Celebrating Black Brides: Profile #54

Couple: Jada Pinkett and Will Smith

Date of Wedding: December 31, 1997

Place: Cloisters (medieval-style mansion in Baltimore, MD)

Officiant: Pastor Marvis May

Fun facts: 

The bride's dress, a long-sleeved, high-necked champagne-colored, velvet gown was designed by Badgley Mischka.  The groom wore a matching tuxedo also by Mischka.

The couple first met when the bride auditioned for a role on the groom's sitcom, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, but they did not start dating until years later.

The bride did not get the role on the groom's sitcom because producers thought her 5' frame was too short for the 6'2 Smith.

The wedding was a secret to everyone including the guests.   No invitations were sent out.  Guest were put up in hotels and then shuttled to the wedding site by a fleet of 35 limos.

The bride and groom did not have bridesmaids or groomsmen.  No one gave the bride away.  She and her groom walked down the aisle together.