Leonard Earl Howze (born April 26, 1977) is an American

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

that has been credited in over 20 movie and television roles, most notably for his role as "Dinka" in the first two films of the '' Barbershop'' trilogy, '' Barbershop'' and '' Barbershop 2: Back in Business''. Howze has also made notable acting appearances in the television sitcom ''

Kevin Can Wait ''Kevin Can Wait'' is an American television sitcom starring Kevin James that aired on CBS from September 19, 2016, to May 7, 2018. The series was created by James, Rock Reuben, and Bruce Helford, and marked James' second starring role in a CBS ...

'', ''

Antwone Fisher Antwone Quenton Fisher (born August 3, 1959) is an American director, screenwriter, author, and film producer. His 2001 autobiographical book '' Finding Fish'' was a ''New York Times'' Best Seller. The 2002 film '' Antwone Fisher'' was writt ...

'', ''

The Lone Ranger The Lone Ranger is a fictional masked former Texas Ranger who fought outlaws in the American Old West with his Native American friend Tonto. The character has been called an enduring icon of American culture. He first appeared in 1933 in ...

'' and '' A Thousand Words''.

Acting career

Howze was born in Los Angeles, California on April 26, 1977, where he attended the

Los Angeles County High School for the Arts Los Angeles County High School for the Arts (LACHSA, ) is a visual and performing arts high school located on the campus of California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA) in Los Angeles, California, United States. History The school was ...

and graduated in the class of 1995. Howze also, attended the State University of New York at Purchase and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts to begin an acting career. Howze made his acting debut as a supporting character in the 2002 blockbuster film Barbershop, where he portrays Dinka, an optimistic stereotypical African immigrant who attempts charm his crush and barber colleague, Terri played by

Eve Eve (; ; ar, حَوَّاء, Ḥawwāʾ; el, Εὕα, Heúa; la, Eva, Heva; Syriac: romanized: ) is a figure in the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible. According to the origin story, "Creation myths are symbolic stories describing how the ...

. In the 2010's Howze continued to retain roles in the media, having roles in the films A Thousand words starring Eddie Murphy and in the 2013 film

as Homer. He appeared in multiple minor television roles as well including separate episodes of NCIS, Shameless,

Legit ''Legit'' is a slang abbreviation of '' legitimate''. It may also refer to: * Legit (professional wrestling) * ''Legit'' (2006 TV series), Scottish sitcom * ''Legit'' (2013 TV series), created by comedian Jim Jefferies * Legit Ballin', a record ...

and

The League ''The League'' is an American sitcom that aired on FX and later FXX from October 29, 2009, to December 9, 2015, for a total of seven seasons. The series, set in Chicago, Illinois, is a semi-improvised comedy show about a fantasy football leagu ...

. Howze has had a recent role in 48 episodes of the television sitcom

Kevin can Wait ''Kevin Can Wait'' is an American television sitcom starring Kevin James that aired on CBS from September 19, 2016, to May 7, 2018. The series was created by James, Rock Reuben, and Bruce Helford, and marked James' second starring role in a CBS ...

as a supporting role. Howze says his faith in God and timing as a attribution to his commercial success and lengthy acting career.

Personal life

Howze's hobbies when he's not acting include playing

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

bowling Bowling is a target sport and recreational activity in which a player rolls a ball toward pins (in pin bowling) or another target (in target bowling). The term ''bowling'' usually refers to pin bowling (most commonly ten-pin bowling), thou ...

and playing

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping ...

. Howze currently resides in New York during his intervals from filming.

Filmography

Film

Television

External links

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Howze, Leonard Earl 1977 births Living people Actors from California African-American male actors State University of New York at Purchase alumni Male actors from Los Angeles County, California Los Angeles County High School for the Arts alumni Male actors from California 21st-century American male actors American male television actors 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American people