Leon Isaac Kennedy (born June 1, 1948 or January 1, 1949VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever - Leon Isaaxc Kennedy (1949)
/ref>) (sources differ) is an American actor, disc jockey, film producer and playwright. Kennedy's acting roles include Martel "Too Sweet" Gordone in

Jamaa Fanaka Jamaa Fanaka (born Walter Gordon; September 6, 1942 – April 1, 2012) was an American filmmaker. He is best known for his 1979 film, ''Penitentiary'', and was one of the leading directors of the L.A. Rebellion film movement. Early life and ...

's ''

Penitentiary A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, correcti ...

'' (1979), ''

Penitentiary II ''Penitentiary II'' is a 1982 American Blaxploitation drama film directed by Jamaa Fanaka. Released on April 2, 1982, the film is the sequel to 1979's ''Penitentiary''. It was followed by another sequel, ''Penitentiary III'', which was released i ...

'' (1982), ''

Lone Wolf McQuade ''Lone Wolf McQuade'' is a 1983 American Western film directed by Steve Carver and starring Chuck Norris, David Carradine, Barbara Carrera, L.Q. Jones, R.G. Armstrong, Leon Isaac Kennedy and Robert Beltran. Plot J.J. McQuade (Norris) is a f ...

'' (1983) and ''

Penitentiary III ''Penitentiary III'' is a 1987 American crime drama film written and directed by Jamaa Fanaka. It is the sequel to the 1982 film '' Penitentiary II''. The film stars Leon Isaac Kennedy, Anthony Geary, Steve Antin, Ric Mancini, Marie Burrell Fana ...

'' (1987), and Leon "The Lover" Johnson in the 1981 film '' Body and Soul'' alongside his then-wife

Jayne Kennedy Jayne Kennedy Overton (née Harrison; born October 27, 1951) is an American television personality, actress, model, corporate spokeswoman, producer, writer, public speaker, philanthropist, and sports broadcaster. Personal life Jayne Kennedy g ...

Career

Born in Cleveland, Kennedy first began his career as a disc jockey and nightclub promoter.''Trying to Get Over: African American Directors after Blaxploitation, 1977-1986'', By Keith Corson
Page 127 , ''Outside of Society''
/ref> Kennedy headed to

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

to seek success in his career in June 1971. Once in California, Kennedy became a DJ on the FM rock station and also worked as a coordinator for a variety show. In 1972, Kennedy had a part in

Fred Williamson Frederick Robert Williamson (born March 5, 1938), also known as The Hammer, is an American actor and former professional American football defensive back who played mainly in the American Football League during the 1960s. Williamson is perhaps ...

's action film ''

Hammer A hammer is a tool, most often a hand tool, consisting of a weighted "head" fixed to a long handle that is swung to deliver an impact to a small area of an object. This can be, for example, to drive nails into wood, to shape metal (as w ...

''. In 1976, Kennedy appeared in another Fred Williamson film, ''

Mean Johnny Barrows ''Mean Johnny Barrows'' is a 1976 American crime drama film starring Fred Williamson, who also directed the film; Stuart Whitman; Luther Adler; Jenny Sherman; and Roddy McDowall also star. Plot Johnny Barrows (played by Fred "The Hammer" Wil ...

''. Kennedy later appeared in the 1978 film ''

Death Force ''Death Force'' (also known as ''Vengeance Is Mine'') is a 1978 martial arts exploitation film directed by Cirio H. Santiago and written by Howard R. Cohen. The film is an international co-production of the Philippines and the United States, a ...

'' with his then-wife

and with James Iglehart. In 1981, '' Body and Soul'' was released. The film featured Kennedy in the lead role as Leon Johnson, an up-and-coming boxer, and was written by him as well. A remake of 1947's '' Body and Soul'', the film also starred

and

Peter Lawford Peter Sydney Ernest Lawford ( Aylen; 7 September 1923 – 24 December 1984) was an English-American actor.Obituary ''Variety'', 26 December 1984. He was a member of the " Rat Pack" and the brother-in-law of US president John F. Kennedy and sen ...

. In 1988, Kennedy appeared with

Ernest Borgnine Ernest Borgnine (; born Ermes Effron Borgnino; January 24, 1917 – July 8, 2012) was an American actor whose career spanned over six decades. He was noted for his gruff but relaxed voice and gap-toothed Cheshire Cat grin. A popular perfor ...

Herbert Lom Herbert Charles Angelo Kuchačevič ze Schluderpacheru (11 September 1917 – 27 September 2012), known professionally as Herbert Lom (), was a Czech-British actor who moved to the United Kingdom in 1939. In a career lasting more than 60 ye ...

Oliver Reed Robert Oliver Reed (13 February 1938 – 2 May 1999) was an English actor known for his well-to-do, macho image and "hellraiser" lifestyle. After making his first significant screen appearances in Hammer Horror films in the early 1960s, his ...

Robert Vaughn Robert Francis Vaughn (November 22, 1932 – November 11, 2016) was an American actor noted for his stage, film and television work. His television roles include the spy Napoleon Solo in the 1960s series ''The Man from U.N.C.L.E.''; the ...

and

Arnold Vosloo Arnold Vosloo (born 16 June 1962) is a South African-American actor. He is famous for roles such as Imhotep in ''The Mummy'' and ''The Mummy Returns'', Colonel Coetzee in ''Blood Diamond'', Pik van Cleef in ''Hard Target'', Dr. Peyton Westlake ...

in ''

Skeleton Coast The Skeleton Coast is the northern part of the Atlantic coast of Namibia and south of Angola from the Kunene River south to the Swakop River, although the name is sometimes used to describe the entire Namib Desert coast. The indigenous San p ...

''. In 1991, Kennedy appeared in ''Damages'' which was an episode of '' Against the Law'' playing the part of Spider.

Personal life

Kennedy has been married three times. In June 1971, Kennedy, then 22, married Jayne Harrison, a 19–year old beauty pageant contestant who was from

Wickliffe, Ohio Wickliffe is a city in Lake County, Ohio, United States. The population was 12,750 at the 2010 census. A post office called Wickliffe has been in operation since 1843. The city was named after Charles A. Wickliffe, 11th United States Postmaste ...

; they divorced in 1982. In 1995, Kennedy married Lolita Armbrister. In August 2005, Kennedy married actress Maureen LaVette. Kennedy became a Christian evangelist during the early 1990s. In 2014, Kennedy sued

Ebony Ebony is a dense black/brown hardwood, coming from several species in the genus ''Diospyros'', which also contains the persimmons. Unlike most woods, ebony is dense enough to sink in water. It is finely textured and has a mirror finish when pol ...

magazine and

Johnson Publishing Company Johnson Publishing Company, Inc. (JPC) was an American publishing company founded in November 1942 by African-American businessman John H. Johnson. It was headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. JPC was privately held and run by Johnson until his d ...

, claiming in an article for their March 2013 "Scandal" issue the magazine falsely identified him as the person who leaked the infamous 1970s sextape of him with his then–wife Jayne Kennedy during their 1981 divorce proceedings.EURWEB - Leon Issac Kennedy - In Open Letter Tells Why He's Suing Ebony Magazine & Johnson Publications - February 2014
/ref>

References

External links

Official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kennedy, Leon Isaac 1948 births 1949 births Living people African-American male actors American male actors 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American people