08/07/2025
Credit ➡️ Happy Birthday to the Unsung Culture Groundbreaker, Marcia McBroom!
Marcia McBroom-Small is an actress, model, dancer, educator, and humanitarian whose life bridges art, activism, and education. Born on August 6, 1947, in New York City, she gained international recognition for her role as Petronella “Pet” Danforth in the 1970 cult classic “Beyond the Valley of the Dolls.”
She also appeared in “Jesus Christ Superstar” (1973), “Shackin’ Up” (1983), and even in George McCrae’s iconic “Rock Your Baby” music video in 1974. Marcia began her career as a dancer and high-fashion model, becoming a familiar face in European magazines and gracing the cover of Essence Magazine in April 1971. Her presence marked a powerful moment in Black beauty representation at a time when such visibility was rare.
She is the daughter of Dr. Marcus McBroom, a civil rights leader who worked alongside Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy. In fact, her father was invited to join Kennedy’s campaign as a speechwriter and was scheduled to attend the senator’s victory rally the very night Kennedy was tragically assassinated in Los Angeles. Her mother, Marie Lee, was a proud Pan-Africanist, grounding Marcia.
Offscreen, Marcia committed herself to education and social justice. A semi-retired teacher of American and Global History at Manhattan Comprehensive Night and Day High School, she shaped young minds with the same passion she brought to the screen.
In the early 1980s, she founded the For Our Children’s Sake Foundation, a charity dedicated to uplifting and protecting vulnerable youth. A trailblazer in entertainment, education, and advocacy, Marcia continues to inspire.
