Virginia Capers
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Virginia Capers (September 22, 1925 – May 6, 2004) was a Tony Award-winning American actress.
Born in Sumter, South Carolina, Capers attended Howard University in Washington, D.C. and studied voice at the Juilliard School in New York City. She made her Broadway debut in Jamaica in 1957. She also appeared in Saratoga and Raisin, for which she won the Tony for Best Actress in a Musical, the first African American to win the honor.
Capers was a familiar face to television audiences. In addition to a recurring role on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, she appeared in dozens of drama and comedy series, including Marcus Welby, M.D., My Three Sons, Mannix, The Waltons, Mork & Mindy, Dynasty, Highway to Heaven, St. Elsewhere, Murder, She Wrote, Evening Shade, Married with Children, The Practice, and ER.
Capers was featured in the films The Great White Hope, Norwood, Lady Sings the Blues, The Toy, Howard the Duck, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, and Beethoven's 2nd.
Capers founded the Lafayette Players, a Los Angeles repertory theatre company for African American performers. She was the recipient of the National Black Theatre Festival Living Legend Award, the Paul Robeson Pioneer Award, and the NAACP's Image Award for theatre excellence.
Capers died of complications from pneumonia in Los Angeles, California.
