Leila Danette (August 23, 1909 – September 4, 2012) was an American stage, film and television actress, noted for her stage work and for her role as Helen on the short-lived television sitcom, ''

You Take the Kids ''You Take the Kids'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on CBS from December 15, 1990, to January 12, 1991. The series starred Nell Carter, who also performed the theme song "Nobody's Got It Easy". ''You Take the Kids'', which wa ...

''.

Early life and career

Born in Jacksonville, Florida, Danette attended both Morgan State University and Howard University. Before becoming an actress, she worked as an elementary school teacher in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was d ...

and taught speech to students in Washington, D.C. Danette began acting professionally on the stage at age 67. One of her first substantial roles was opposite James Earl Jones in '' The Great White Hope''. In 1982, she was noted for her performance in ''The Brothers''. In ''The New York Times Theatre Reviews 1999-2000'', D. J. R. Brickner wrote of her performance in ''Uncle Jack'', noting that she was a "Broadway veteran" who imbued her role of Mary with a "touching authenticity". In addition to stage roles, Danette appeared in several films including ''

The First Deadly Sin ''The First Deadly Sin'' is a 1980 American crime thriller film produced by and starring Frank Sinatra. The film features Faye Dunaway, David Dukes, Brenda Vaccaro, James Whitmore, and Martin Gabel in his final role. The film is based on the ...

'' (1980) and '' Garbo Talks'' (1984). She has also had guest roles on '' A Different World'', '' The Cosby Show'', ''

Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment, launching the '' Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire run on NBC, premiering on ...

'', and '' Third Watch''.

Filmography

References

External links

* * 1909 births 2012 deaths American stage actresses American television actresses American centenarians Howard University alumni Morgan State University alumni Actresses from Jacksonville, Florida African-American actresses American film actresses African-American centenarians Women centenarians 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women 21st-century African-American women {{US-film-actor-1900s-stub