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Diana Sands 1934 - 1973

Diana Sands was born on August 22, 1934 in New York, New York United States, and died at age 39 years old on September 21, 1973 in New York.

Diana Sands

August 22, 1934

New York, New York, United States

September 21, 1973

New York, New York, United States

Female

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Diana Sands Diana Sands (1934 - 1973)

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Diana Sands' History: 1934 - 1973

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Introduction

Diana Sands Biography Born August 22, 1934 in New York City, New York, USA Died September 21, 1973 in New York City, New York, USA Birth Name Diana Patricia Sands Diana Sands was born on August 22, 1934 in New York City, New York, USA as Diana Patricia Sands. She was an actress, known for The Landlord (1970), East Side/West Side (1963) and A Raisin in the Sun (1961). She was married to Lucien Happersberger. She died on September 21, 1973 in New York City. Spouse (1) Lucien Happersberger (4 August 1964 - 1970) ( divorced) Diana Sands was originally cast in the title role for the film Claudine (1974), but her cancer forced her to drop out. She suggested her friend Diahann Carroll as her replacement. Ms. Sands, who played "Beneatha Younger" in "A Raisin in the Sun", and its playwright, Lorraine Hansberry, died very young of cancer. A theatre in Wisconsin, the Hansberry-Sands Theatre, was so named as a tribute to both. Superior Black actress of the 50s and 60s who defied the odds and played Shakespearean and Shavian roles normally cast for white actresses. Appeared in a 1961 musical revue entitled "Another Evening with Harry Stoones" which also featured a 19-year-old Barbra Streisand. When white actress Kim Stanley became unavailable to play the leading role of Doris in the 1964 Broadway romantic comedy "The Owl and the Pussycat," it was offered to Sands , who went on to play the role opposite Alan Alda. Not one line was changed to accommodate her race, and the casting generated relatively little controversy. Her father was a carpenter and her mother a milliner. She graduated from the Manhattan High School of the Performing Arts. Won a host of stage acting awards including an Outer Critics Circle Award for "A Raisin in the Sun" (1959), a Theatre World Award for "Tiger, Tiger Burning Bright" (1962), and an Obie Award for "The Living Premise" (1964). She also earned two successive Tony nominations in 1964 and 1965 for "Blues for Mister Charlie" and "The Owl and the Pussycat," not to mention two Emmy nominations for her dramatic TV work. Was engaged to director Kurt Baker at the time of her death. She was buried in Ferncliff Cemetery and Mausoleum. Won a host of stage acting awards including an Outer Critics Circle Award for "A Raisin in the Sun" (1959), a Theatre World Award for "Tiger, Tiger Burning Bright" (1962), and an Obie Award for "The Living Premise" (1964). She also earned two successive Tony nominations: in 1964 as Best Supporting or Featured Actress (Dramatic) for "Blues for Mister Charlie", and in 1965 as Best Actress (Dramatic) for "The Owl and the Pussycat," and two Emmy nominations for her dramatic TV work. Personal Quotes I refuse to be stereotyped. Look at me. Never mind my color. Please look at me!
08/22

1934

Birthday

August 22, 1934

Birthdate

New York, New York United States

Birthplace

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Ethnicity & Family History

Bi-racial.
Early Life & Education

The Manhattan High School of the Performing Arts.
Professional Career

400 ATTEND RITES FOR DIANA SANDS SEPT. 27, 1973 Some 400 friends, relatives and associates from the theater world attended a funeral service yesterday for Diana Sands, the actress, at the Roman Catholic Church of St. Catherine of Siena, 411 East 68th Street, NYC. Miss Sands, who was 39 years old, died on Saturday of lung cancer at Sloan‐Kettering Memorial Hospital, across the street from the church. The Rev. Stephen Reichley read the mass, which was conducted without music, and the Rev. Frank Ralph delivered the eulogy. The pallbearers included Kurt Baker, film director of the Third World Cinema, which produced Miss Sands's last film, “Honey Baby, Honey Baby,” scheduled to be released next month. Mr. Baker and Miss Sands had planned to be married in October. Other pallbearers included Cliff Frazier, an executive of the Third World Cinema, and the actors, Brock Peters, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Hal Dewind, and Douglas Turner Ward. Bobby Short, the singer‐pianist, and Calvin Lockhart, Ruby Dee, Clarence Williams, Rosalind Cash, and Gloria Foster.
Personal Life & Family

