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The Negro Ensemble Company
The Negro Ensemble Company (NEC) is a New York City-based theater company and workshop established in 1967 by playwright Douglas Turner Ward, producer-actor Robert Hooks, and theater manager Gerald S. Krone, with funding from the Ford Foundation. The company's focus on original works with themes based in the black experience with an international perspective created a canon of theatrical works and an audience for writers who came later, such as August Wilson, Suzan-Lori Parks, and others. Beginnings The Negro Ensemble Company was created in 1964 when Hooks created a tuition-free acting workshop for urban youth which he named the Group Theatre Workshop (GTW), in tribute to Harold Clurman's The Group Theatre. The group became a refuge for young minority actors, with a focus on black theatre. He and his associate Barbara Ann Teer produced in a one-night showcase for friends and family of the actors. The plays chosen were Gwendolyn Brooks's '' We Real Cool'' and Douglas Turner War ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Hooks
Robert Hooks (born Bobby Dean Hooks; April 18, 1937) is an American actor, producer, and activist. Along with Douglas Turner Ward and Gerald S. Krone, he founded The Negro Ensemble Company. The Negro Ensemble Company is credited with the launch of the careers of many major black artists of all disciplines, while creating a body of performance literature over the last thirty years, providing the backbone of African-American theatrical classics. Additionally, Hooks is the sole founder of two significant black theatre companies: the D.C. Black Repertory Company, and New York's Group Theatre Workshop. Biography Early life The youngest of five children, Hooks was born in Foggy Bottom, Washington, D.C. to Mae Bertha (née Ward), a seamstress, and Edward Hooks who had moved from Rocky Mount, North Carolina with their four other children, Bernice, Caroleigh, Charles Edward "Charlie", and James Walter "Jimmy". Named Bobby Dean Hooks at birth, Robert was their first child born up north ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Danny Glover
Danny Lebern Glover (; born July 22, 1946) is an American actor, film director, and political activist. He is widely known for his lead role as Roger Murtaugh in the ''Lethal Weapon'' film series. He also had leading roles in his films included ''The Color Purple'', ''To Sleep with Anger'', ''Predator 2'', '' Angels in the Outfield'', and ''Operation Dumbo Drop''. Glover has prominent supporting roles in '' Silverado'', ''Witness'', '' A Rage in Harlem'', ''Dreamgirls'', ''Shooter'', '' Death at a Funeral'', ''Beyond the Lights'', ''Saw'', ''Sorry to Bother You'', '' The Last Black Man in San Francisco'', '' The Dead Don't Die'', ''Lonesome Dove'' and '' Jumanji: The Next Level''. He is also an active supporter of various political causes. In 2022, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences honored Glover with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award. Additionally, Glover has received numerous accolades, including the NAACP's President's Award and the Cuban National Medal o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sheryl Lee Ralph
Sheryl Lee Ralph OJ is an American actress and singer. She made her screen debut in the 1977 comedy film '' A Piece of the Action'', before landing the role of Deena Jones in the Broadway musical ''Dreamgirls'' (1981), for which she received a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical nomination. She currently stars as Barbara Howard on the ABC mockumentary sitcom ''Abbott Elementary'', for which she won Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series at the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards, and became the first Black woman to win the award in 35 years. Ralph has appeared in a number of films during her career. She starred alongside Denzel Washington in the film '' The Mighty Quinn'' (1989). In 1991, she won the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female for her performance in the 1990 drama film ''To Sleep with Anger''. Ralph starred in the 1992 films ''Mistress'' and ''The Distinguished Gentleman''. She later played the role of Florence Watson in '' Sister Act 2: Back in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ron O'Neal
