(December 11, 1922 – October 4, 2024)
Toni Vaz, an actor-turned-pioneering stunt performer who went on to found the NAACP Image Awards, had died. She was 101.
Growing up in New York City, Vaz’s Barbados-native mother wouldn’t let her watch movies. But when she came of age, Vaz headed to Hollywood. She was cast as an extra in the 1959 feature Tarzan the Ape Man, doing a scene opposite MGM’s Leo the Lion. She later had small roles in Anna Lucasta and 1966’s The Singing Nun, which led to a new career in stunt work — a first for a Black woman.
Vaz performed stunts for such groundbreaking actors as Cecily Tyson — standing in for the star on Mission: Impossible — Eartha Kitt and Juanita Moore. Soon she was traveling the world performing all kinds of daring feats in front of the camera, including dangling from helicopters, and amassed more than 50 screen credits and 20,000-plus hours of performance.
Eager to begin a prestigious awards ceremony for people of color, she founded the NAACP Image Awards to honor her peers and encourage studios and producers to hire and honor a wider range of talent. The first ceremony was held in 1967 at the Beverly Hills Hotel’s International Ballroom, and she would receive the Image Awards’ Founders Award in 2021.
Later in life, Vaz remained very active and participated in many MPTF Studios productions, including an episode of Behind the Silver Screen devoted to her career. In 2020, she was featured in MPTF’s “Reel Stories, Real Lives” event, with her story told by Oscar nominee and multiple Image Award winner Angela Bassett. Vaz also appeared prominently in the organization’s 100th anniversary promotional campaign across Los Angeles.
