Longtime Showtime at the Apollo host Kiki Shepard has died at the age of 74. TMZ said the face of the iconic music showcase, born Chiquita Renee Shepard, suffered a massive heart attack. Her representative, LaShirl Smith, confirmed her death according to the Daily Mail. The Texas native led the show from 1987 until 2002, working with comedians like Steve Harvey, Rudy Rush, and Sinbad at the iconic Apollo Theater in Harlem. As well as her hosting work, she also had screen credits in Everybody Hates Chris, Grey’s Anatomy, A Different World, Baywatch, and NYPD Blue, according to Deadline. She also did work on Broadway, in Bubbling Brown Sugar, Porgy and Bess, and Reggae. Before her 15-year stint at the Apollo, where she raised the curtain on so many performers’ careers, she worked as a professional dancer touring around the world, including for the prestigious D.C. Repertory Dance Company. During her time in Harlem, she was known as the “Apollo Queen of Fashion.”
The post ‘Showtime at the Apollo’ Co-Host Dies at 74 appeared first on The Daily Beast
