{"id":11998,"date":"2021-01-29T19:33:02","date_gmt":"2021-01-29T08:33:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/graziamagazine.com\/?post_type=articles&p=185074"},"modified":"2021-02-04T01:39:16","modified_gmt":"2021-02-04T01:39:16","slug":"cicely-tyson-death-celebrity-reactions","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/graziamagazine.com\/us\/articles\/cicely-tyson-death-celebrity-reactions\/","title":{"rendered":"Trailblazing Hollywood Icon Cicely Tyson Has Died At Age 96. One Of Her Last Tweets Was To Amanda Gorman"},"content":{"rendered":"
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ATLANTA, GEORGIA – OCTOBER 05: Cicely Tyson attends Tyler Perry Studios grand opening gala at Tyler Perry Studios on October 05, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Paras Griffin\/Getty Images for Tyler Perry Studios)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Cicely Tyson, the iconic Emmy, Tony, and Honorary Oscar-winning actress who starred in Sounder\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman, <\/em>has died at the age of 96.\u00a0The news was announced<\/a>\u00a0by Tyson\u2019s longtime manager, Larry Thompson, and comes just two days after the release of\u00a0Tyson\u2019s memoir,\u00a0J<\/em>ust As I Am<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have managed Miss Tyson\u2019s career for over 40 years, and each year was a privilege and blessing,\u201d Thompson said in a statement. \u201cCicely thought of her new memoir as a Christmas tree decorated with all the ornaments of her personal and professional life. Today she placed the last ornament, a Star, on top of the tree.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tyson blazed a trail for Black actresses over the course of her historic career, which spanned over seven decades. Starting as a model after being scouted by a photographer in New York City, Tyson later transitioned to acting, carving out a career for herself marked by her commitment to playing strong, fully-realized characters and refusing to play roles that she thought were demeaning to Black women.<\/p>\n

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LOS ANGELES – MAY 28: Actress Cicely Tyson holds the two Emmy Awards that she won for her performance in “The Autobiography Of Miss Jane Pittman” on May 28, 1974 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After working for her whole life to uplift Black voices, Tyson bore witness to 22-year-old Amanda Gorman becoming the youngest poet to ever read a poem at a presidential inauguration. The moment prompted her to send out her second to last tweet ever in honor of Gorman, writing, “@TheAmandaGorman<\/span><\/span>, your words remind us that we will rise, rebuild, reconcile and recover. Thank you for your words and light.”<\/span><\/p>\n

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\u201c@TheAmandaGorman<\/a>, your words remind us that we will rise, rebuild, reconcile and recover. Thank you for your words and light.\u201d CT<\/p>\n

— Cicely Tyson (@IAmCicelyTyson) January 27, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n