Nell Carter (born Nell Ruth Hardy; September 13, 1948 – January 23, 2003) was an American singer and actress. Carter began her career in 1970, singing in the theater, and later crossed over to television. She was best known for her role as Nell Harper on the sitcom '' Gimme a Break!'' which originally aired from 1981 to 1987. Carter received two

Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

and two

Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of ...

award nominations for her work on the series. Prior to ''Gimme a Break!'', Carter won a

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual c ...

for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical in 1978 for her performance in the Broadway musical '' Ain't Misbehavin''' as well as a Primetime

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

for her reprisal of the role on television in 1982.

Early life

Nell Ruth Hardy was born September 13, 1948 in Birmingham, Alabama, one of nine children born to Edna Mae and Horace Hardy. She was born into a Roman Catholic family and raised Presbyterian. Carter self-identified as

Pentecostal Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestantism, Protestant Charismatic Christianity, Charismatic Christian movement As a child, she began singing on a local

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words a ...

radio show and was also a member of the church choir. At age 15 she began performing at area coffee houses, and later joined the Renaissance Ensemble that played at area coffee houses and

gay bar A gay bar is a drinking establishment that caters to an exclusively or predominantly lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) clientele; the term '' gay'' is used as a broadly inclusive concept for LGBT communities. Gay bars once serv ...

s. On July 5, 1965, 16-year-old Hardy was raped at gunpoint by a man she knew who gave her a ride home from a performance. She became pregnant and gave birth to daughter Tracy the next year; finding raising a baby alone too difficult, she sent her child to live with her older sister Willie. She later claimed that Tracy was the product of a brief marriage, but she revealed the truth in a 1994 interview.

Career

Broadway work

At age 19, Hardy changed her surname to Carter and left Birmingham, Alabama, moving to New York City with the Renaissance Ensemble. In New York City, Carter sang in coffee shops, then landed her first role on Broadway in 1971. Carter made her Broadway debut in the 1971 rock opera '' Soon'', which closed after three performances. She was the music director for the 1974

Westbeth Playwrights Feminist Collective The Westbeth Playwrights Feminist Collective was a group of professional women playwrights in New York active from 1971 to 1975. They wrote and produced feminist plays and were one of the first feminist theatre groups in the United States to do so ...

's production of "What Time of Night It Is". Carter appeared with

Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress with a career spanning more than 50 years and 100 acting credits. She was noted for playing unsympathetic, sardonic characters, and was famous for her p ...

in the 1974 stage musical ''Miss Moffat'', based on Davis' earlier film ''

The Corn Is Green ''The Corn Is Green'' is a 1938 semi-autobiographical play by Welsh dramatist and actor Emlyn Williams. The play premiered in London at the Duchess Theatre in September 1938; with Sybil Thorndike as Miss Moffat and Williams himself portraying Mo ...

''. The show closed before making it to

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

. She broke into stardom in the musical '' Ain't Misbehavin'', for which she won a

in 1978. She later won an

for the same role in a televised performance in 1982. In 1978, Carter was cast as Effie White in the Broadway musical ''

Dreamgirls ''Dreamgirls'' is a Broadway musical, with music by Henry Krieger and lyrics and book by Tom Eyen. Based on the show business aspirations and successes of R&B acts such as The Supremes, The Shirelles, James Brown, Jackie Wilson, and others,G ...

,'' but departed the production during development to take a television role on ''

Ryan's Hope ''Ryan's Hope'' is an American soap opera created by Claire Labine and Paul Avila Mayer, airing for 13 years on ABC from July 7, 1975, to January 13, 1989. It revolves around the trials and tribulations within a large Irish-American family in ...

''. (When ''Dreamgirls'' premiered in late 1981,

Jennifer Holliday Jennifer Yvette Holliday (born October 19, 1960) is an American actress and singer. She started her career on Broadway in musicals such as '' Dreamgirls'' (1981–83), '' Your Arms Too Short to Box with God'' (1980–1981) and later became a ...

had taken over the lead.) Additional Broadway credits included '' Dude'' and '' Annie''.

Film and Television

In 1979, she had a part in the

Miloš Forman Jan Tomáš "Miloš" Forman (; ; 18 February 1932 – 13 April 2018) was a Czech and American film director, screenwriter, actor, and professor who rose to fame in his native Czechoslovakia before emigrating to the United States in 1968. Forman ...

-directed musical daptation of ''

Hair Hair is a protein filament that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals. The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick terminal and fi ...

