Rosetta LeNoire Biography

Rosetta LeNoire's Married Life, Husband, And Divorce

Rosetta LeNoire was married and divorced twice in life. Her first marriage was with William LeNoire, an elevator operator, on September 27, 1930. Rosetta dated William for a year before they took it to the next level. The couple was married for thirteen years.

After her first husband's divorce, LenNoire married Egbert Brown on May 13, 1948. The duo remained official husband and wife for over two decades until they called it quits in 1973. Egbert, who owned a fleet of cabs, passed away after twenty-five years of marriage.

Additionally, LeNoire was a proud mother to son William Jr. of Manahawkin, New Jersey. The Broadway actress gave birth to her first child with ex-husband William LeNoire in 1932. At the time of her passing, the actress had two grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Besides, LeNoire also played a mother figure role to Robert Earl Jones' infant son James Earl Jones. 

Rosetta LeNoire Cause of Death, Grave

On March 17, 2002, Rosetta LeNoire took her last breath in Teaneck, New Jersey. The actress lived at the Actor's Fund Nursing and Retirement Home in Inglewood, New Jersey. She was 90 at the time of her death.

Reports suggested the actress died as a result of complications from diabetes. However, an editorial in a television Guide reported LeNoire died due to pneumonia.

Before her demise, the producing director Donna Trinkoff said Rosetta spent most of her life in the Bronx. Speaking of the grave, LeNoire was buried at Cypress Hills Cemetery in Brooklyn, Kings County, New York.

Rosetta LeNoire Net Worth

Rosetta LeNoire was an acclaimed actress of the 20th century. Although the exact net worth of the African-American actress was never revealed, she should have no less than a million at the time of her death. 

LeNoie made big chunks from her successful career as an actress in theatre, screen, television, and movie actress.

Rosetta LeNoire's Philanthropic Works

The philanthropic personality Rosetta LeNoire established Amas, a nonprofit theatre group to raise voices for interracial casting in 1968. Later, the company produced hits, including Bubbling Brown Sugar.

Check out the video of Family Matters' Rosetta LeNoire Died After Fatal Disease:

LeNoire even supported minority performers to perform in plays and musicals. In 1989, she became the first recipient of the union's annual award for broadening participation in theater acts. In 1999, LeNoire won the National Medal of the Arts for her long fight against caste and race discrimination.

Rosetta LeNoire Acting Career: Family Matters

In the 1930s, Orson Welles directed Miss LeNoire in his all-black version of "Macbeth." The then 90-year-old actress starred in some of the earliest TV shows. She even joked about playing every maid's character on Broadway.

The diva made her Broadway debut in 1939 in "The Hot Mikado" operetta all-black version. Her other theater credits include Cabin in the Sky, Sophie, Lost in the Stars, The Sunshine Boys, and A Streetcar Named Desire. 

In 1944, Rosetta toured with the show Anna Lucasta as Stella. In 1958, she appeared in the film version with Eartha Kitt and Sammy Davis Jr. Rosetta LeNoire starred in television shows during experimental days. Before that, she portrayed Nell Carter's mama on NBC's "Gimme a Break."

The black actress added movies such as Search for Tomorrow, The Guiding Light, Amen, and A World Apart under her belt. LeNoire landed the role of Mother Estelle Winslow on ABC hit sitcom "Family Matters" for eight years. Rosetta shared the screen with Jo Marie and Kellie Shanygne in Family Matters.

Rosetta LeNoire Bio, Age, Early Life

Rosetta Burton LeNoire was born in Manhattan the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood. Being raised in an artistic family background, the icon's paternal grandfather played the mouth organ for five churches in the West Indies. Rosetta's father was the first black plumber and licensed electrician in New York State.

Sadly, Rosetta's mother passed away in a Harlem hospital at 27 years old. The cause of her death was pneumonia. By fate, LeNoire was an immortal part of the Hollywood industry. Her godfather Bill Robinson was the tap dancer famous as Bojangles. Also, the Brewster Millions cast had a good bond with jazz pianist, composer, and music teacher Eubie Blake. 

Rosetta LeNoire Quick Facts

• Rosetta LeNoire was known for her short and curly black hair.
• She was kind-hearted and supportive personality.
• Rosetta LeNoire took care of James Earl Jones's child while she was a member of the Jones troupe.
• The black beauty suffered from diabetes for several years. 
• The Broadway producer had to wear leg braces for 13 years when she suffered from rickets in childhood.
• She had three siblings, including a sister Mary A. Francis, and two brothers, Wilmot Burton and Warren Burton.
• As a young lady, LeNoire played piano with the composer Eubie Blake.
• In 1927, Rosetta performed with her uncle Bill Bojangles Robinson as a dancer in a revue.
• Rosetta LeNoire studied at a government-based Works Progress Administration program at a theatre on the Lower East Side.

Keep visiting Marriedwiki for exciting biographies and articles.