Ja’net DuBois has died at the age of 74.
Reports said the actress passed away unexpectedly in her sleep Tuesday night at her California home.
She is popularly known for starring in the hit 1970s sitcom ‘Good Times’, but she made history with her role on the CBS soap opera Love of Life, where she became the first African-American actress to have a regular role on daytime television.
She played the role ‘Loretta Allen’ on that drama between the years 1971 and 1972.
DuBois, who had three kids, was most recently seen in public just weeks ago and seems to be in good health.
The last film the actress starred in was She’s Got Plan in 2016, and she also appeared last in the TV series short G.I. Joe: Renegades.
Ja’net DuBois was born in Brooklyn in 1945 and started to build her career on Broadway.
She starred in a number of prominent plays in the 50s and 60s, like ‘A Raisin In The Sun’ and ‘Golden Boy’.
DuBois then moved to Hollywood and starred in her first film role in 1966. The film titled ‘A Man Called Adam’ featured her appearing opposite to actor Sammy Davis Jr.
She was given the Peabody Award for her role in the 1969 CBS children’s movie, J.T. and in 1971, after getting her historic role on Love of Life, DuBois did the work to secure spots on several other TV programs throughout that decade.
Some of here small-screen credits from the 1970s are Sanford and Son, Shaft, Kojak, Caribe, and Roots: The Next Generation.
However, it was her role as neighbor and gossip maven Willona Woods in the sitcom ‘Good Times’ that established her stardom. The popular series was created by Norman Lear and was famous for being television’s first African American two-parent family sitcom.
The show ran from 1974 to 1979.
When the show has ended, DuBois continued to star in a variety of films and TV series.
She got two Emmy Awards for her work on ‘The PJs’, a stop-motion comedy about the ups and downs of a black family living in a housing project.
DuBois also appeared opposite Demi Moore in Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle in 2013.
Aside from these, families and friends also said the star was also a talented composer and singer, who made the theme song for the 1970s series, The Jeffersons.