Dusky-voiced, elegantly beautiful leading lady of stage, screen and TV who frequently played doomed chanteuses or tragic mulattos. McKee made a highly praised film debut as the drug-addicted lead singer of a Supremes-like pop group in "Sparkle" (1976). She first appeared on Broadway as Rachel (Mrs. Jackie) Robinson in the short-lived musical "The First" (1981) and won a Tony nomination for her portrayal of Julie in the 1983 Houston Grand Opera revival of "Show Boat" (she was reportedly the first black actress to play that role in a major American production).
McKee also appeared opposite Richard Pryor in the comedies, "Which Way Is Up?" (1977) and "Brewster's Millions" (1985) and was featured in the Francis Ford Coppola films "The Cotton Club" (1984), as a torch singer and "Gardens of Stone" (1987). In one of her richest roles to date, she co-starred as Wesley Snipes' put-upon wife in Spike Lee's "Jungle Fever" (1991).
After a rough personal period, McKee recorded the pop album "Natural Love" (1992) which did respectable sales, and was once again cast as Julie in yet another revival of "Show Boat" (1994).
- Born:
July 22, 1955 in Detroit, Michigan, USA
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Job Titles:
Actor, Singer, Nightclub chanteuse, Pianist, Recording artist, Songwriter, Secretary
Family
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Father: Lonnie McKee. born c. 1910; black; worked at Ford Motor Company
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Mother: Dorothy McKee. white, of Swedish descent
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Sister: Carol McKee. born c. 1959; has cerebral palsy; Lonette McKee has expressed interest in building a facility for handicapped and retarded children to be named Carol Park for her sister
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Sister: Kathy McKee. born c. 1950; wrote a book claiming to have been Sammy Davis Jr. s mistress for seven years (1991)
Significant Others
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Companion: Bryant McNeil. met in 1990 while working on the album Natural Love
Milestones
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1969 Recorded first regional song, Stop, Don t Worry About It and album at age 14; quit school and moved to Los Angeles to live with sister, Kathy
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1972 Became a cast regular as a singer-dancer on the TV variety show, The Wacky World of Jonathan Winters at age 17 (date approximate)
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1974 Recorded a gospel-flavored pop album
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1976 Film debut, Sparkle
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1981 Broadway debut as Mrs. Jackie Robinson in the musical, The First
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1983 Played Julie in the Broadway revival of the landmark Jerome Kern-Oscar Hammerstein II musical, Show Boat (reportedly the first black actress to perform the role in a major American production)
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1987 Performed at the Ballroom cabaret in NYC
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1988 Made TV pilot, Home Free
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1988 Toured in Sophisticated Ladies
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1990 Played Lorraine in The Women of Brewster Place
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2003 Appeared in the film Honey
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2004 Cast in the Spike Lee comedy She Hate Me
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Again played Julie in a major revival of Show Boat (first in Toronto and later on Broadway)
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Began professional career at age 14 on the dance show, Swingin Time (date approximate)
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Played piano and wrote songs at age seven; performed in local Detroit clubs where she sang her own songs at age ten
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Played recurring role of Sara Ruth Bennett on the CBS daytime drama As the World Turns
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Portrayed Billie Holliday in the off-Broadway musical, Lady Day at Emerson s Bar and Grill
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Worked as a secretary for Bill Cosby
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Wrote and produced first album, Words and Music for Warner Bros.