Grave Hunter Dorothy Dandridge D.O.B.: November 9, 1922 (Cleveland, OH) D.O.D.: September 8, 1965 (West Hollywood, CA) Cause of Death: Barbiturate poisoning Location: Forest Lawn Glendale; Freedom Mausoleum; Columbarium of Victory Biographical Notes: She was a beautiful actress and singer  who was a fragile boned beauty with skin often described as "cafe au lait". She rose to the top of her profession with her first starring role and became the first black woman to receive an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.  She knew it was hard, close to impossible, for a black actress to maintain a long running career in Hollywood because the roles were simply not there. She once said, "If I were white, I could capture the world". At the time of her death, there was $2.14 in her bank account. Her daughter was born with a brain injury. Appeared In: "Porgy & Bess" (1959) "Carmen Jones" (1954)