February 05, 2007 @ 3:50 pm

Barbara McNair, Singer-Actress-TV Host, Dead at 72

The star died Sunday after a battle with throat cancer.

Singer Barbara McNair, whose career as a film and television actor benefited in the late '60s when Hollywood began opening up for African-American actresses, died Sunday after a battle with throat cancer. She was 72. Once voted one of the most beautiful women in the world, McNair began singing in Chicago supper clubs and, after cutting her teeth on the entertainment hall circuit, ended up on Broadway. Throughout the '60s, she recorded for Coral, Signature and Motown and sang the numbers "Bobby" and "You're Gonna Love My Baby." In 1968, she starred in the drama If He Hollers, Let Him Go!. This lead to her portrayal as a nun alongside Mary Tyler Moore in Elvis' last-ever film, Change of Habit and, in roles opposite Sidney Poitier in They Call me MISTER Tibbs! (1970) and The Organization (1971). She also hosted her own variety show, The Barbara McNair Show, in the late '60s and early '70s, and featured guests like Tony Bennett, Jacqueline Susann and Sonny and Cher. Said McNair's sister, Jacqueline Gaither, "She was very family oriented. She was more than just a star or a famous personality. She was a person of her own."

Article tags: Barbara, McNair, Singer-Actress-TV, Host, Dead, 72 

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