Diahnne Abbott

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Diahnne Abbott
Born (1945-05-01) May 1, 1945 (age 78)
Other namesDiahnne Déa
OccupationActress
Years active1976–present
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1976;div. 1988)​
Children Drena De Niro
Raphael De Niro

Diahnne Abbott (born January 1, 1945) [1] is an American actress.

Contents

Personal life

Abbott married actor Robert De Niro in 1976. That same year, they had a son, Raphael, who was named after the hotel in Rome where he was conceived. De Niro adopted Drena, Abbott's daughter from a previous relationship. De Niro and Abbott divorced in 1988.

Career

Abbott portrayed the pornographic movie theatre concession clerk in Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver (1976) opposite De Niro. She has a memorable cameo in the 1977 film New York, New York , in which she sings Fats Waller's song, "Honeysuckle Rose". [2]

She also played the object of De Niro's affections in Scorsese's 1983 film, The King of Comedy , as well as roles in the television series Crime Story (the character of Sonia) and the 1986 film Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling (Mother). She is the cousin of singer Gregory Abbott, known for his 1986 song "Shake You Down". [3]

Filmography

Film roles

YearTitleRoleNotes
1976 Taxi Driver Concession Girl
Welcome to L.A. Jeanette Ross
1977 New York, New York Harlem Club Singer
1982 The King of Comedy Rita Keane
1984 Love Streams Susan
1986 Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling Mother
2000 Before Night Falls Blanca Romero
2002SoliloquyLeah

Television roles

YearTitleRoleNotes
1988 Crime Story SoniaThree episodes

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References

  1. ↑ McCann, Bob (2009). Encyclopedia of African American actresses in film and television. McFarland & Co. p. 4. ISBN   978-0786458042.
  2. ↑ Gabbard, Krin (1996). Jammin' at the margins : jazz and the American cinema. University of Chicago Press. p. 278. ISBN   0226277895.
  3. ↑ "Biography" Archived April 22, 2018, at the Wayback Machine at Gregoryabbott.com.
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