Nichelle Nichols, 87 – Actress

Back in the day, African-American actors were still rarely seen in Hollywood and TV productions. Actress/singer Nichelle Nichols was paving the way with her role as Nyota Uhura in Star Trek. Her performance as a space lieutenant was so convincing that she got to help with the NASA recruiting program. She was in charge of reaching out to women and minorities. Martin Luther King Jr. did persuade Nichelle to continue working in Star Trek after considering leaving the show for a Broadway career. As one of the first female African-American women on a major TV series, Nichelle’s work is groundbreaking and highly influential.