Jan. 24, 1971: Actress Kenya Moore is born in Detroit

On this day in 1971, Kenya Moore is born in Detroit.

She will attend Cass Technical High SchoolWayne State University and earn the prestigious title and crown of Miss USA in 1993. Moore will hold the distinction of being only the second African-American woman to earn the honor in the pageant’s 41-year history. (Carole Gist of Detroit was first in 1990.)

Moore will later become a popular actress starring on television and in motion pictures. Her credits will include: Waiting to Exhale, Deliver Us from Eva, Trois, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, and Real Housewives of Atlanta.

Ken Coleman

Ken Coleman, the author of On this Day: African-American Life in Detroit, is a native Detroiter and former news reporter. He served on the Detroit Charter Revision Commission. He lives in Detroit with his wife, Kim Trent, and their son, Jackson Coleman.