Georg Stanford Brown and Tyne Daly, renowned Hollywood actors, defied societal norms in the 1960s when interracial marriage faced severe prejudice. Their love story began in this challenging era, and they decided to marry on June 1, 1966, just a year before interracial marriage became legal across the U.S.
Brown, known for his roles in “The Rookies” and “Roots,” and Daly, famous as Mary Beth Lacey in “Cagney and Lacey,” faced racial prejudice early in their marriage. Notably, when they shared the first on-screen interracial kiss on an episode of “The Rookies,” network censors opposed it. Despite the pressure, the couple insisted on airing the scene, challenging stereotypes.
In a 1985 interview with the Washington Post, Daly expressed her perspective on their interracial marriage, stating, “I gave up categories a long time ago.” The couple had three daughters, and when Alyxandra was born, they described her race as ‘human’ on the birth certificate, emphasizing a global identity.
Despite their enduring love, Brown and Daly filed for divorce in 1990 after 24 years of marriage, citing irreconcilable differences. Their union, spanning over two decades, serves as an inspiration, showcasing resilience and love that transcended societal prejudices.
Hollywood actors Georg Stanford Brown and Tyne Daly only dated for five months before deciding they wanted to be together forever.
Their love affair began in the 1960s when interracial marriage was considered taboo, illegal, and punishable by law.
They married on June 1, 1966, just one year before interracial marriage became legal across the U.S. As late as 1960 such marriages were illegal in 31 states in the U.S.
Georg Stanford Brown had moved from Havana to Harlem when he was 7 years old and then moved to LA 10 years later where he finished his education, majoring in theater arts.
Although, initially choosing the path of theater arts to ‘do something easy’ he ended up enjoying it and returned to New York to attend the American Musical and Dramatic Academy, working as a school janitor to pay his tuition, earning $80 a week.
It was there that he met his future wife Tyne Daly where they both studied under Philip Burton, Richard Burton’s mentor.
Brown is perhaps best known for his role as Officer Terry Webster, one of the stars of the ABC television series “The Rookies” that aired from 1972 to 1976. He was also well known for his character Tom Harvey in the mini-series “Roots.”
During his long career as an actor and director, Brown played a variety of film roles, including Henri Philipot in The Comedians and Dr. Willard in Bullitt. In 1984 he starred in The Jesse Owens Story as Lew Gilbert.
When Brown married American singer and actress Tyne Daly she was a household name for her iconic role-playing Mary Beth Lacey, the gun-toting working-mother cop in the hit show “Cagney and Lacey.”
When the couple got married they faced racial prejudice but chose to ignore it – until they appeared on an episode of “The Rookies” together and shared their first on-screen interracial kiss.
Network censors wanted the scene deleted, but the couple stood their grounds, taped, and aired the segment without any issues from those closest to them.
In an interview with the Washington Post in 1985, Daly said she never saw being married to Brown as interracial. She does not, she says, “like pigeonholes.”
She is married to “another member of the human race. I gave up categories a long time ago,” she added.
The couple has three daughters Alisabeth Brown, born December 12, 1967; Kathryne Dora Brown, born February 10, 1971; and Alyxandra Beatris Brown, born October 1, 1985.
Daly said when their daughter Alyxandra was born, “on her birth certificate, under ‘race,’ we put ‘human’; under ‘sex’ we put ‘yes’, and under ethnic origin, we put ‘citizen of the world.’”
Describing her marriage to Brown, Daly said: “I have a good and interesting marriage that has gone on for quite some time and he’s an interesting fellow and we have some fascinating young children . . .”
Brown went into directing, and in 1986, he won a Primetime Emmy Award for Best Director in a Drama Series for the final episode of “Cagney & Lacey.”
Daly went on to star in many Broadway shows playing the role of Madame Arkadina in “The Seagull” in 1992, Cynthia Nixon in the 2006 comedy “Rabbit Hole,” and Maria Callas in “Master Class” in 2011, among others.
In 1990, after 24 years of marriage, Brown, and Daly filed for divorce. Even though their marriage had stood the test of time, they had to go their separate ways due to irreconcilable differences.
Inside Georg Stanford Brown & Tyne Daly’s Interracial Marriage That Lasted 24 Years
When Georg Stanford Brown and Tyne Daly married in the 1960s, interracial marriage was considered taboo, illegal, and punishable by law. However, their love was ready to conquer this battle.
Some of these laws had their origins in the seventeenth century when they developed slavery and antimiscegenation legislation together.
For Brown and Daly, nothing was going to stop them from being together. No matter what they had faced, they took on the challenge as a couple stayed together for over two decades.
Brown is a Cuban-American actor and director best known as Officer Terry Webster, one of the stars of the ABC television series “The Rookies” that aired from 1972 to 1976.
