Khandi Alexander Wins NAACP Image Award

Last week, Khandi Alexander (Alexx Woods) walked away with an Outstanding Supporting Actress statue at the 36th Annual NAACP Image Awards.

The actress was honoured for her portrayal of medical examiner Alexx Woods on CSI: Miami, beating out colleagues Diahann Carroll of Soul Food, The L Word's Pam Grier, Dead Like Me's Jasmine Guy, and Sonja Sohn, of The Wire. The NAACP, or National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People, honor people of color in the entertainment industry every year at the Image Awards.

Alexander has been nominated for a NAACP Image Award three times before: for her guest-role on Law and Order: Special Victims Unit, her starring role as Francine Boyd on the mini-series The Corner, and her portrayal of sassy newscaster Catherine Duke on NBC's NewsRadio. This is the actress's first nomination and win for her role of Alexx Woods, and the first time an acting award has been given out to a cast member of CSI: Miami.

In the category of Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series, two CSI actors were competing for the award. Both Gary Dourdan (Warrick Brown) and Hill Harper (Dr. Sheldon Hawkes) were nominated, but ultimately lost to Kevin Hill's Taye Diggs. Other nominees included Steve Harris, of The Practice, and Law and Order's Jesse L. Martin.

But the night belonged to music legend Ray Charles. Actor Jamie Foxx received the Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture Award for his portrayal of Charles in the movie Ray. Fox has already received a Golden Globe, Academy Award, and Screen Actors Guild Award for the role. Other Ray winners included Kerry Washington and Regina King, who both received Outstanding Actress and Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture awards respectively. Genius: A Night for Ray Charles was also named Outstanding Variety Program.

The NAACP Image Awards will air March 25th on FOX. To view a complete list of winners, visit the New Orleans Channel. A backstage photo of Dourdan and Hill can be viewed through Yahoo News.

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