Nichols was among the first Black women to have a leading role on a network television series
, making her an anomaly on the small screen, which until that time had rarely depicted Black women in anything other than subservient roles.
But Uhura’s influence reached far beyond television. In 1977, Nichols began an association with NASA, contracting as a representative and speaker to help recruit female and minority candidates for spaceflight training; the next year’s class of astronaut candidates was the first to include women and members of minority groups.
Grace Dell Nichols was born in Robbins, Illinois, on Dec. 28, 1932 , and grew up in Chicago. Her father was, for a time, the mayor of Robbins, and a chemist. At 13 or 14, tired of being called Gracie by her friends, she requested a different name from her mother, who liked Michelle but suggested Nichelle for the alliteration.
Nichols appeared in several musical theater productions around the country during the 1950s. In an interview with the Archive of American Television, she recalled performing at the Playboy Club in New York City while serving as an understudy for Carroll in the Broadway musical “No Strings” . At the time she took the role of Uhura, Nichols said, she thought of it as a mere job, valuable as a resume enhancer, but she fully intended to return to the stage; she wanted a career on Broadway. Indeed, she threatened to leave the show after its first season and gave Roddenberry her resignation. He told her to think it over for a few days.
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