Whitney Houston buys movie rights to bio on Dorothy Dandridge

Jet, Nov 13, 1995

Superstar Whitney Houston recently bought the movie rights to a soon-to-be published biography of the late actress-singer Dorothy Dandridge.

The biography, Dorothy Dandridge: A Biography by Donald Bogle, will be published next year.

The film will star Ms. Houston as Dorothy Dandridge and will be produced by Ms. Houston and Debra Martin Chase.

"I have always been intrigued by Dorothy Dandridge and the triumphs and tragedies of her life," says Ms.

"She was an enormously talented African-American whose gifts, like those of Josephine Baker, Billie Holiday and Paul Robeson, were never fully appreciated because she was quite simply ahead of her time. Donald Bogle's book will give me the opportunity to bring the elegance, dignity and richness of Dorothy to the screen."

Ms. Dandridge made history in 1954 when she became the first Black to receive an Oscar nomination for best actress for her starring role in Carmen Jones. She starred opposite Harry Belafonte.

Meanwhile, Ms. Houston's upcoming film, Waiting to Exhale, is set for release Dec. 22.