Beverly Ann Johnson[1][3] (born October 13, 1952)[4] is an American model, actress, singer, and businesswoman. Johnson rose to fame when she became the first Black model to appear on the cover of American Vogue in August 1974, after Donyale Luna was the first Black model to appear on the cover of British Vogue in 1966.[5][6] In 2012, Johnson was the star of the reality series Beverly's Full House that aired on the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN). In 2008, The New York Times named Johnson one of the 20th century's most influential people in fashion.[7]
Beverly Johnson | |
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![]() Johnson in 2007 | |
Born | October 13, 1952 Buffalo, New York, U.S. |
Alma mater | Northeastern University |
Occupations |
|
Years active | 1970–present |
Known for | First African-American model on Vogue cover, August 1974[2] |
Children | 1 |
Modeling information | |
Height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) |
Hair color | Dark brown |
Eye color | Brown |
Early life and career
editBorn the first of two children to Gloria Johnson,[8] a surgical technician, Johnson was raised in a middle-class family in Buffalo, New York. During her youth, Johnson was a champion swimmer and aspired to be a lawyer.[4] Johnson attended Bennett High School,[9] graduating in 1969.[1] After high school, Johnson went on to study criminal justice at Northeastern University. While in college, Johnson tried modeling[10] while on summer break in 1971.[4] She quickly landed an assignment with Glamour and began working steadily.[10] She went on to appear on more than 500 magazine covers, including the August 1974 issue of Vogue, becoming the magazine's first African-American cover model for the US edition, after Donyale Luna's 1966 British Vogue cover.[4] Her appearance on the cover changed the beauty ideal in US fashion, and by 1975, every major American fashion designer had begun using African-American models.[11]
In addition to modeling, Johnson has also written the books Beverly Johnson's Guide to a Life of Health and Beauty[12] and True Beauty: Secrets of Radiant Beauty for Women of Every Age and Color.[13] Johnson's acting career[14] consists of roles in the films Ashanti (1979), The Meteor Man (1993), Def Jam's How to Be a Player (1997), and Crossroads (2002). She has appeared in guest spots on 7 television series, including Martin (TV series), Law & Order, Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, The Parent 'Hood and the Super Bowl episode of 3rd Rock from the Sun (1998). She served for two seasons as a celebrity judge on the TV Land series She's Got the Look, a reality series, where women aged over 35 compete for a modeling contract and magazine spread. At the start of the series in 2008, Johnson shared that she and other models had suffered from anorexia and bulimia during her career.[15] She had a brief singing career, releasing one album in 1979 on Buddah Records. Johnson has been a longtime hair and beauty influencer.[citation needed]
Johnson received the Women's Entrepreneurship Day Organization’s Model Pioneer Award at the United Nations in 2022, celebrating her as a trailblazer and innovator in her field. The prestigious award, also recognized by the US Congress, highlights women entrepreneurs and the meaningful impact they are having on the world.[16]
In 2024, Johnson embarked on a one-woman off-Broadway show entitled Beverly Johnson: In Vogue. It was characterized as an "intimate, live biography with Johnson taking the stage to share her personal dispatches in the ever-shifting, but never dull, fashion and entertainment industries."[17]
Memoir and accusation against Bill Cosby
editIn late 2014, she wrote an article for Vanity Fair[18] in which she accused Bill Cosby of drugging her in a meeting at his Manhattan residence in the 1980s, although the incident did not result in a sexual assault. Johnson said that Cosby spiked a cup of cappuccino with an unknown drug. As she felt her "body go completely limp," she realized what was happening. Johnson said she then screamed and cursed at him several times before Cosby got angry and dragged her outside and hailed a cab for her. Johnson decided to tell her story in hopes that "by going public" she would "encourage anyone [who] has been sexually victimized to speak out."[19][20] Her memoir, The Face That Changed It All, which discusses the Cosby incident, was released on August 25, 2015.
