Desiree Dacosta was an American film assistant known for her work in the hit Eddie Murphy film, Boomerang and for being the wife of famous actor, Blair Underwood. She now works as a freelance talent coordinator.
Don't Miss: Richard Karn
Film Career
Desiree worked as an executive assistant under the famous actor Eddie Murphy. She started her career off as an assistant for Eddie for the film Harlem Nights in 1989. She worked for him again in the film Another 48 Hours in 1990. She got her big break in 1992 when she was again hired as Eddie’s assistant in the box office hit, Boomerang in 1992. She did so well in the high profile role that she was promoted to executive assistant for Eddie’s film, The Distinguished Gentleman.
Desiree also appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show in an episode that aired on February 12, 2004. She was also associated with the TV movie documentary Inside the White House but she was not credited.
Famous Husband
Desiree married her husband, actor Blair Underwood on September 17, 1994. Blair Underwood is an excellent actor and has made great contributions to the TV industry. They had dated each other a long time before they decided to tie the knot. They got married in Los Angeles, California. The couple is blessed with three children. Her daughter Paris Underwood was born in 1997 and Blake Ellis Underwood was born on June 9, 2001. Their youngest daughter Brielle Underwood was born in 1999.
Blair told AALBC how his life changed after being coined as a new handsome actor, “It was phenomenal, because I was single, and I was loving life, and enjoying the dating scene. It affected and altered my life in every way possible, for the better. You know, I was only 21 when I came on the show. I was there for seven years and it was just a great roller coaster ride. By the time I got married at 30, I was very much ready for the next chapter of life, i.e., a family. Now, my wife [actress Desiree DaCosta] and I are very happily married with three kids, and I don't feel like I missed anything.”
[page-break]
There was a moment when Blair Underwood got criticism for his portrayal of a black man with a white love interest on the popular HBO show, Sex And The City. However, his fans changed their tune and responded well when they discovered that he his real life wife, Desiree Dacosta was a black woman. The African American fans were initially upset with his on screen white love interest because they thought it was promoting the idea that black men should pursue white women as trophy love interests because black women weren’t good enough for them.
In an interview with People Magazine, Blair talked about how he ended up on the cover of Playgirl Magazine, ““They said this would be the first time an African-American would be on the cover of the magazine. I figured, hey, I’d rather have my wife looking at me than at any other brother on the cover. I show more at the beach than I do in the magazine. It’s the pages before and after the cover story that have nudity, and there you see more flesh than you ever want to see in your life.(His wife, freelance talent coordinator Desiree DaCosta, gave some advice) “Have fun with it. Just make sure you suck your gut in” she told me. “
Although Blair, who is almost in his 50 is very active on social media, his wife doesn’t seem to share the same openness and is very much private about her life. She has not been very proactive when comes to public appearances. She can be spotted at several award functions along with her husband but she usually isn’t photographed alone.
The couple is living with their loving family in Sherman Oaks Blair said that dating and being married to Desiree has altered his life in a big way. He is very happy and doesn’t feel like he is missing anything. They are complete as a family and have been able to enjoy great things in life together. They both like to teach their children lessons that they have learned in life.
Desiree and her husband are big fans of hip hop music. In an interview with Mega Diversities, Blair spoke about the tension between the current hip hop generation and the previous generations that gave birth to them. “I don’t know that it's that different than the tensions which have always existed, traditionally, between the young, the idealistic, the older and the more conservative. Every generation has had that. The ones who have learned from their mistakes try to teach the young. It's funny. I just had a conversation the other day with my six year-old daughter about what a rebel is. I was teaching her that Jesus was a rebel, and that Martin Luther King was a rebel, and that a rebel is not necessarily a bad person. That sometimes laws are unjust or not right in her language. Sometimes the laws need to be fixed. Historically, it has almost always been the youth who are the rebels, who buck the system. Sometimes the system needs to be fixed. So, I find great inspiration in the youth, and now, in the hip-hop generation.”
Charity Work
As a philanthropist, Desiree’s husband Blair Underwood co-founded Artists for a New South Africa in 1989, it was a non-profit organization dedicated to democracy and equality in South Africa. Her husband was awarded the 1993 Humanitarian Award for his work with the Los Angeles chapter of the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
He partnered with Ashley Judd to serve as the spokesperson for YouthAIDS in 2003. In 2004, he made an appearance in the public service announcement for The Fulfillment Fund. Desiree was by Blair’s side as he supported President Barack Obama's candidacy and contributed by speaking at campaign rallies for Obama. Her husband had gotten to know Obama while doing research for his L.A. Law role at Harvard Law School.
Last Modified: Mar 13, 2020
Related Biographies
