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- On a high school trip, she became inspired to act after seeing a Kennedy Center production of the classic story Of Mice and Men, starring James Earl Jones. Encouraged by a teacher, Bassett went on to study at Yale on a scholarship, earning a B.A. in Afro-American Studies and an M.F.A. in drama.
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Feb 21, 2023 · Michael Schulman interviews Angela Bassett about the decorated Black actress’s student days at Yale and her two Oscar nominations, thirty years apart.
Oct 20, 2022 · Angela Bassett initially wanted to study theater at Yale, but her aunt considered that major a waste of time and convinced the young woman to focus on a perhaps more stable career choice. She...
- Who Is Angela Bassett?
- Early Life and Career
- 'Malcolm X,' 'What's Love Got to Do with It,' 'The Rosa Parks Story'
- 'Waiting to Exhale,' 'How Stella Got Her Groove Back'
- 'ER,' 'Akeelah and The Bee'
- 'Betty & Coretta,' 'Olympus Has Fallen'
- 'American Horror Story'
- 'Black Panther,' '9-1-1'
- Personal Life
Angela Bassett attended the Yale School of Drama and went on to star in the Tina Turner biopic What's Love Got to Do With It, for which the actress received an Academy Award nomination and a Golden Globe Award. Other films have included Waiting to Exhale, How Stella Got Her Groove Back, Strange Days, Supernova and Mr. 3000. She wed fellow actor Cou...
Born in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City on August 16, 1958, Angela Evelyn Bassett is known for her many dramatic roles in films, television and on stage. Bassett was raised with her sister, D'nette, in St. Petersburg, Florida by her single mother, Betty, a social worker. On a high school trip, she became inspired to act after seeing a Kenn...
Despite her early success on stage, Bassett had to work hard to break through the stereotypical roles usually assigned to African-American women on screen. Her first role was a bit part in the cult favorite, F/X (1986). In 1991, she had a key role in John Singleton's seminal anti-gang film, Boyz 'N the Hood. A year later, she landed the role of Kat...
Bassett co-starred with Whitney Houston in the adaptation of Terry McMillan's Waiting To Exhale in 1995. In 1998 she headlined another McMillan adaptation, How Stella Got Her Groove Back. In Jodie Foster's extraterrestrial-encounter film, Contact (1997), Bassett portrayed a top-level presidential advisor. Back on stage, Bassett played Lady Macbeth ...
A versatile performer, Bassett has continued to tackle a diverse mix of projects. She shared the stage with her husband Courtney B. Vance in a regional production of His Girl Friday in 2005. The pair also appeared together in the final season of the hit television drama ERfrom 2008 to 2009. On the big screen, Bassett starred in 2006's Akeelah and t...
Bassett returned to Broadway in The Mountaintop, co-starring Samuel L. Jackson. She played a maid who spends time with civil rights leaderMartin Luther King Jr. before his assassination. On the small screen, she played King's widow, Coretta Scott King, in the 2013 television movie Betty & Coretta, which co-starred Mary J. Blige as Betty Shabazz. Th...
Since then, Bassett has gone on to star in several TV shows and movies, including stints on American Horror Story, playing Marian Laveau, the "Voodoo Queen of New Orleans" in the third season, Coven, which earned her two Emmy nominations. Bassett received another Emmy nomination for playing Desiree Dupree, a three-breasted lady, in the show's fourt...
Bassett played Dowager Queen Ramonda, Queen Mother of Wakanda in 2018's Black Panther. Bassett also took on the role of Athena in the TV show, 9-1-1, where she also served as a producer. Some more of Bassett's film projects include: Chi-Raq (2015), London Has Fallen (2016), Black Panther (2018) and Mission Impossible — Fallout(2018).
Bassett is married to actor Courtney B. Vance. They wed on October 12, 1997. The couple welcomed twins in 2006. Son Slater and daughter Bronwyn were delivered by a surrogate.
Bassett studied at Yale University and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in African American Studies in 1980. She studied acting at the Yale School of Drama and obtained a Master of Fine Arts in 1983.
Jan 24, 2023 · The determined young Bassett went on to attend Yale University on scholarship receiving her bachelor’s in African American studies in 1980 and an MFA at the Yale School of Drama in 1983. She...
Oct 24, 2020 · Angela Bassett Is Now Dr. Angela Bassett After Receiving Honorary Degree From Yale. The Yale alum, who previously majored in African-American studies at the school, received an honorary...
Sep 17, 2020 · While drawn to the stage at a young age, Bassett arrived at Yale with plans to major in administrative science, a business and sociology degree, having been advised by an aunt to not “waste” her Yale education on theater. Bassett eventually decided to follow her own heart, earning a B.A. in African American studies (1980) and an M.F.A. at ...
