Danielle Spencer star of ‘What’s Happening!!’ and Veterinarian, dies at 60

Danielle Spencer, the former child star actress who portrayed Dee Thomas on the ABC sitcom What’s Happening!!, died August 11 at age 60. Her longtime friend and co-star Haywood Nelson announced her death on Instagram.

Details: Actress Dr. Danielle Spencer passes away

Spencer’s cause of death was not immediately known. However, Nelson referenced her “long battle with cancer” in a heartfelt tribute.

“Dr. Dee, our brilliant, loving, positive, pragmatic warrior… has finally found her release from the clutches of this world and a body,” Nelson wrote. “We celebrate Danielle Spencer and her contributions as we regret to inform her departure.”

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Beloved actress turned veterinarian

Born June 24, 1965, in the Bronx, New York, Spencer was cast in 1976 as the sharp-tongued younger sister Dee Thomas on What’s Happening!!, a sitcom loosely inspired by the 1975 film Cooley High. Although the show began as a summer replacement, it ran for three seasons and later returned in syndication as What’s Happening Now!! from 1985 to 1988. Spencer reprised her role as a college-aged Dee in the revival.

Overcoming adversity

During the second season of the original series, Spencer survived a devastating car accident on September 6, 1977. The crash left her in a three-week coma and claimed the life of her stepfather, Tim Pelt. She spent six months recovering and later faced paralysis due to spinal stenosis. In 2014, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent chemotherapy. Four years later, she required emergency brain surgery to treat a bleeding hematoma linked to the earlier accident.

Pursued another passion

Despite these challenges, Spencer pursued a second career in veterinary medicine. After living briefly in Africa with her mother, she enrolled at the University of California, Davis, and later attended Tuskegee University Veterinary School in Alabama. She earned her veterinary degree in 1996, fulfilling a dream encouraged by her late stepfather.

In addition to her work as a veterinarian, Spencer became an advocate for animal rights and shared her personal journey in the memoir Through the Fire: Journal of a Child Star.

Nelson’s tribute reflected the depth of her impact:

“We have lost a daughter, sister, family member, What’s Happening!! cast member, veterinarian, animal rights proponent and healer, and cancer heroine. Our Shero. Danielle is loved. She will be missed in this form and forever embraced.”