L-R: LORETTA DEVINE, SHERYL LEE RALPH & DEBORAH BURRELL ON THE COVER OF EBONY, MAY 1982
Of Broadway's original Dreamgirls, Loretta Devine (August 21, 1949) may not have been the most glamorous (Sheryl Lee Ralph) or the most bat-sh*t crazy/brilliant (Jennifer Holliday), but she was definitely the most likeable. She was the perfect fit for her character: sweet, slightly dizzy, but warm and wiser than she appeared. Since her days as a Dream, Devine has been a solid, engaging presence on TV shows ranging from Everybody Hates Chris to Boston Legal; and she made a memorable, all-too-rare co-starring turn in Waiting to Exhale with Angela Bassett and Whitney Houston.
LORETTA DEVINE IN 2002
One gets the feeling that Loretta Devine is like the funny, witty best girlfriend we all wish we had to dish with over a cup of coffee every morning. As befits the stars of a show based on The Supremes, rumors abounded during and well after Dreamgirls had ended its Broadway run of diva fights between the ladies. Chances of a reunion seemed as slim as a reunion of...well, The Supremes. But it happened, last year, at Sheryl Lee Ralph's annual Divas Simply Singing AIDS benefit concert. We'd like to think that it was Loretta Devine who paved the way to a truce.
L-R: SHERYL LEE RALPH, JENNIFER HOLLIDAY & LORETTA DEVINE