Book examines roles black women portray

NEW YORK — Dorothy Dandridge was the first black woman nominated for a Best Actress Oscar. Almost a half century passed before another black woman — Halle Berry — won the award.

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They and three others — Pam Grier, Whoopi Goldberg and Oprah Winfrey — are subjects of the new book "Divas on Screen: Black Women in American Film.”

"These women have pushed the racial boundaries for audiences, setting new standards for beauty and body type,” said author Mia Mask.

She took on the book because, while black male stars are now enjoying huge success, little has been written about their female counterparts — as performers who can headline a film, said Mask, who teaches film and drama at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.

Dandridge was nominated for her lead role as the hedonistic factory worker in the 1954 classic "Carmen Jones,” alongside Harry Belafonte.

Berry won an Oscar in 2000 for playing the wife of an executed murderer in "Monster’s Ball.” She also had portrayed Dandridge as a stunning femme fatale in a 1999 HBO film about Dandridge’s life.

In spite of vast changes, Mask said, sore points persist in casting black women for star roles.

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