Vanessa Williams

Vanessa Lynn Williams (born March 18th 1963), is an American actress, performer and fashion designer. She became the first African-American woman to receive the Miss America title when she was named Miss America 1984. The title was withdrawn following an issue in the media over naked images of her appearing in Penthouse magazine. Williams was forced to quit her title due to an issue in the media regarding nude photographs she had published on Penthouse magazine. Williams was then offered an apology. In 1988, she released her debut album The Right Stuff, whose title single saw moderate success as did "Dreamin'" which peaked at the top of the charts in the United States in 1989. She continued to be a commercial success with her third and second studio albums, The Comfort Zone (1991), and The Sweetest Days (1994) and was nominated for numerous Grammy Awards. This included the top single of her career, "Save the Best For Last" and was performed live during the 1993 Grammy Awards ceremony. Her subsequent studio albums comprise Everlasting Love (2005) and The Real Thing (2009).As an actress, Williams enjoyed success on stage and screen. She made her Broadway debut in 1994 in the musical Kiss of the Spider Woman. In 2002, she was the lead in The Witch in Stephen Sondheim's revival of Into the Woods which earned her an Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical nomination. She starred in the revival of Horton Foote's The Trip to Bountiful in 2013, and the ensemble political farce POTUS: Behind All the Great Dumbasse Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive in 2022. Also, she is known for her television appearances as well, with her most well-known roles being Wilhelmina Slater on Ugly Betty (2006-2010), for which she was nominated three times for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in the field of a Comedy Series; and Renee Perry on Desperate Housewives (2010-2012).