Vanessa Williams made history on Sept. 17, 1983 when she became the first Black woman to earn the title of Miss America. But her reign was cut short when she was forced to resign after nude photos of her were released to the press without her consent.
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Despite the setback, Williams, a multi-talented performer with a love of the arts, went on to forge a legendary career path that included GRAMMY and Emmy award-winning performances that her fans know and love. And more than 30 years after she competed for the Miss America crown, we’re all checking her TikTok to grab onto any wisdom she drops on how to age absolutely flawlessly.
This is the story of Vanessa Williams.
Born in the Bronx
Vanessa Lynn Williams was born on March 18, 1963, in the Bronx, N.Y. The oldest of two children, Vanessa’s parents raised her and her brother in suburban Millwood, where they worked as music teachers in the public school system.
In a post on TikTok, Williams praised her parents for raising her and her brother to be independent, which she said has helped them thrive in life.
Musical Roots
Williams grew up surrounded by music, with parents who nurtured a love of the arts. She played a variety of instruments, including French horn, piano and violin. She also studied classical and jazz dance. Her sights set on performing, Williams dreamed of becoming the first Black woman to perform with the legendary high-kicking Radio City Rockettes.
“I was lucky to have parents that not only made their living through the arts,” Williams told American Songwriter in an interview. “But also believed in the arts. Music was a requirement in our household.”
After graduating high school with a Presidential Scholarship for Drama, Williams continued her education at Syracuse University’s theater arts program from 1981 to 1983.
Making History
While she was a student at Syracuse, an acquaintance convinced Vanessa Williams to enter the Miss Greater Syracuse pageant. She won the title and went on to become Miss New York in 1983. That win set her up for a moment that would change her life forever.
After impressing the judges with her beauty and talent, Williams made history on September 17, 1983, when she became the first Black woman to win the Miss America pageant.
The Pictures That Changed Everything
But Willams’ reign didn’t last long. Ten months after she was crowned Miss America, she gave up her title in a July 23, 1984 press conference after nude photos she took two years before the pageant were released to the public and published in Penthouse magazine without her consent.
In an interview with Anderson Cooper, Williams said she met photographer Tom Chiapel while she was a 19-year-old student at Syracuse and agreed to allow him to take the photos of her on the condition that she could not be identified and that they would never be made public.
Then-Miss New Jersey Suzette Charles, , who was the pageant runner-up, replaced Williams after she stepped down. The Temple University student became the second Black woman to wear the crown.
Judged From Both Sides
Despite being chosen to represent her country as Miss America, Williams says she received criticism from all sides – some from people who accused her of not being Black enough, and some from others who weren’t ready to see a woman of color in the role.
“People who hadn’t even seen the pageant or heard me sing said the reason why she won the pageant is because she had light eyes,” she told Oprah Winfrey in an interview. “That hurt me a lot because here I was being this representative that I had no idea that I ever would be, but then being in Selma, Alabama and having police outside my motel room 24 hours because I was Black and getting death threats. ”
Launching Her Acting Career
Throughout her career, Williams has more than shown and proved that she’s got range. In 1997, Vanessa Williams had her breakout acting role in the hit family film, “Soul Food.” In the film, she played oldest daughter Teri Joseph, a successful attorney who is often called on to be the family ATM.
“The Right Stuff”
Williams didn’t stop at acting. In 1988, she released the upbeat track “The Right Stuff,” which rose to number one on the Billboard Dance Singles charts. The song also gave her the perfect opportunity to show off her dance talents (and a fierce lace bodysuit) in the music video.
Broadway
In 1994, Williams made her Broadway debut, taking on one of the lead roles in the musical “Kiss of the Spider Woman.” Her singing, dancing and acting talents were on full display at every show, and Williams’ performance got great reviews.
The New York Times, which called Williams “sleek, proud and breathtakingly confident,” wrote this in its review of the show: “Ever since it opened more than 14 months ago, ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’ has been one of Broadway’s most thrilling musicals. Now that Vanessa Williams has joined the cast, it is also the sexiest.”
“Save The Best For Last”
Just a few years later, Williams had another hit on her hands with the 1991 ballad “Save the Best for Last.” The song, written by Phil Galdston, Wendy Waldman and Jon Lind, rose to the top of the Billboard Hot 100, where it held its place for five weeks.
Roles We All Remember
In the early 2000s, Vanessa Williams was a fixture on primetime network television. Among her most notable roles, she went on to slay as Wilhelmina Slater, the ruthless creative director on ABC’s comedy-drama “Ugly Betty” and Renee Perry, a fashionably fly New Yorker who moves onto Wisteria Lane on the hit drama “Desperate Housewives.”
A Public Apology
More than 30 years after the scandal, the Miss America Organization issued a public apology to Williams and her mother Helen during the 2016 pageant, where Williams returned to serve as head judge.
“I want to apologize to you for anything that made you feel any less than the Miss America you are,” said then-President Sam Haskell.
Williams’ mother was in the audience to hear the apology, something Vanessa believed was an important part of the healing process. In an interview with ABC’s Robin Roberts Williams said her mother was nearly shattered by the scandal and was confronted with “an incredible amount of shame and humiliation” after the photos were made public.
But Williams’ Miss America successor, Suzette Charles, thinks the apology was just for television.
“I don’t know what that was all about. I have a feeling that was about ratings,” she told Inside Edition in a 2015 interview.
Dare to Be Different
One of Vanessa Williams’ most important roles is that of proud mother. She shares three children, Melanie, Jillian and Devin, with her first husband, Ramon Hervey II. She also shares a daughter, Sasha Gabrielle Fox, with former NBA player and actor Rick Fox, to whom she was married from 1999 to 2004.
Williams has always encouraged her kids to pursue their creative passions, saying in an interview, “It is fun to see my kids find themselves. I always told [them], ‘dare to be different. Why be like everybody else? Don’t be afraid to be yourself.’”
Talent Runs in the Family
These days, Williams’ daughter Jillian Hervey is holding her own in the music business as one-half of the R&B-dance duo Lion Babe. In an interview with Tamron Hall, Williams sang Jillian’s praises and called the opportunity to watch her establish herself as an artist “a blessing.”
“She’s grown up watching me do my thing for her whole life, backstage on Broadway, in the recording studio, on movie sets,” she said. “She’s seen it all, so the fact that she is obviously talented enough to make it a career and then doing the best, I’m so proud.”
A Timeless Beauty
Over 40 years after she won Miss America, Vanessa Williams is still as stunning as ever, which is probably a 2024 video she posted of her top 5 natural beauty hacks got over 6,000 likes on TikTok.
“Gosh you age like fine wine—stay beautiful!” wrote someone in the comments.
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