Background
Smith was born and raised in Jackson, Tennessee.
Smith was born and raised in Jackson, Tennessee.
She is best known for her role as Delores Williams in the 1976 musical drama film Sparkle. In 1972, she made her television debut on the series Adam-12. She began making regular appearances on television shows such as Emergency!, Room 222, Sanford & Son, Ellery Queen, Owen Marshall: Counselor at Law, Barnaby Jones, The Jeffersons, Joe Forrester and Police Story.
In 1975, she was cast in the role of Delores Williams in the musical drama Sparkle.
Although the character "Sister" was to be the oldest out of three sisters, Smith (aged 31 at the time) was ten years older than McKee, and fourteen years older than Cara. In the film, she performed backing vocals to the Curtis Mayfield-penned songs, "Something He Can Feel", "Hooked On Your Love", and "Jump", (which were all re-recorded by Aretha Franklin for the entire soundtrack).
She continued to make appearances in films such as Cop on the Beat, Brothers (opposite Bernie Casey), the ill-fated and critically panned The Concorde..Airport "79 and Hell Squad followed by her role of Doctor Irma Foster on the groundbreaking soap opera General Hospital, a role she played from 1987 to 1989. Since her role in Sparkle, Smith largely faded from television and film altogether, appearing in the direct-to-video Member of Parliament Da Last Don (1998) as Master P"s mother, In The Wake (2000) and House Party 4: Down to the Last Minute (2001) as Mistress
Dixon. lieutenant marked Smith"s last role to date.
On August 3, 2011, Smith recently appeared in a YouTube video via her channel "mizdwan4" to which she was to reveal her sexuality for the first time. However, the secret comes out as her love and addiction for all types of wigs.