Ellen Holly (born January , ) is an American actress.A life member of
The Actors Studio, Holly began her career on stage appearing in the
Broadway productions of Tiger, Tiger Burning Bright and A Hand Is on
the Gate before embarking on a television and film career. She guest
starred on Sam Benedict and The Nurses before landing the role of
actress-turned-Judge Carla Gray on the ABC soap opera One Life to
Live, a role she played from to , and again from to . Holly came to
the attention of Agnes Nixon, the creator of One Life to Live, after
writing a letter to the editor of The New York Times about what it was
like to be a light-skinned African American. Nixon created the role of
Carla and offered Holly a role on her new show.When Holly began on One
Life to Live in October , her African-American heritage was not
publicized as part of the storyline; her character, named Carla
Benari, was a touring actress of apparently Italian American heritage.
Carla and a white physician, Dr. Jim Craig, fell in love and became
engaged. But she was falling for an African-American doctor. When the
two kissed onscreen, it was reported that the switchboards at ABC were
busy by fans who thought that the show had shown an African-American
and white person kissing. The fact that Carla was actually the
African-American "Clara Grey" posing as white was revealed when Sadie
Grey, played by Lillian Hayman, was identified as her mother. Sadie
would eventually convince her daughter to embrace her heritage and
tell the truth.Holly left the series in , but returned in . According
to her autobiography, One Life: The Autobiography of an African
American Actress, she was fired from the show by new executive
producer Paul Rauch in . Holly returned to daytime in the long-term
recurring role of a judge on Guiding Light from -. She made a return
to the small screen in , when she appeared as "Selena Frey" in the
made-for-cable film , Black Men Named George, alongside Andre Braugher
and Mario Van Peebles.
The Actors Studio, Holly began her career on stage appearing in the
Broadway productions of Tiger, Tiger Burning Bright and A Hand Is on
the Gate before embarking on a television and film career. She guest
starred on Sam Benedict and The Nurses before landing the role of
actress-turned-Judge Carla Gray on the ABC soap opera One Life to
Live, a role she played from to , and again from to . Holly came to
the attention of Agnes Nixon, the creator of One Life to Live, after
writing a letter to the editor of The New York Times about what it was
like to be a light-skinned African American. Nixon created the role of
Carla and offered Holly a role on her new show.When Holly began on One
Life to Live in October , her African-American heritage was not
publicized as part of the storyline; her character, named Carla
Benari, was a touring actress of apparently Italian American heritage.
Carla and a white physician, Dr. Jim Craig, fell in love and became
engaged. But she was falling for an African-American doctor. When the
two kissed onscreen, it was reported that the switchboards at ABC were
busy by fans who thought that the show had shown an African-American
and white person kissing. The fact that Carla was actually the
African-American "Clara Grey" posing as white was revealed when Sadie
Grey, played by Lillian Hayman, was identified as her mother. Sadie
would eventually convince her daughter to embrace her heritage and
tell the truth.Holly left the series in , but returned in . According
to her autobiography, One Life: The Autobiography of an African
American Actress, she was fired from the show by new executive
producer Paul Rauch in . Holly returned to daytime in the long-term
recurring role of a judge on Guiding Light from -. She made a return
to the small screen in , when she appeared as "Selena Frey" in the
made-for-cable film , Black Men Named George, alongside Andre Braugher
and Mario Van Peebles.
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