The publicist of Irene Cara gave sad news earlier this morning. The Oscar-winning singer and actress has passed away at 63. According to the tweet, which can be read below, the cause of death is currently unknown.
Cara was a performer from the start. She started taking dance lessons at five years old. Her first steps in front of a camera were for appearances on such shows as Johnny Carson’s The Tonight Show, and the 70’s educational show, The Electric Company. From there, Cara took to the stage, performing both on-and off-Broadway in shows such as The Me Nobody Knows, Via Galactica, and Ain’t Misbehavin’.
Cara stepped back in front of the cameras when she was cast as Daisy Allen in the 70s serial Love of Life. After that came her theatrical debut as the titular Angela in 1975’s Aaron Loves Angela. She went on to portray the titular character in 1976’s Sparkle. It was her performances in the two mini-series Roots: The Next Generations and Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones that skyrocketed her acclaim as an actress. From there, her only direction was up.
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Directed by Alan Parker, the 1980 film Fame was Cara’s biggest lucky break. She was originally cast as a dancer, but when producers David Da Silva and Alan Marshall, along with screenwriter Christopher Gore, heard her singing, they knew they had struck gold. The role of Coco Hernandez was rewritten immediately for her. Cara sang both the titular song, as well as the film’s other hit single “Out Here On My Own”. The fame of these two songs made history, not only contributing to the soundtrack album earning platinum status, but also at the Academy Awards. It was the first time two songs from the same performer, and same film, were nominated in the same category. Cara also earned Grammy nominations for Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, along with a Golden Globe nomination for Best Motion Picture Actress in a Musical. But this wouldn’t be her only time dancing with the stars…
Irene Cara Was A Voice For Generations
Irene Cara at the 1984 American Music Awards
After Fame, Cara’s success continued to grow. She returned to the small screen for roles in 1982’s Sister, Sister and 1983’s For Us the Living: The Medgar Evers Story. She also briefly made a return to the stage to play the role of Dorothy in a tour of The Wiz. But she would return to the silver screen in her most impactful performance, Flashdance.
Directed by Adrian Lyne and starring Jennifer Beals, Flashdance told the story of a young dancer following her dreams. The film features the song “Flashdance… What a Feeling” which was performed and co-written by Cara. The song would win Best Original Song in both the Golden Globe and Academy Awards, as well as a Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.
Throughout her career, Cara would continue to release albums, singles, and make several performances. Notably, she would lend her voice to several straight-to-video animated films such as 1990’s Happily Ever After and 1994’s The Jungle King. According to her publisher at the news of her death, she was still hard at work on new projects “that would have made her and her fans incredibly happy.” They are planning to finish them on behalf of Cara.
