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Viola Davis becomes first black star to win Oscar, Emmy and Tony for acting

Not only did she take the award for Best Supporting Actress for her critically acclaimed work in "Fences," but the star made history.
/ Source: TODAY

Sunday night marked a huge win for Viola Davis. Not only did she take the award for Best Supporting Actress for her critically acclaimed work in "Fences," but the star made history.

Image: Viola Davis
Viola Davis accepts the award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for "Fences" at the Oscars on Sunday, Feb. 26, 2017, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.Chris Pizzello / AP

As a teary-eyed Davis accepted the Oscar at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, she achieved what's known as the triple crown of the industry by adding that honor to her past Emmy and Tony awards for acting — a feat only 22 others have ever accomplished.

But Davis stands apart as the only black star to have ever done it at all.

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In fact, the actress is a bit of an overachiever — she now has an Oscar, Emmy (for her work in "How to Get Away With Murder") and two Tonys (for "King Hedley II" and the Broadway production of "Fences").

"People ask me all the time, what kind of stories do you want to tell, Viola?" she said as she accepted her latest accolade. "And I say, exhume those bodies, exhume those stories. The stories of the people who dreamed big, and never saw those dreams to fruition, people who fell in love and lost. I became an artist, and thank God I did, because we are the only profession that celebrates what it means to live a life."

And now Hollywood is celebrating her.

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To fully appreciate just how exclusive the triple-crown club is, not even 20-time Oscar nominee Meryl Streep belongs to it.