Subsequently, Cosby started a defamation lawsuit against Johnson, stating that she was lying about the drugging incident and contending that Johnson's story, first told in the Vanity Fair article, had been repeated in numerous interviews. The lawsuit sought unspecified damages and an injunction to prevent Johnson from repeating her claims and to require her to remove them from her memoir.[21] Cosby dropped the lawsuit on February 19, 2016, allegedly to devote more time to his criminal case.[22]
Personal life
editJohnson has been married thrice. Her first marriage was to real estate agent Billy Potter in 1971, later divorcing in 1974. On May 8, 1977,[23][24] Johnson, then aged 25, married 40-year-old businessman and music producer Danny Sims.[25][26] She gave birth to their daughter, Anansa Sims on December 27, 1978, in New York City.[27][14] Johnson and Sims divorced in 1979. Johnson and actor Chris Noth were in a five-year relationship until 1995.[28] She filed a restraining order against Noth, accusing him of physical, verbal and racial abuse.[29] On Jan.13th, 2023, she married her long time partner, Brian Maillian, a successful financier, Chairman and CEO of Whitestone Global Partners LLC.[30]
Filmography
editFilm
editYear | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1975 | Deadly Hero | - | |
1977 | The Baron | Recepcionist | |
1978 | Crisis in Sun Valley | Beverly | TV movie |
1979 | Ashanti | Dr. Anansa Linderby | |
1980 | The Sky Is Gray | John Lee's Mother | TV movie |
1993 | Loaded Weapon 1 | Doris Luger | |
The Meteor Man | Woman Doctor | ||
The Cover Girl Murders | Michaela | TV movie | |
A Perry Mason Mystery: The Case of the Wicked Wives | Jane Marlowe Morrison | TV movie | |
1994 | A Brilliant Disguise | Barbara | |
1995 | Ray Alexander: A Menu for Murder | Alana Durand | TV movie |
1996 | Crossworlds | The Queen | |
1997 | Def Jam's How to Be a Player | Robin | |
True Vengeance | Lt. Kada Wilson | Video | |
1998 | 54 | Elaine's Patron | |
2000 | Down 'n Dirty | Sandra Collins | |
2002 | Crossroads | Kit's Mother | |
2012 | Good Deeds | Brenda |
Television
editYear | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1979 | The American Sportsman | Herself | Episode: "Paul Newman Auto Racing, Bert Jones Geese Hunting" |
1989 | Saturday Night Live | Herself | Episode: "Leslie Nielsen/Cowboy Junkies" |
1990 | Hunter | Allistar Lang | Episode: "This Is My Gun" |
1992 | It's Showtime at the Apollo | Herself/Guest Host | Episode: "Episode #5.17" |
Law & Order | Salamotu | Episode: "Consultation" | |
1993 | Martin | Ms. Trinidad | Episode: "Blackboard Jungle Fever" |
Out All Night | Lorraine | Episode: "The Way We Were" | |
Law & Order | Marcela Di Portago | Episode: "Black Tie" | |
1994 | An Evening at the Improv | Herself/Host | Episode: "Episode #14.10" |
The Mommies | Herself | Episode: "The Exercist" | |
Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman | Mrs. Cox | Recurring Cast: Season 1 | |
1995 | Mad TV | Herself | Episode: "Episode #1.2" |
The Wayans Bros. | Miss Kita | Episode: "I'm Too Sexy for My Brother" | |
1996 | The Parent 'Hood | Mrs. Jordan | Episode: "I'm O'Tay, You're O-Tay" |
Arli$$ | Herself | Episode: "The Client's Best Interest" | |
Red Shoe Diaries | Lorri | Episode: "The Forbidden Zone" | |
1997 | E! True Hollywood Story | Herself | Episode: "Margaux Hemingway" |
Sabrina, the Teenage Witch | Fashion Director | Episode: "As Westbridge Turns" | |
1998 | 3rd Rock from the Sun | Prell | Episode: "36! 24! 36! Dick!: Part 1 & 2" |
2004 | Girlfriends | Herself | Episode: "Leggo My Ego" |
2005 | E! True Hollywood Story | Herself | Episode: "Janice Dickinson" |
2005-12 | America's Next Top Model | Herself | Recurring Guest |
2008-10 | She's Got the Look | Herself/Judge | Main Judge |
2010 | Tyler Perry's Meet The Browns | Kate | Episode: "Meet the Other Man" & "Meet the Old Fling" |
2011 | RuPaul's Drag U | Herself/Judge | Episode: "Bringing Sexy Back" |
2012 | Beverly's Full House | Herself | Main Cast |
2013 | Celebrity Ghost Stories | Herself | Episode: "Beverly Johnson/Charlene Tilton/Jimmy Wayne" |
2019 | American Style | Herself | Episode: "Born to Be Wild" & "Material World" |
Discography
editAlbums
edit- Don't Lose The Feeling (1979)
Singles
edit- "Don't Lose The Feeling" (1979)
- "Don't Run for a Cover" (1979)
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c "1969 Bennett High School 200 (Buffalo, New York)". Classmates.com. 1969. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
- ^ a b "NO 1. Black Model Keeps Her Mind In 'Right' Places". JET Magazine. Johnson Publishing Company. May 8, 1975. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
- ^ "UNCF Aided By $25Gs From Arthur Ashe Benefit March". JET Magazine. Johnson Publishing Company. November 20, 1975. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
- ^ a b c d "Johnson, Beverly (1952– )". Blackapast.org. December 17, 2010. Retrieved December 11, 2014.
