Gloria Hendry Biography
Gloria Hendry is an American actress and former model who rose to fame in the 1970s.
Born on March 3, 1949, in Florida, she grew up in Newark, New Jersey with her mother and sister. She studied at Essex College of Business for Law before working as a Bunny at the New York Playboy Club from 1968 to 1972.
Gloria Hendry made her acting debut as a cocktail waitress in 1968 in Sidney Poitier’s For Love of Ivy. She also starred in The Landlord (1970), Across 110th Street (1972), and Black Caesar in the 1973.
This was the same year she received her first major role as the Bond girl Rosie Carver in the James Bond film Live and Let Die (1973), creating history by becoming the first black woman to play a Bond girl.
Gloria Hendry continued to play leading roles in several blaxploitation films such as Hell Up in Harlem (1973), and Black Belt Jones (1974) and Savage Sisters in the same year. Throughout her career, Hendry starred in a range of other genres, including action, horror, and comedy. Her notable later films include Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings (1994) and Freaky Deaky (2012), and her last appearance as Aunt Sydney in Snow Black (2021).
Gloria Hendry’s talent, beauty, and versatility made her one of the most sought-after actresses of her time, and her impact on cinema, popular culture, and of course the James Bond series.