He was also well known for his character Tom Harvey in the mini-series “Roots.” This role got him an Emmy nomination, but that year, the Academy revoked his nomination after changing the number of nominees from 6 to 5.
Born June 24, 1943, in Havana, Cuba, his parents moved to Harlem when he was young. At 16, he left high school and moved to Los Angeles a year later. A few years later, he decided to go back to school.
Brown sat for and passed his college entrance exam, was admitted to Los Angeles City College, and graduated with a B.A. in Theater Arts.
To pay his way through the American Musical and Dramatic Academy (AMDA), he had to work as an $80-a-week janitor. It was at the Academy that he met his wife.
During his career, he played a variety of film roles, including Henri Philipot in “The Comedians” (1967) and Dr. Willard in “Bullitt” (1968). In 1984 he starred in “The Jesse Owens Story” as Lew Gilbert.
He went into directing, and in 1986, he won a Primetime Emmy Award for Best Director in a Drama Series for the final episode of “Cagney & Lacey.”
The American actress and singer who was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 2011 began her stage career in New York and made her Broadway debut in the comedy “That Summer – That Fall” in 1967.
Born February 21, 1946, in Madison, Wisconsin, United States, the award-winning actress is well known for playing Mary Beth Lacey, a married working mother, in “Cagney & Lacey.”
She also played Alice Henderson in “Christy” (1994-1995), Maxine Gray in “Judging Amy” (1999-2005), and played Anne Marie Hoag in Marvel Studios “Spider-Man: Homecoming” (2017).
In 1988, Daly appeared on Dolly Parton’s television show and sang a duet with Parton. This duet made broadway producer Barry Brown stage a revival of the musical “Gypsy,” with Daly taking the lead as Rose.
She continued her musical and Broadway streaks playing the role of Madame Arkadina in “The Seagull” in 1992, Cynthia Nixon in the 2006 comedy “Rabbit Hole,” Maria Callas in “Master Class” in 2011, among other notable shows.
For Daly, being an actress meant joining the family business. Her father, James Daly, was an American theater, film, and television actor, while her mother, Hope Newell, was an actress.
Before Daly became an actress, she intentionally failed in school and begged her father to send her to acting school. She was then sent to American Musical and Dramatic Academy, where she met Brown.
Being married on June 26, 1966, when interracial marriages were frowned upon, Brown and Daly have had their fair share of racial prejudice. Brown once said:
“There is a great deal of prejudice in the world.”
He made this statement because people constantly made him aware that he married a white woman. But, the couple usually ignored the prejudice they faced.
However, the one time they refused to ignore it was when he and his wife appeared on an episode of “The Rookies” and shared their first on-screen interracial kiss.
The network censors wanted the scene deleted, but they stood their grounds, taped, and aired the segment with no fuss. With all the uproar, they had no issues or opposition from both families.
For Daly, she never saw being married to Brown as interracial. She just saw it as being married to another member of the human race because she had given up on categories.
The ban on interracial marriage was not lifted until June 12, 1967. It was later pointed out that the 14th Amendment provides the freedom to marry regardless of the race of those involved.
Chief Justice Earl Warren said the state could not violate this right, and after this landmark High Court ruling, interracial marriage became legal across the United States.
However, before the crucial high court ruling, dozens of celebrities in and out of Hollywood were interracially partnered. They collectively crossed the color line for love long before interracial marriage became widely accepted.
In 2000, Alabama became the last state to overturn its ban on interracial marriage even though its constitution is dated 1901 and interracial marriage had become widely accepted in other states.
Interracial couples have always faced stigma throughout history, and some continue to face the same today. Despite the barriers these couples face in society, they can maintain lasting relationships.
In 1990, after 24 years of marriage, Brown, and Daly filed for divorce. Even though their marriage had stood the test of time, they had to go their separate ways due to irreconcilable differences.
At the time of their divorce, they had three daughters, Alisabeth Brown, born December 12, 1967; Kathryne Dora Brown, born February 10, 1971; and Alyxandra Beatris Brown, born October 1, 1985.
Even though she was divorced, Daly had always been outspoken. When the U.S. Supreme Court decided to legalize gay marriage in all 50 states, she was glad for the change as she remembered how interracial marriages were once a taboo.
She made a speech to her Broadway audience after the cast’s final bows to address the historic day being June 26, 2015. This was the same day she had gotten married in 1966.
In her speech, she read a quote from the newspaper of the same day, and she said, “Hate is very strong, but love is stronger.”
Though emotional, she said she was proud of the Supremes who had in the past made bad decisions but had made the right decision on that day. She was proud of her country because they took down a bad law so that people who love each other could get married.