The daughter of Cyril Dandridge (1895-1989), a cabinetmaker and Baptist minister, and Ruby Dandridge (1900-1987), an entertainer, she was born in Cleveland, Ohio. Her parents separated shortly before her birth, and Ruby created a song-and-dance act for her two young daughters, Vivian and Dorothy, under the name of “The Wonder Children.”
As children she and her sister performed in black churches around the country and in Europe until the Great Depression caused their family to relocate to Los Angeles. They performed in a variety of venues, including the Cotton Club and cabarets, and became known as the “Dandridge Sisters.”
Dandridge was cast in Otto Preminger’s 1954 all-black version of the Broadway musical Carmen Jones; she was nominated for an Academy Award and won the BAFTA Award for Best Actress. She also starred in Porgy and Bess, for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award.
Her first credited film role was in Four Shall Die, a 1940 supernatural crime film directed by William Beaudine. She later appeared in several other films and in a series of soundies like Jig in the Jungle, Cow, Cow Boogie, and Paper Doll that showcased her talent as an actress and singer.
Although Dandridge’s acting and singing abilities were recognized in the film industry, she was often subjected to negative stereotyping and objectification because of her race. This made her career difficult, and she was a victim of her own success. She was also a victim of personal bankruptcy and divorce in the early 1960s. Her death at age 42 is a mystery to this day, though it is believed she may have committed suicide.
