american actress michelle doris thomas was born in brookline massachusetts on september 23rd
1968. it's no surprise that she would make her mark in the arts she had the perfect example in
both of her parents her father dennis d t thomas is a saxophonist for funk band cool in the gang
while her mother phynjuar thomas is a stage actress and acting coach her mother
was actually the one who gave michelle her basic training and acting and continued as
her personal coach throughout her career michelle entered many competitions and pageants as a child
she would go on to win hal jackson's talented teens international competition in new jersey from
there she went on to compete in the international pageant in jamaica and was crowned international
queen in 1984 at the age of 15. even though michelle was born in the greater boston area
she and her brother grew up in montclair new jersey where she attended west essex high school
she also studied dance at the broadway dance center in new york city initially noticed for
her singing ability she would instead decide to pursue acting her entry into the industry would
start slow with some guest spot roles on a couple of short-lived television shows such as a man
called a man called hawk and thea she also had a small role in the 1989 tv movie dream day starring
clifton davis tempestt bledsoe kadeem hardison and anne-marie johnson one year after graduation
her acting career would take off after she won the role of justine phillips the girlfriend of
theo huxtable played by malcolm jamal warner on the hugely successful sitcom the cosby show
the role would not only put michelle on the map in hollywood but it would make a significant
impact on her personal life as well initially just friends michelle and malcolm would begin
dating and remain in a relationship for six years after her time on the cosby show came
to an end she would finally get her first major motion picture role in the coming-of-age comedy
drama hanging with the homeboys by 1993 michelle would get another chance to have a major role on a
hit tv show in its fourth season michelle debuted the role of myra monkhouse steve urkel's lovesick
girlfriend on the show family matters myra this is laura hi nice to meet you hello hey and this
is your date steve urkel hello steve hello also during this time her talent and beauty helped her
land some noticeable roles in music videos one of which was for the song never make a promise by r b
group drew hill michelle's role on family matters would last five years until the show's end however
during the ninth and final season fans would notice her character showing up less frequently
and when she did show up it was obvious that she was losing a lot of weight and did not look like
her usual self according to michelle's co-star jaleel white who played steve urkel she had a
difficult time finding work again after the end of the show at one point she even got a job as
a waitress far outside of la so she'd reduce the risk of anyone noticing her waiting tables
over the years michelle would maintain great relationships with many of the people she worked
with even ex-boyfriend malcolm continued to enjoy working with her so much that she was invited to
do a guest star role on his own sitcom malcolm and eddie in 1997. michelle would eventually show up
in the soap opera world portraying callie rogers an aspiring singer on the young and the restless
however in october 1998 just two months after she started working on the show
she would take a medical leave michelle lived a very disciplined lifestyle she didn't smoke
or drink alcohol and she was also a vegan nevertheless she couldn't escape the devastating
turn her health would take in august 1997 she was diagnosed with a rare form of abdominal cancer
called desmoplastic small round cell tumor or dsrct once she received her diagnosis michelle
refused chemotherapy because she was afraid that it would interfere with her chances of conceiving
children in the future after two tumor removal surgeries over the span of about six months she
decided to go back home to new jersey to be with her family sadly just one month later on december
23 1998 michelle passed away she was 30 years old she was surrounded by her family and friends
including former boyfriend malcolm jamal warner as she transitioned she also unfortunately
died before having the children that she thought she was giving herself
the best chance to have by foregoing certain treatments for her condition several days later
a muslim funeral service was held followed by a burial in orange new jersey michelle
would win an image award from the national association for the advancement of colored
people as outstanding actress in a daytime drama series for her role on the young and the restless
in september 2017 the cast of family matters reunited jaleel made a point of acknowledging
michelle via a touching instagram post no reunion would be complete without me acknowledging
our beloved michelle thomas this little ray of sunshine gave me some of the best physical comedy
moments i'll ever play on screen michelle's smile never failed to brighten your day and i
will forever miss my bubbly myra monkhouse i love you michelle the instagram page official michelle
thomas consistently posts throwback photos and videos of michelle her family and friends it
also highlights her work and the positive mark she left on the entertainment industry
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