The distinguished American actress Cicely Tyson won an Oscar® nomination as Best Actress for her forceful performance in Sounder (1972), in which she starred as the matriarch of a family that endures hard times in Depression-era Louisiana. This was a typical role for Tyson, who has said that she has not been as active in films as she might because she will only accept roles that show black women in a strong, positive light.

Born in New York in 1933, Tyson was raised in Harlem, where her parents had moved from the Caribbean island of Nevis. After working as a typist for the Red Cross, she was discovered by a fashion editor at Ebony magazine. Her success as a model led to roles in off-Broadway productions beginning in 1957. She made her movie debut in A Man Called Adam (1966), starring Sammy Davis, Jr., and gained notice for her role as Portia in The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1968).

Her infrequent movie roles since Sounder have included that of the mother of a disaffected teen-ager in A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich (1978) and a stalwart housekeeper in Fried Green Tomatoes (1991).

Much of Tyson's work has been for television, earning her seven Emmy nominations and the award itself for her performances in The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman (1974) and Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All (1994). She remains active in television and movies, appearing most recently in the feature films Because of Winn-Dixie (2005) and Diary of a Mad Black Woman (2005).

The films in TCM's salute to Cicely Tyson are Sounder (1972), Fried Green Tomatoes (1991) and A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich (1978).

by Roger Fristoe