Latest news with #WhatsHappening
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
'What's Happening!! 'Stars Remember Danielle Spencer as Family and Friends Mourn the Actress After Her Death at 60
The actress died on Monday, Aug. 11. surrounded by familyNEED TO KNOW Danielle Spencer starred as Dee Thomas on What's Happening!! from 1976 to 1979 Costar Haywood Nelson publicly announced that Thomas died of cancer at age 60 on Monday, Aug. 11 Other What's Happening!! cast members and guest stars are remembering Spencer for her bright spiritDanielle Spencer is being remembered for her bright spirit by her fellow What's Happening!! cast members. The actress, best known for her role as Dee Thomas in the 1976 sitcom, is being honored by her costars following news of her death at 60. News of her death was first shared publicly by Haywood Nelson, who played Dwayne Clemens Nelson on the show. The post indicates the actress died on Monday, Aug. 11. "Brilliance! It comes in a great many forms. We all have them and we all have this family's - Dr. Danielle Spencer," the post miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. "Dr. Dee, our brilliant, loving, positive, pragmatic warrior, without fail, has finally found her release from the clutches of this world and a body. We celebrate Danielle Spencer and her contributions as we regret to inform her departure and transition from a long battle with cancer." Nelson continued, "We have lost a daughter, sister, family member, What's Happening cast member, veterinarian animal rights proponent and healer, and cancer heroine. Our Shero. Danielle is loved. She will be missed in this form and forever embraced." Ernest Lee Thomas Thomas, who played Dee's big brother Raj, shared his own tribute, writing, " 'No more suffering' for my baby sister DR. DANIELLE SPENCER. She decided at 9 years old I was going to be her big brother for life." "A month ago, I had made arrangements for her to move to LA. A mutual friend, Darren Dill, was going to give her the master bedroom and a retired Christian couple, also great friends, Kirk and Lois Roberts, were going to be her caretakers. But she wanted to wait until her bed sores were healed," Thomas revealed. "I got news last night from Haywood Nelson that Danielle's mother said she had passed. My body tightened and stiffened like it was extremely heavy and waves of emotions came over me. I am happy she was with her mother and brother when she transitioned. I thank GOD for giving me 49 years of a supernatural friendship, millions of laughs, countless days worshiping our Savior CHRIST JESUS. Grateful but full of tears. 2 Corinthians 5:8 'ABSENT FROM THE BODY PRESENT WITH THE LORD.' " Jeremy Pelt Danielle's brother, Jeremy Pelt, shared a heartfelt message about how much his sister meant to him, alongside photos of their memories together throughout the years. "August 11, 2025 will forever be a reminder of the day that I lost a big part of myself. After many years, my big sister, Dr. Danielle Louise Spencer lost her battle with cancer," he began. "Many of you knew her as 'Dee,' but she was more than a child actress. She was a friend, an auntie to my three children who adored her, she was a daughter- and in many ways, my mother's best friend, she was a veterinarian, she was someone who always remained positive even during her darkest days fighting this disease. And she was MY sister and protector." Holly Robinson Peete Holly Robinson Peete recalled first meeting Danielle as teenagers and developing a special bond. "Oh, this is just gutting 💔💔💔 I'm so sad to hear about the loss of this beautiful woman who I met in 1977 when we were just 13. We hit it off immediately. We went to junior high school together when she wasn't taping What's Happening and I spent a lot of time on that set," she shared. "Danielle was such a brilliant as an actress-comedian. Her 'Dee' was HILARIOUS Her comedic timing was absolutely perfect!! She should've won all the Emmys! I mean she would just walk on set and the audience would be ready to laugh. Few actors on sitcoms had that super power…" Read the original article on People
Forbes
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Danielle Spencer, Child Star Of ‘What's Happening!!', Dies At 60
Danielle Spencer, the former child star best known for her role as the sharp-tongued Dee Thomas on the ABC sitcom What's Happening!!, died August 11, according to a post on Instagram by her friend and co-star Haywood Nelson. The cause of death was not known at press time. Spencer was 60. 'Brilliance! It comes in a great many forms. We all have them, and we all have this family's — Dr. Danielle Spencer (June 24, 1965 – August 11, 2025),' wrote Haywood Nelson. 'Dr. Dee, our brilliant, loving, positive, pragmatic warrior, without fail, has finally found her release from the clutches of this world and a body. We celebrate Danielle Spencer and her contributions as we regret to inform her departure and transition from a long battle with cancer.' Nelson continued: 'We have lost a daughter, sister, family member, What's Happening!! cast member, veterinarian, animal rights proponent and healer, and cancer heroine. Our Shero. Danielle is loved. She will be missed in this form and forever embraced.' Born June 24, 1965, in the Bronx, New York, Spencer was cast in 1976 as Dee Thomas, the precocious younger sister on What's Happening!!, a sitcom loosely based on the 1975 film Cooley High. Initially a summer replacement, the series ran for three seasons and was revived in first-run syndication as What's Happening Now!! from 1985 to 1988. Spencer reprised her role as a now college-aged Dee on a recurring basis. During the second season of the original show, on September 6, 1977, Spencer was involved in a serious car accident that left her in a three-week coma and claimed the life of her stepfather, Tim Pelt. She spent six months recovering. Spencer later experienced paralysis due to spinal stenosis and was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2014, which she overcame after chemotherapy. In 2018, she underwent emergency brain surgery for a bleeding hematoma resulting from the 1977 car accident. After What's Happening!! ended, Spencer and her mother spent time living in Africa before she enrolled at the University of California, Davis, to pursue veterinary medicine — a career path encouraged by her late stepfather. Following the cancellation of What's Happening Now!!, she attended Tuskegee University Veterinary School in Alabama and became a veterinarian in 1996. In addition to her veterinary career, Spencer shared her story in the memoir Through the Fire: Journal of a Child Star.
