reflected the complexities of African-American life.
Many say that kind of real-life acting work came easily to Sutton, in part, because her mother, Marguerite Bush, was a community activist in the city whose passion for helping others was a guiding light for Ms. Sutton.
In recent years, Sutton’s television work included roles in “Tremé,” “True Detective,” “Queen Sugar,” and “Lovecraft Country” where she was celebrated by fans and colleagues alike for her ability to transfer emotion on-screen.
Ava DuVernay, creator of the OWN series “Queen Sugar,” also celebrated the career of Sutton, tweeting, “It was our honor to welcome this veteran actress of stage and screen to our show as Aunt Martha in Episode 409, ‘Stare at the Same Fires.’ May she rise and rest in peace and power.”
Ms. Sutton was born Carol Joan Dickerson in New Orleans on Dec. 3, 1944.
She was the oldest of three siblings. Her father, Amos Dickerson, was largely absent from her childhood, but her love for her city became stronger as she grew up.
“I never wanted to go to L.A. or New York,” she told her friend Tommye Myrick, a director, writer and producer, in an interview last year. “In those places, there were hundreds of people trying to do the same things I wanted to do. If I wanted to get onstage or get in a movie, I was able to do that right here.”
Survivors include a son, Archie; a daughter, Aunya; a brother, Oris Buckner; a sister, Adrienne Jopes; and five grandchildren.