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Notable people · Entertainment · Film · African American History · Women

Halle Berry

Cleveland-born actress, Miss Ohio USA 1986 and, in 2002, the first African American woman to win the Academy Award for Best Actress.

Born August 14, 1966, Cleveland

Halle Berry
Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

At a glance

Born
August 14, 1966, Cleveland (Cuyahoga County) source
Also known as
Halle Berry, Maria Halle Berry
Known as
Entertainment, Film, African American History, Women

Halle Berry is living. This page covers their public life only, from published sources. Correct this page · hello@crackedbuckeye.com

Life story

Halle Berry was born in Cleveland in 1966 and was given a middle name taken from Halle's, the city's leading department store; her names were reversed to Halle Maria when she was five. She grew up in Oakwood Village, graduated from Bedford High School in 1984 as an honor student, cheerleader and class president, worked at Higbee's and took classes at Cuyahoga Community College. As Miss Ohio USA she was first runner-up at Miss USA 1986 and that year became the first African American to represent the United States at Miss World. After moving to New York in 1989 she rose from television to films including Jungle Fever, Introducing Dorothy Dandridge (an Emmy in 2000) and the X-Men series. Her role in Monster's Ball made her, on March 24, 2002, the first Black woman to win the Oscar for Best Actress. Ohio claims her through her Cleveland birth and her suburban upbringing in Oakwood and Bedford.

Ohio ties

  • Cleveland (1966)
    birthplace Cuyahoga County · source
  • Oakwood (Oakwood Village) (childhood-1987)
    grew up there; still her home when her agent sent her resume to WEWS in 1987 Cuyahoga County · source
  • Bedford (graduated 1984)
    Bedford High School, class of 1984; honor student, cheerleader, newspaper editor, prom queen Cuyahoga County · source
  • Cleveland (1980s)
    worked in the children's department of Higbee's department store Cuyahoga County · source
  • Highland Hills (mid-1980s)
    attended Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C) Cuyahoga County · source
  • Valley View (2007)
    homecoming promotion of Perfect Stranger at the Valley View theater, where more than 800 fans waited to meet her Cuyahoga County · source

Timeline

  1. 1966 Born Maria Halle Berry in Cleveland on August 14; her name was legally changed to Halle Maria Berry when she was five. source
  2. 1984 Graduated from Bedford High School; on September 2 she was crowned Miss Teen Ohio. source
  3. 1985 Bedford High's 1985 yearbook saluted her as 'a promising young model' who had won a Teen Magazine modelling contest and the Miss Teen All-American title after graduation. source
  4. 1985 Crowned Miss Ohio USA in November 1985, for the 1986 title year. source
  5. 1986 Finished first runner-up to Christy Fichtner of Texas at Miss USA 1986. source
  6. 1986 On June 17 she and the other Miss USA finalists left on a USO tour of Europe and the Mediterranean aboard an Air Force C-141B. source
  7. 1986 Represented the United States at Miss World in London, the first African American to do so, and placed in the top seven. source
  8. 1987 Applied, at 21, to co-host WEWS's Morning Exchange in Cleveland; the station chose Lee Jordan of Columbus. source
  9. 1989 Her pageant work led to her first acting role, in the 1989 television sitcom Living Dolls. source
  10. 1991 Made her film debut in Spike Lee's Jungle Fever. source
  11. 2000 Won the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie for Introducing Dorothy Dandridge. source
  12. 2002 Won the Academy Award for Best Actress for Monster's Ball at the 74th Academy Awards on March 24. source
  13. 2005 Accepted the Razzie for Worst Actress for Catwoman in person. source
  14. 2007 Received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6801 Hollywood Boulevard on April 3. source
  15. 2007 Came home to a Valley View theater to promote Perfect Stranger and told the crowd, 'I'm from here, and I'm one of you.' source
  16. 2021 Bruised, her debut as a feature director, was released on Netflix in November after a 2020 Toronto premiere. source
  17. 2025 Served on the main competition jury at the Cannes Film Festival. source

Stories

Named for a department store

Halle Berry was named after Halle's, Cleveland's leading department store. Halle Brothers Co. was founded on February 7, 1891, when Samuel and Salmon P. Halle bought a hat and fur shop at 221 Superior Avenue. By 1910 it had built a 195-foot main store at 1228 Euclid Avenue, designed by Henry Bacon, the tallest department store ever built in the city. Generations of Cleveland children knew it for Mr. Jingeling, Santa's keeper of the keys on the seventh floor, a character created in 1956. The chain was liquidated in 1982, and the Euclid Avenue building is now apartments.

Source

The Morning Exchange job she did not get

In 1987 WEWS in Cleveland went looking for a new co-host for its Morning Exchange program. One of the applicants was 21-year-old Halle Berry of Oakwood Village, whose resume came from her agent, Larry Rush of Social Consultants in Shaker Heights. His letter said she was a Bedford High graduate taking courses at area colleges, had studied acting and communications, and listed her titles: Miss Teen Ohio (September 2, 1984), Miss Ohio (November 1985), first runner-up at Miss USA and fifth runner-up at Miss World. Rush wrote that she would be good for the show and good for the ratings. The station never auditioned her and hired Lee Jordan, who had co-hosted PM Magazine in Columbus for six years. Within two years Berry was acting in New York.