Ron O'Neal (September 1, 1937 – January 14, 2004) was an American actor, director and screenwriter, who rose to fame in his role as Youngblood Priest, a New York cocaine dealer, in the blaxploitation film '' Super Fly'' (1972) and its sequel '' Super Fly T.N.T.'' (1973). O'Neal was also a director and writer for the sequel, and for the film ''Up Against the Wall''. Early life Ron O'Neal grew up in a working-class neighborhood of Cleveland, Ohio, to parents Eunice and Ernest O'Neal, a former jazz musician who earned his living as a factory worker. Ernest died when Ron was 16 years old. Six months later his brother, who worked as a truck driver, was killed in an accident. Following these tragedies his mother found a job in a hospital to sustain the family. Ron graduated from Glenville High School and attended Ohio State University, where he became interested in acting after seeing the play '' Finian's Rainbow''. He joined the Karamu House company in Cleveland, Ohio, working ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Denise Nicholas
Denise Donna Nicholas (born July 12, 1944) is an American actress, author, and social activist. Nicholas is known primarily for her roles as high-school guidance counselor Liz McIntyre on the ABC comedy-drama series ''Room 222'' and Councilwoman Harriet DeLong on the NBC/CBS drama series '' In the Heat of the Night''. Prior to her acting career, Nicholas was involved in the Civil Rights Movement during the 1960s. Biography Early life and education Nicholas was born in Detroit to Louise and Otto Nicholas. Nicholas spent her early years in Detroit. With the remarriage of her mother to Robert Burgen, she moved to Milan, Michigan, a small town south of Ann Arbor. At the age of 16, Nicholas appeared on the August 25, 1960, cover of ''Jet'' magazine as a future school teacher prospect at the National High School Institute at Northwestern University. She graduated from Milan High School in 1961. Nicholas is the middle child of three, with an older brother, Otto, and a younger sister, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Garrett Morris
Garrett Isaac Morris (born February 1, 1937) is an American actor, comedian and singer. He was part of the original cast of the sketch comedy program ''Saturday Night Live'', appearing from 1975 to 1980, and played Jimmy on ''The Jeffersons'' (1983–1984). Morris also had a role as Junior "Uncle Junior" King on the sitcom ''The Jamie Foxx Show'', which aired from 1996 to 2001. Morris had a starring role as Earl Washington on the CBS sitcom ''2 Broke Girls'', from 2011 to 2017. He is also known for his role in the sitcom ''Martin'' as Stan Winters, from 1992 to 1995, and the film ''Cooley High''. He played Slide in ''Car Wash'' (1976), and Carl in '' The Census Taker'' (1984). Early life and career Morris was born on February 1, 1937, in New Orleans, Louisiana, and grew up in the poverty-stricken Gert Town neighborhood in its 17th Ward. A church-choir singer from his youth, he trained at the Juilliard School of Music and graduated from Dillard University in 1958. Early in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Delroy Lindo
Delroy George Lindo (born 18 November 1952) is an English-American actor. He is the recipient of such accolades as a NAACP Image Award, a Satellite Award, and nominations for a Drama Desk Award, a Helen Hayes Award, a Tony Award, two Critics' Choice Television Awards, and three Screen Actors Guild Awards. Lindo has played prominent roles in four Spike Lee films: West Indian Archie in ''Malcolm X'' (1992), Woody Carmichael in ''Crooklyn'' (1994), Rodney Little in '' Clockers'' (1995), and Paul in ''Da 5 Bloods'' (2020); he received universal acclaim for his performance in ''Da 5 Bloods'' as a Vietnam War veteran, winning the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor and the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actor. Lindo also played Bo Catlett in ''Get Shorty'' (1995), Arthur Rose in ''The Cider House Rules'' (1999), and Detective Castlebeck in '' Gone in 60 Seconds'' (2000). Lindo starred as Alderman Ronin Gibbons in the TV series ''The Chicago Code'' (2011), ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cleavon Little
Cleavon Jake Little (June 1, 1939 – October 22, 1992) was an American stage, film, and television actor. He began his career in the late 1960s on the stage. In 1970, he starred in the Broadway production of ''Purlie'', for which he earned both a Tony Award and a Drama Desk Award. His first leading television role was that of the irreverent Dr. Jerry Noland on the ABC sitcom ''Temperatures Rising'' (1972–1974). While starring in the sitcom, Little appeared in what has become his signature performance, portraying Sheriff Bart in the 1974 Mel Brooks comedy film ''Blazing Saddles''. In the 1980s, Little continued to appear in stage productions, films, and in guest spots on television series. In 1989, he won a Primetime Emmy Award for his appearance on the NBC sitcom '' Dear John''. He later starred on the Fox sitcom '' True Colors'' (1991–1992). Early life Little was born in Chickasha, Oklahoma, the son of Malchi Little and DeEtta Jones Little. He was the brother of singer DeEt ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Samuel L
