Marpessa Dawn

Marpessa Dawn

Known for

Acting

Born

January 3, 1934

Birthplace

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA

Died

August 25, 2008 (aged 74)

Biography

Marpessa Dawn (January 3, 1934 — August 25, 2008), also known as Gypsy Marpessa Dawn Menor was an American-born French actress, singer, and dancer. Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania of African-American and Filipino heritage, she is best-remembered for her role as "Eurydice" in the film Black Orpheus. She and her fellow lead from that film, Brazilian actor Breno Mello, died just 42 days apart in 2008, both from heart attacks.

Best known work

Black Orpheus
Black Orpheus
1959
Sweet Movie
Sweet Movie
1974
Private Collections
Private Collections
1979
Womaneater
Womaneater
1958
Africa on the Seine
Africa on the Seine
1955
Armchair Theatre
Armchair Theatre
1956
Le Bal du comte d'Orgel
Le Bal du comte d'Orgel
1970
At Theatre Tonight
At Theatre Tonight
1966
Cinépanorama
Cinépanorama
1956
The Secret of the Blue Men
The Secret of the Blue Men
1961

Filmography

  1. 1979

    Private Collections

    as a siren

  2. 1974

    Sweet Movie

    as Mama Communa

  3. 1972

  4. 1970

  5. 1966

    Chérie Noire

    as Chérie

  6. 1966

    At Theatre TonightTV

    as Chérie (1 episode)

  7. 1963

    38-24-36

    as Self

  8. 1961

  9. 1959

    Black Orpheus

    as Eurydice

  10. 1959

    DiscoramaTV

    as Self (1 episode)

  11. 1958

    Womaneater

    as Native Girl

  12. 1957

    Élisa

    as Negress

  13. 1956

    Armchair TheatreTV

    as Felicia Chinik (1 episode)

  14. 1956

    CinépanoramaTV

    as Self (1 episode)

  15. 1955

TMDBThis product uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB.Streaming availability data provided by JustWatch© 2026 FlickQueue · Privacy · Terms