Emmy-winning actress Mary Alice Smith, who played Leticia “Lettie” Bostic in “A Different World” and Effie Williams in the 1976 musical “Sparkle” died of natural causes Wednesday, July 27, 2022, in New York City at the age of 85.
She starred in “A Different World” for two seasons and played Ellie Grant Hubbard on “All My Children” in the 1980s.
Other major roles included Oracle in “The Matrix Revolutions” and the same role in the video game “Enter the Matrix.”
She was also featured in the films “Malcolm X,” “Down in the Delta,” “The Inkwell,” and more.
Smith was born in Indianola, Mississippi, and started acting at a young age in her hometown. She left an elementary school teacher career and returned to acting in the 1960s, participating in community theater and stage productions in Manhattan’s East Village.
She made her transition from film to tv in 1974 with her debut in “The Education of Sonny Carson,” and appeared in the television series “Police Woman,” and “Sanford and Son.” She won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for 1993’s “I’ll Fly Away.” She also won a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for her role in the 1987 production of August Wilson’s “Fences.”
She was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame in 2000 and retired from acting in 2005.
Sources:TMZ, The Shade Room, Variety