Woman Islander Savannah (understudy) | Imperial Theatre | |
Simply Heavenly | Zarita | 85th Street Playhouse |
Year | Film | Role | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1997 | Eve's Bayou | Gran Mere | ||
1992 | The Bodyguard | Emma | ||
1990 | To Sleep with Anger | Hattie | Independent Spirit Award nomination, Best Supporting Female[24] | |
1986 | 9½ Weeks | Jewelry Saleswoman | ||
1972 | Come Back, Charleston Blue | Matron at Ball | ||
1962 | Time of the Heathen | Marie |