- ^ Iconic Cover Girls Archived October 17, 2010, at archive.today – Coco & Creme
- ^ Sewing, Joy (August 23, 2009), "Beverly Johnson's got the right attitude", The Houston Chronicle. Retrieved August 23, 2009.
- ^ Dennis, Alicia Diaz, "Fashion Influential #68: Beverly Johnson", Zimbio, December 11, 2008.
- ^ Nikuradse, Tamara (1996). My Mother Had a Dream: African-American Women Share Their Mothers' Words of Wisdom. Dutton. ISBN 9780525941118. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
beverly johnson gloria johnson.
- ^ "1968 Bennett High School 200 (Buffalo, New York)". Classmates.com. 1968. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
- ^ a b "The Body Game". People. January 11, 1993. Retrieved August 15, 2008.
- ^ Gross, Michael (2003). Model: The Ugly Business of Beautiful Women. HarperCollins. p. 239. ISBN 0-06-054163-6.
- ^ "Beverly Johnson: Official Biography". amekor.com. Archived from the original on July 30, 2008. Retrieved August 15, 2008.
- ^ Johnson, Beverly (1994). True Beauty: Secrets of Radiant Beauty for Women of Every Age and Color. ISBN 0446517542.
- ^ a b Levitt, Shelley (August 10, 1992). "Like Mother, Like." People. Retrieved August 15, 2008.
- ^ Moss, Marilyn (June 2, 2008). "TV Review: She's Got the Look". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on July 16, 2008. Retrieved August 15, 2008.
- ^ "CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks" (PDF). Retrieved January 23, 2024.
- ^ Correspondent, Rita Charleston Tribune (January 7, 2024). "Off-Broadway show offers an intimate look into Beverly Johnson's life". The Philadelphia Tribune. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
{{cite web}}
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has generic name (help) - ^ Johnson, Beverly (November 30, 2014). "Bill Cosby Drugged Me. This Is My Story". Vanity Fair. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
- ^ Leopold, Todd (December 13, 2014). "Famed model Beverly Johnson says Bill Cosby drugged her". CNN.
- ^ Ellis, Ralph (December 22, 2015). "Bill Cosby sues supermodel Beverly Johnson for defamation". CNN. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
- ^ "Bill Cosby sues model Beverly Johnson over drugging claim". FOX 23. December 21, 2015. Retrieved December 21, 2015.
- ^ "Cosby drops defamation case against model Beverly Johnson". Fox News Channel. February 25, 2016. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
- ^ Wohlfert, Lee (October 10, 1977). "Model Beverly Johnson Weds Businessman Danny Sims and Gets a Svengali in the Bargain". People. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
- ^ Kisner, Ronald E. (June 2, 1977). "Beverly Returns To Buffalo: City Hall Opens On Sunday So Top Model Can Marry". JET Magazine. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
- ^ Kenner, Rob (October 30, 2012). "Danny Sims, Producer Who Signed Bob Marley, Dies at 75". The New York Times. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
- ^ Salewicz, Chris (October 14, 2012). "Danny Sims: Impresario with Mob connections who managed Bob Marley early in his career". The Independent. Independent UK. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
- ^ Johnson, Beverly (2012). The Face That Changed It All: A Memoir. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 9781476774435. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
- ^ People Staff (June 1, 2001). "Chris Noth (mr. Big)". People.
- ^ Nolan, Emma (December 17, 2021). "Chris Noth and Beverly Johnson Article Detailing Assault Allegations Resurfaces". Newsweek. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
- ^ "Beverly Johnson Reveals She Married Brian Maillian in Secret Vegas Wedding for Her Birthday". Peoplemag.