''. Her vocal talents are showcased throughout the soundtrack. In 1981, Carter took a role on television's ''

The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo ''The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo'' is an American action comedy television series that ran on NBC from September 18, 1979, to May 5, 1981. For its second season the show was renamed ''Lobo''. The program aired Tuesday nights, at 8:00p.m. East ...

,'' then landed the lead role of Nell Harper on the sitcom '' Gimme a Break!''.

''Gimme a Break!''

Nell Carter would become perhaps best known to audiences for her lead role in the NBC television series ''Gimme a Break!'', in which she played the role of a housekeeper for a widowed police chief (

Dolph Sweet Adolphus Jean Sweet (July 18, 1920 – May 8, 1985) was an American actor, credited with nearly 60 television and film roles and more than 50 roles in stage productions, including performances on Broadway. He often played policemen throughout ...

) and his three daughters. The show was a rating hit for NBC and earned Carter nominations for a

and an

. 137 episodes of ''Gimme a Break!'' were produced over a run of six seasons, airing from 1981 to 1987. In August 1987, after the cancellation of ''Gimme a Break!'', Carter returned to the nightclub circuit with a five-month national tour with comedian

Joan Rivers Joan Alexandra Molinsky (June 8, 1933 – September 4, 2014), known professionally as Joan Rivers, was an American comedian, actress, producer, writer and television host. She was noted for her blunt, often controversial comedic persona—heavi ...

Further TV work

In 1989, she shot a pilot for NBC titled ''Morton's by the Bay'', which aired as a one-time special that May; Carter played the assistant to a banquet-hall owner, and the focus was on her and her madcap staff. NBC passed on the series development. That October, she performed "

The Star-Spangled Banner "The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States. The lyrics come from the "Defence of Fort M'Henry", a poem written on September 14, 1814, by 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet Francis Scott Key after witnessing the ...

" before Game 4 of the

1989 World Series The 1989 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1989 season. The 86th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League (AL) champion Oakland Athletics and the Nat ...

in San Francisco. In 1990, Carter starred in the CBS comedy ''

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 ...

''. The series, which was perceived as being the black answer to ''

Roseanne ''Roseanne'' is an American sitcom television series created by Matt Williams and Roseanne Barr which aired on ABC from October 18, 1988, to May 20, 1997, and briefly revived from March 27, 2018, to May 22, 2018. The show stars Barr as Rosea ...

'' due to its portrayal of a working-class African-American family, featured Carter as a crass, no-nonsense mother and wife. ''You Take the Kids'' faced poor ratings and reviews, and had a month's run from December 1990 to January 1991. During the early 1990s, Carter appeared in low-budget movies, TV specials, and game shows such as '' Match Game '90'' and '' To Tell the Truth''. She co-starred in '' Hangin' with Mr. Cooper'' from 1993 to 1995. In the mid-1990s, Carter appeared on Broadway in a revival of '' Annie'' as Miss Hannigan. She was upset when commercials promoting the show used a different actress, white actress

Marcia Lewis Marcia Lewis (August 18, 1938 – December 21, 2010) was an American character actress and singer. She was nominated twice for the Tony Award as Best Featured Actress in a Musical (''Chicago'' and '' Grease'') and twice for the Drama Desk Award ...

, as Miss Hannigan. The producers stated that the commercials, which were made during an earlier production, were too costly to reshoot. Carter said racism played a part in the decision. "Maybe they don't want audiences to know Nell Carter is black", she told the ''New York Post''. "It hurts a lot", Carter told the ''Post'', "I've asked them nicely to stop it—it's insulting to me as a black woman." Carter later was replaced by

Sally Struthers Sally Anne Struthers (born July 28, 1947) is an American actress and activist. She played Gloria Stivic, the daughter of Archie and Edith Bunker (played by Carroll O'Connor and Jean Stapleton) on ''All in the Family'', for which she won two Emm ...

Later years

In 2001, she appeared as a special guest-star on the pilot episode of '' Reba'' and continued with the show, making three appearances in season one. The following year, Carter made two appearances on '' Ally McBeal''. The next year had her rehearsing for a production of ''

Raisin A raisin is a dried grape. Raisins are produced in many regions of the world and may be eaten raw or used in cooking, baking, and brewing. In the United Kingdom, Ireland, New Zealand, and Australia, the word ''raisin'' is reserved for the ...

'', a stage musical of ''

A Raisin in the Sun ''A Raisin in the Sun'' is a play by Lorraine Hansberry that debuted on Broadway in 1959. The title comes from the poem "Harlem" (also known as "A Dream Deferred") by Langston Hughes. The story tells of a black family's experiences in south Chi ...

