Sheila Guyse

Sheila Guyse (born Etta Drucille Guyse; July 14, 1925 – December 28, 2013) was an American singer and actress who performed on stage and screen during the 1940s and 1950s.

Race films Guyse had a sultry "girl-next-door" appeal which she showcased in three independent all-Black films (so-called "race films") of the late 1940s: Boy! What a Girl! (1947), Sepia Cinderella (1947, co-starring with Billy Daniels), and Miracle in Harlem (1948) giving impressive performances in all of them. She also appeared in the "Harlem Follies of 1949" and in a 1957 television adaptation of the play The Green Pastures.

Broadway Guyse was not an experienced or trained actress but she was a natural talent. She made her Broadway debut in the stage production Memphis Bound, which opened in 1945. She was selected to play the female lead opposite Bill "Bojangles" Robinson. The show closed after 36 performances. In 1954 Ken Davis and Sheila Guyse announced that they would end their marriage. In 1958 Guyse married Joseph Jackson, a sanitation worker in New York, and they had two children: Deidre Jean Jackson and Michael Jackson. Guyse later became a Jehovah's Witness due to her marriage to Jackson. The couple remained married until his death in 2012.

Health Shelia Guyse's health played a very important role in her career as a performer and entertainer. She struggled with her health many times throughout her career which caused her to turn down various roles and even take time away from the entertainment industry. In 1953, she was diagnosed with stomach ulcers a day after she had accepted a role in the Broadway stage production Mile High. She later came back to the entertainment industry in 1958 to record her only studio album, This is Sheila. Although she attempted to make a career comeback she struggled to get back into industry. She died of complications due to Alzheimer's disease on December 28, 2013, at the age of 88.