Samuel Leroy Jackson (born December 21, 1948) is an American actor and producer. One of the most widely recognized actors of his generation, the films in which he has appeared have collectively grossed over $27 billion worldwide, making him the third highest-grossing actor of all time. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences gave him an Academy Honorary Award in 2022 as "A cultural icon whose dynamic work has resonated across genres and generations and audiences worldwide". Jackson started his career on stage making his professional theatre debut in ''Mother Courage and her Children'' in 1980 at The Public Theatre. From 1981 to 1983 he originated the role of Private Louis Henderson in '' A Soldier's Story'' Off-Broadway. He also originated the role of Boy Willie in August Wilson's ''The Piano Lesson'' in 1987 at the Yale Repertory Theatre. He returned to the play in the 2022 Broadway revival playing Doaker Charles. Jackson early film roles include ''Coming to Americ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kevin Hooks
Kevin Hooks (born September 19, 1958) is an American actor, and a television and film director; he is notable for his roles in ''Aaron Loves Angela'' and '' Sounder'', but may be best known as Morris Thorpe from TV's '' The White Shadow''. Early life and acting career Kevin Hooks was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the son of Yvonne, a state employee, and Robert Hooks, a director and actor who starred in many films in the 1970s. Kevin's nickname among his friends is "King Royal". Hooks lived in Southwest, Washington, D.C. in the late-1970s. He attended Potomac High School in Oxon Hill, Maryland. When he was still 10, Kevin starred in the acclaimed ''J.T.'', a 1969 episode of the ''CBS Children's Hour'' about a sensitive Harlem youth who befriends a sick cat. Written by Jane Wagner, it was a Peabody Award winner. Hooks appeared in the hit 1972 movie '' Sounder'' as the pre-teen elder son of Paul Winfield's and Cicely Tyson's characters, providing the point of view of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sherman Hemsley
Sherman Alexander Hemsley (February 1, 1938 – July 24, 2012) was an American actor. He was known for his roles as George Jefferson on the CBS television series ''All in the Family'' (1973–1975; 1978) and ''The Jeffersons'' (1975–1985), Deacon Ernest Frye on the NBC series ''Amen'' (1986–1991), and B. P. Richfield on the ABC series ''Dinosaurs''. Hemsley also played Judge Carl Robertson on the NBC series ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air''. For his work on ''The Jeffersons'', Hemsley was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award. Hemsley also won an NAACP Image Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Comedy Series or Special ("The Jeffersons") in 1982. Biography Early life, education and service Hemsley was born and raised in South Philadelphia by his mother, who worked in a lamp factory. Hemsley did not meet his father until he was 14. Hemsley graduated from Barrat Middle School. For high school, Hemsley attended Central High School for ninth grade and Bok Tech ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Julius Harris
Julius W. Harris (August 17, 1923 – October 17, 2004) was an American actor who appeared in more than 70 movies and numerous television series in a career that spanned four decades. Harris is best known for his roles in 1970s films such as '' Live and Let Die'' and the blaxploitation films '' Super Fly'', '' Black Caesar'' and ''Hell Up in Harlem''. Early life and career Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to a dancer mother and musician father, Harris worked as a nurse, and a bouncer in New York City jazz clubs. Before he began his acting career, Harris served as a medic in the United States Army during World War II. After hanging out with many struggling actors, he took a dare and auditioned for his first role and was cast as the father in '' Nothing But a Man'', a critically acclaimed 1964 film about black life in the South starring Ivan Dixon and Abbey Lincoln. Some of his most prominent roles included the villainous, steel-armed Tee Hee in the James Bond film '' Live and L ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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