Allen Payne (born Allen Roberts on July 7, 1968) is an American actor best known for his role as Jason Alexander in the 1994 drama film ''

Jason's Lyric ''Jason's Lyric'' is a 1994 American erotic romantic psychological drama film, written by Bobby Smith Jr., directed by Doug McHenry, who co-produced the film with George Jackson and Marilla Lane Ross, and starring Allen Payne, Jada Pinkett, B ...

'', as well as his portrayal of C.J. Payne on the family sitcom ''

Tyler Perry's House of Payne ''House of Payne'' is an American sitcom television series created and produced by Tyler Perry that premiered in syndication on June 21, 2006. The series revolves around a multi-generational family living under one roof in Atlanta led by patriarc ...

'' (2006–present). Payne is also known for his portrayal of Lance Rodman on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

's ''

The Cosby Show ''The Cosby Show'' is an American television sitcom co-created by and starring Bill Cosby, which aired Thursday nights for eight seasons on NBC between September 20, 1984, until April 30, 1992. The show focuses on an upper middle-class African- ...

'' during its final two seasons. On film, Payne also played Gerald "Gee Money" Wells in the 1991 film ''

New Jack City ''New Jack City'' is a 1991 American action crime film based upon an original story and written by Thomas Lee Wright and Barry Michael Cooper, and directed by Mario Van Peebles in his feature film directorial debut. Released in the United St ...

'', and Detective Justice in the 1995 film ''

Vampire in Brooklyn ''Vampire in Brooklyn'' is a 1995 American dark comedy horror film directed by Wes Craven. It stars Eddie Murphy, who produced and wrote with his brothers Vernon Lynch and Charles Q. Murphy. The film co-stars Angela Bassett, Allen Payne, Kadeem ...

''.

Life and career

Payne was born Allen Roberts in the

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

area of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, the eldest son of Allen Roberts and Barbara Reeves. He attended

Pennsauken High School Pennsauken High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school in Pennsauken Township, Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades as the lone secondary school of the Pennsauken Pu ...

Pennsauken Township, New Jersey Pennsauken Township is a township in Camden County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a suburb of Philadelphia. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the township's population was 37,074, reflecting an increase of 1,189 (+3.3%) from the 35,885 count ...

. Payne's first television role was in a 1990 episode of ''

''. Over the span of two seasons, he portrayed Charmaine's boyfriend, Lance Rodman. Payne subsequently appeared in episodes of ''

The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'' is an American television sitcom created by Andy and Susan Borowitz for NBC. It aired from September 10, 1990, to May 20, 1996. The series stars Will Smith as a fictionalized version of himself, a street-smart t ...

'' and ''

Malcolm & Eddie ''Malcolm & Eddie'' is an American sitcom that premiered August 26, 1996, on UPN, and ran for four seasons, airing its final episode on May 22, 2000. This series starred Malcolm-Jamal Warner and Eddie Griffin in the lead roles. The program was ...

''. Payne has appeared in many films. He played "Dead Mike" in the

Nelson George Nelson George (born September 1, 1957) is an American author, columnist, music and culture critic, journalist, and filmmaker. He has been nominated twice for the National Book Critics Circle Award. Biography George attended St. John's Universit ...

-produced and George and

Chris Rock Christopher Julius Rock (born February 7, 1965) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and filmmaker. Known for his work in comic film, television and stage, he has received multiple accolades, including three Grammy Awards for best come ...

-written hip-hop parody ''

CB4 ''CB4'' is a 1993 American satirical comedy film directed by Tamra Davis and starring Chris Rock. The film follows a fictional rap group named "CB4", named after the prison block in which the group was allegedly formed (Cell Block 4). The movie ...

''. He also appeared in ''

'', ''

Double Platinum Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

'', and '' The Perfect Storm''. Beginning in 2006, he starred as C.J. Payne on ''

''. He also appeared in a

Stacy Lattisaw Stacy Lattisaw Jackson (née Lattisaw; born November 25, 1966) is an American R&B singer from Washington, D.C., United States. Career The 1979 song "Ring My Bell" was originally written for then twelve-year-old Lattisaw, as a teenybopper song ...

video ''I'm Not The Same Girl''. In 2018, he reprised his role from ''House of Payne'' on ''

The Paynes ''The Paynes'' is an American television sitcom that premiered on January 16, 2018, on the Oprah Winfrey Network. The show was created, written, and directed by Tyler Perry and serves as a sequel to his previous series, '' Tyler Perry's House o ...

''. In 2022, he also stars and reprised his role as "Gee Money" in the stage adaptation of ''

: Live on Stage'', produced by playwright Je'Caryous Johnson.

Filmography

Film/Movie

Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Payne, Allen 1968 births Living people Male actors from New Jersey Male actors from New York City Pennsauken High School alumni People from Pennsauken Township, New Jersey American male film actors American male television actors People from Harlem African-American male actors 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American people