Diahann Carroll, groundbreaking 'Julia' actress and Tony winner, dies at 84

Diahann Carroll, the actress who broke barriers for black women on stage and screen, died Friday. She was 84.

Carroll died of cancer at her home in Los Angeles, her daughter told The Associated Press. She portrayed iconic stage roles traditionally dominated by white women, and became a household name starring in NBC's Julia from 1968 to 1971.

Carroll grew up and went to performing arts high school in New York City, and started her career as a model before a TV talent competition earned her a nightclub singing gig. That eventually transformed into her Broadway debut in at age 19, and when Richard Rogers wrote the musical No Strings Attached specifically for her, she won a Tony award for her performance. Carroll had previous TV and movie roles, but scored the title role in Julia, portraying a single mother working as a nurse in the first TV show that starred a black professional woman.

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Later in her career, Carroll starred in movies opposite some of the biggest actors of the time, pairing twice with James Earl Jones and earning an Oscar nomination for Claudine. And in the 1980s, Carroll joined the soap opera Dynasty, where she often faced off against Joan Collins' character.

Ava DuVernay was one of the first of many Hollywoodites who paid tribute to Carroll. Kathryn Krawczyk