'' in Long Beach, California, and filming ''

Swing Swing or swinging may refer to: Apparatus * Swing (seat), a hanging seat that swings back and forth * Pendulum, an object that swings * Russian swing, a swing-like circus apparatus * Sex swing, a type of harness for sexual intercourse * Swing ri ...

''. Carter's final onscreen appearance was in the comedy film ''Back by Midnight''. It was released in 2005, two years after her death.

Death

On January 23, 2003, Carter, aged 54, collapsed and died at her home in Beverly Hills; her son Joshua discovered her body that night. Per a provision in Carter's will, no autopsy was performed. Using blood tests, X-rays, and a cursory physical examination, the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office ruled that Carter's death was the likely result of "probable arteriosclerotic heart disease, with diabetes a contributing condition". Carter was survived by her friend Ann Kaser, who inherited her property and custody of her two sons. She is buried at

Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery The Hillside Memorial Park and Mortuary is a Jewish cemetery located at 6001 West Centinela Avenue, in Culver City, California. Many Jews from the entertainment industry are buried here. The cemetery is known for Al Jolson's elaborate tomb (desig ...

in Los Angeles.

Personal life

Carter attempted suicide in the early 1980s, and around 1985 she entered a drug detoxification facility to break a long-standing cocaine addiction. Her brother Bernard died of complications due to AIDS in 1989. Carter married mathematician and lumber executive George Krynicki, and she converted to Judaism in 1982. She filed for divorce from Krynicki in 1989; the divorce was finalized in 1992. Carter had three children: daughter Tracy and sons Joshua and Daniel. She adopted both Joshua and Daniel as newborns over a four-month period. She attempted to adopt twice more, but both adoptions failed. In her first attempt, she allowed a young pregnant woman to move into her home with the plan that she would adopt the child, but the mother decided to keep her baby. In 1992, Carter had surgery to repair two aneurysms and married Roger Larocque in June. She divorced Larocque the next year. Carter declared bankruptcy in 1995 and again in 2002. She also had three miscarriages.

Stage credits

*'' Soon'' (1971), Broadway *'' The Wedding of Iphigenia'' (1971), Off-Broadway *'' Dude'' (1972), Broadway *'' Miss Moffat'' (1974), closed on the road *''Be Kind to People Week'' (1975), Off-Broadway *''Tom Eyen's Dirtiest Musical'' (1975), Off-Broadway *''

Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope ''Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope'' is a musical revue first staged in 1971 with music, lyrics and book by Micki Grant. It was originally produced by Edward Padula. Background and productions The all-singing, all-dancing show focuses on the Afric ...

'' (1976), San Francisco *'' Ain't Misbehavin''' (1978), Manhattan Theatre Club, Broadway and U.S. national tour *'' One Night Only'' (1979), workshop *''Black Broadway'' (1979), Avery Fisher Hall *''Black Broadway'' (1980), The Town Hall *'' Ain't Misbehavin''' (1988), Broadway *'' Hello, Dolly!'' (1991), Long Beach Civic Light Opera *'' Annie'' (1997), Broadway and U.S. national tour *''

South Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

'' (2001), Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera *''

The Vagina Monologues ''The Vagina Monologues'' is an episodic play written in 1996 by Eve Ensler which developed and premiered at HERE Arts Center, Off-Off-Broadway in New York and was followed by an Off-Broadway run in at Westside Theatre. The play explores c ...

'' (2001), Madison Square Garden

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Carter, Nell 1948 births 2003 deaths 20th-century American actresses 20th-century American singers 20th-century American women singers 21st-century American actresses Actresses from Beverly Hills, California Actresses from Birmingham, Alabama African-American actresses 20th-century African-American women singers African-American feminists African-American former Christians African-American Jews American feminists American film actresses American former Christians American musical theatre actresses American stage actresses American television actresses American voice actresses Bisexual actresses Bisexual feminists Bisexual musicians Burials at Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery Converts to Judaism from Christianity Deaths from diabetes Drama Desk Award winners LGBT people from Alabama LGBT African Americans Feminist musicians Former Presbyterians Musicians from Beverly Hills, California Musicians from Birmingham, Alabama Obie Award recipients Primetime Emmy Award winners Singers from California Theatre World Award winners Tony Award winners 20th-century LGBT people 21st-century LGBT people 21st-century African-American women 21st-century African-American people American LGBT actors