Renauld White: Pioneering actor and model dies aged 80

Renauld White has passed away in hospice care, according to his friend, fashion designer Jeffrey Banks.

As reported by US celebrity site TMZ, White, who came to fame in the 1970s as a model, being only the second black face on the cover of the US edition of GQ magazine, died last week. After his modelling career in which he worked with Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren and Bill Blass, and appeared on the cover of Playboy, he moved into acting.

Banks told Women’s Wear Daily that White was a “groundbreaker”. He said: “There were very few Black models at the time. He really broke barriers. When they had a party for him in Newark for his 50-year anniversary in the fashion industry, he was very proud of the progress and how he opened the doors for other people.

“He was the perfect gentleman. He was kind and he was helpful. I think that’s why his death has been such a shock to people, because he was such a good person.”

White appeared in TV soap Guiding Light as William Reynolds for two years in the 1980s. He was cast in other TV series and movies over the years, including the horror flick Central Park in 2017.

His funeral will be held next month in his home town of Newark, New Jersey.