Source

A Bedford yearbook salute

Bedford High School's 1985 yearbook gave a page to a recent graduate, spelled 'Halle Barry' in the text. It described the class of 1984 graduate as a promising young model who had entered a Teen Magazine modelling contest at the end of her senior year and, after graduation, won it along with the Miss Teen All-American title. The page predicted her chances were high in the Miss World competition and closed by saying she gave true meaning to the winning spirit of Bedford students. She did reach Miss World in London the next year, placing in the top seven.

Source

Sites to know

Homes, graves, markers, museums and monuments; the numbered ones are on the map.

12
  • 1 Bedford High School, 481 Northfield Road (class of 1984)
    Bedford Cuyahoga County · source
  • 2 Halle Building, 1228 Euclid Avenue, former main store of Halle's, the department store her name came from (NRHP) (private)
    Cleveland Cuyahoga County · source

Ohio places

Where Halle Berry was born, lived, worked and is remembered, with the ZIP code, town and county pages for each.

Myths and corrections

Things often said about Halle Berry, and what the record shows.

Often said Halle Berry won Miss USA and Miss World.

The record She won neither. A 2025 Cleveland Stater profile says she won both in 1968, two years after she was born. She was Miss Ohio USA and finished first runner-up at Miss USA 1986 to Christy Fichtner of Texas; at Miss World 1986 in London she placed in the top seven. source

Often said Halle Berry was born in 1968.

The record Some reference works, including Britannica Kids and BlackPast, give 1968. She said in interviews before August 2006 that she would turn 40 that year, and the Television Academy and the Hollywood Walk of Fame give August 14, 1966. source

Often said Berry was the first Black woman nominated for the Best Actress Oscar.

The record Dorothy Dandridge, whom Berry played in Introducing Dorothy Dandridge (1999), was the first African American woman nominated for Best Actress. Berry was the first to win it, in 2002. source

Documents

Primary records: patents, letters, court and government files, nominations and old county histories, each at the archive that holds it.

Pictures

Free to use with the credit shown. Select a picture for the original and its license.

  • 060524-N-7676W-133 New York Harbor (May 24, 2006) - Actress Halle Berry greets Sailors and Marines aboard the amphibious
    060524-N-7676W-133 New York Harbor (May 24, 2006) - Actress Halle Berry greets Sailors and Marines aboard the ...
    Public domain
  • 060524-N-1371G-258 New York Harbor (May 24, 2006) - On the flight deck aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge
    060524-N-1371G-258 New York Harbor (May 24, 2006) - On the flight deck aboard the amphibious assault ship USS ...
    Public domain
  • Halle Berry, Miss Ohio USA 1986, embarking on a USO tour with other Miss USA 1986 contestants.
    Halle Berry, Miss Ohio USA 1986, embarking on a USO tour with other Miss USA 1986 contestants.
    Public domain
  • Miss USA 1986 Christy Fichtner and eight runners-up in the First Annual Miss USA Show pose with members of the 41st Mili
    Miss USA 1986 Christy Fichtner and eight runners-up in the First Annual Miss USA Show pose with members of the...
    Public domain
  • Actress Halley Berry signs autographs for US soldiers at Tuzla Main Base, Bosnia-Herzegovina, during Operation JOINT GUA
    Actress Halley Berry signs autographs for US soldiers at Tuzla Main Base, Bosnia-Herzegovina, during Operation...
    Public domain
  • Halle Berry signs autographs for US soldiers at Tuzla Main Base, Bosnia-Herzegovina, during Operation JOINT GUARD.
    Halle Berry signs autographs for US soldiers at Tuzla Main Base, Bosnia-Herzegovina, during Operation JOINT GU...
    Public domain
  • NEW YORK (May 24, 2006)- Hugh Jackman, Halle Berry and Kelsey Grammer greeted servicemembers before Fleet Week. Marines
    NEW YORK (May 24, 2006)- Hugh Jackman, Halle Berry and Kelsey Grammer greeted servicemembers before Fleet Week...
    Public domain
  • From Clark's Facebook: "For too long, women’s health care has been underfunded, ignored, or under attack. It was a pleas
    From Clark's Facebook: "For too long, women’s health care has been underfunded, ignored, or under attack. It w...
    Public domain
  • From Clark's Facebook: "For too long, women’s health care has been underfunded, ignored, or under attack. It was a pleas
    From Clark's Facebook: "For too long, women’s health care has been underfunded, ignored, or under attack. It w...
    Public domain
  • First Lady Jill Biden and actress Halle Berry participate in “A Day of Unreasonable Conversation” about women’s health,
    First Lady Jill Biden and actress Halle Berry participate in “A Day of Unreasonable Conversation” about women’...
    Public domain
  • First Lady Jill Biden and actress Halle Berry participate in “A Day of Unreasonable Conversation” about women’s health,
    First Lady Jill Biden and actress Halle Berry participate in “A Day of Unreasonable Conversation” about women’...
    Public domain
  • Actress Halle Berry at the 2010 New York Fashion Week.
    Actress Halle Berry at the 2010 New York Fashion Week.
    German Marin at https://www.flickr.com/photos/marinnyc / CC BY 3.0

Sources

Confidence. High: the main facts were confirmed in sources we opened.

Every link goes to the original source. Profile researched 2026-10-15.

Correct this page · hello@crackedbuckeye.com