Armelia McQueen, a prolific performer onstage and onscreen, has died. Her death was confirmed by a friend, Dorian Hannaway, in a Facebook post (via Deadline) on Sunday, though a cause of death remains unclear. She was 68.
McQueen’s career took off after she appeared Off-Broadway with Nell Carter and Charlayne Woodard in 1978's Ain’t Misbehavin’, a production that found its way to Broadway’s Longacre Theatre before winning the Tony Award for Best Musical. McQueen continued to work in theater throughout her career, but she also appeared in a number of onscreen roles. She played Whoopi Goldberg’s onscreen sister in Ghost, and also played supporting roles in films like No Holds Barred, Bulworth, and Life.
Throughout the ‘90s, she starred on the Disney Channel’s Adventures In Wonderland as the Red Queen and guested on a number of the decade’s most popular sitcoms, from Martin to Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air to Living Single to Mr. Belvedere. In recent years, she appeared on Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Hart Of Dixie, and That’s So Raven.
Below, watch McQueen perform alongside Carter and Woodard at the 1978 Tony Awards.