Vanessa Williams is reflecting on the early days of her career in a new interview with People.
The actress, 61, revealed that the late Johnny Carson made a “prejudiced” joke about her after she became the first Black woman to win the Miss America pageant in 1984. Williams shared that she was in New York City for an appearance when she turned on “The Tonight Show,” which was hosted by Carson at the time.
“When I had just won, one of my first appearances was in New York City, and I was staying at The Plaza,” she said. “I remember turning on ‘The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson,’ and his opening monologue was, ‘Did you hear we have the first Black Miss America? Yeah. They didn’t mention that Mr. T was one of the judges.””
“I was like, ‘Wow, that’s telling,”” Williams added.
The actress went on to share that she felt that Carson was implying that “there had to be one Black judge in order for me to win.”
“That’s just me as a 20-year-old, realizing, ‘Oh, there is some stuff that’s still racist and prejudiced and tinged with attitude and judgment.’”
Williams added that the Carson joke was just one of “so many instances” that she experienced at that time. The “Ugly Betty” star recalled that she received many racist comments and even some death threats after her win, according to People. Although her reign was cut short due to nude photos being sold without her consent, Williams does have some good memories from her pageant days.
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“President Reagan called me after I won at the Resorts Hotel in my room and said it was a great thing for our country,” she shared. “I burst into tears when I met Lena Horne because she was an idol.”
“I performed with Ray Charles on the USS. Being on ‘The Love Boat’ was fun,” Williams concluded. “It was a tremendous year. As terrifying as it was, it was incredible.”
