Madge Dorita Sinclair

Actress. Born Madge Dorita Walters in Kingston, Jamaica, she was educated at the Shortwood College for Women and worked as a teacher in Jamaica for a almost a decade. She then traveled to New York City to in hope of becoming an actress. She began modeling and eventually performed at the New York Shakespearean Festival. She made her television debut in 1972 on the Richard Widmark series, “Madigan.” Her first feature film followed in 1974 with “Conrack.” She appeared as Bell Reynolds in the classic 1977 miniseries “Roots,” for which she was she was nominated for an Emmy Award. She appeared in numerous roles in movies for television and after school specials before being cast as nurse Ernestine Shoop in “Trapper John, M.D.” which ran from 1980 to 1986. She was nominated for three Emmy awards for her performances. Shortly after joining the cast, she was diagnosed with leukemia, but she continued to work, outliving the all doctors predictions. In 1986 she appeared as the captain of the USS Saratoga in the feature film, “Star Trek: The Voyage Home,” her role was the first female starship captain in any Star Trek series or movie. She then appeared as a regular in the short lived television series “Ohara,” and in 1988, appeared in one of her most recognized roles, Queen Aoleon in the comedy film “Coming to America.” The following decade was one of guest or recurring roles in such productions as “Midnight Caller,” “The Orchid House,” “Gabriel’s Fire,” for which she won an Emmy, “Pros and Cons,” “Queen,” and in 1993, she revisited the Star Trek universe when she guest starred on “Star Trek: The Next Generation” as Captain Silva La Forge, Geordi La Forge’s mother. The following year, she loaned her voice to Queen Sarabi in the animated feature, “The Lion King.” She also appeared in the television series, “Me and the Boys,” which ran for the 1994 to 1995 season. She succumbed to her illness at the end of that year, at the age of 57. When the Lion King 2 later went into production, as a mark of respect, the producers did not replace her, and her character, Queen Sarabi, did not appear in the film. She was honored by the prime minister of Jamaica with the Order of Distinction, Rank of Commander.