Won a host of stage acting awards including an Outer Critics Circle Award for "A Raisin in the Sun" (1959), a Theatre World Award for "Tiger, Tiger Burning Bright" (1962), and an Obie Award for "The Living Premise" (1964). She also earned two successive Tony nominations: in 1964 as Best Supporting or Featured Actress (Dramatic) for "Blues for Mister Charlie", and in 1965 as Best Actress (Dramatic) for "The Owl and the Pussycat," and two Emmy nominations for her dramatic TV work. Personal Quotes I refuse to be stereotyped. Look at me. Never mind my color. Please look at me!
09/21

1973

Death

September 21, 1973

Death date

Cancer.

Cause of death

New York, New York United States
Death location

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Obituary

Diana Sands, 39, Dies of Cancer; Acclaimed for ‘Raisin in the Sun’ SEPT. 23, 1973 The New York Times Diana Sands, the actress who won overnight critical acclaim for her stage portrayal in 1959 of Sidney Poitier's young sister in “A Raisin in the Sun,” died Friday night at Sloan‐Kettering Memorial Hospital for Cancer and Allied Diseases. She was 39 years old. Miss Sands was hospitalized three weeks ago when she underwent surgery for the removal of a tumor. Unlike many young actresses, Miss Sands had never been type‐cast. She played in comedies as well as in the title role in “Saint Joan.” Won Critics' Awards For her work in “Raisin,” a play by Lorraine Hansberry, Miss Sands won the annual Outer Circle Critics' Award as best supporting actress and was selected by the Variety critics poll as the most promising actress of 1959. The following year she recreated for the screen the role of the daughter in a black family struggling to move to a better home. While still a student at the High School of Performing Arts, Miss Sands began acting in plays Off-Broadway at the Greenwich Mews, where she made her professional debut in George Bernard Shaw's “Major Barbara.” Later she played the Defending Angel in “The World of Sholom Aleichem.” In addition to “A Raisin in the Sun,” Miss Sands's motion pictures included “Four Boys and a Gun” (1957), “An Affair of the Skin” (1963), and “Georgia, Georgia” (1972). Among the stage plays in which she appeared were “A Land Beyond the River” (1957), “The Egg and I” (1958), “Tiger, Tiger, Burning Bright” (1962), “The Owl and the Pussycat” (1964) and “Two for the Seesaw” (1967). Her most recent film venture was “Honeybaby, Honeybaby,” shot in Beirut, Lebanon, last fall. Editing was completed in August, with release scheduled for this year. Miss Sands's fiancé, Kurt Baker, was assistant director of the picture. Her co‐star was Calvin Lockhart. In addition to her Outer Circle Critics award in 1959, she received the International Artist Award in 1961, the Theatre World Award in 1963, an Obie award in 1964 as well as Tony and Emmy nominations. Because of her illness, Miss Sands withdrew in midsummer from the cast of “Claudine,” a Third World Cinema project in which she was to have co-starred with James Earl Jones. In a recent interview, Miss Sands detected what she described as a “decline” in Broadway fare. “But in terms of black people a lot of growth has taken place,” she said. “I haven't been able to see a lot of black theater, but I do know that they are really going great guns. This is really what's so exciting. When it seems nobody's really touching what's going on today, the black theater is.” Miss Sands's marriage to Lucien Happersberger, a Swiss-born artist, ended in divorce. Surviving is her mother, Shirley, a sister, Joan, and a brother, Thomas. The funeral service will be private. Plans for a memorial service will be announced later.

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