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African-American actress Loretta Devine was born on August 21, 1949, in Houston, TX. She graduated from the University of Houston in 1971 and Brandeis University in 1976. She made her film debut in 1980 in the movie "Will" and had major roles in the films "Waiting To Exhale," "I Am Sam," "Crash" and her most illustrious role as Pigfoot Mary in the film "Hoodlum." Loretta's television credits include "A Different World," "The PJ's" and "Boston Public" and "Grey's Anatomy." She played the featured role of Lorell in Michael Bennett's Broadway production of "Dreamgirls." Loretta is an honorary member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, and she has won three Image Awards.
Born in Houston in 1949, actress Loretta Devine rose to fame on-stage in the original Broadway production of +Dreamgirls before parlaying her acclaim into a career in film and television. Her first major onscreen role came in 1987, when she was cast as a resident advisor on the Cosby Show-spin-off A Different World. Though she left the series after the first season, it was far from her final gig as a TV series regular.



Throughout the early '90s, Devine appeared in small supporting roles in features films such as Class Act and Amos & Andrew as well as a number of TV guest spots on shows ranging from Roc to Picket Fences. In 1995, Devine's career was given a shot in the arm when she was cast as one of the leads in Waiting to Exhale, an ensemble film that proved to be a success with both critics and audiences. More supporting work followed, and in 2000 she was cast as a lead on David E. Kelley's Fox drama Boston Public, a show that would go on to be nominated for multiple Emmys over the course of its four seasons on the air.



Devine's career came full-circle in 2006 when she was cast in a small role in the film adaptation of +Dreamgirls, the stage musical that launched her career. The following year, she was cast as a regular on ABC's supernatural legal drama Eli Stone. Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide

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