Penny Johnson Jerald (born March 14, 1961) is an American actress. She played Beverly Barnes on the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

comedy series ''

The Larry Sanders Show ''The Larry Sanders Show'' is an American television sitcom set in the office and studio of a fictional late-night talk show. The series was created by Garry Shandling and Dennis Klein and aired from August 15, 1992, to May 31, 1998, on the HBO ...

'',

Kasidy Yates This is a list of secondary characters from the science fiction television series '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine''. Characters are ordered alphabetically by family name, and only characters who played a significant major role in the series are l ...

on the syndicated

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

series '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'',

Sherry Palmer The following is a list of characters in the American serial drama television series '' 24'', '' 24: Live Another Day'', and '' 24: Legacy'' by season and event. The list first names the actor, followed by the character. Some characters have their ...

on the

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

series '' 24'', Captain Victoria "Iron" Gates on the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

comedy-drama series ''

Castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

'', and Dr. Claire Finn on the

Hulu Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television serie ...

science-fiction series ''

The Orville ''The Orville'' is an American science fiction comedy-drama television series created by Seth MacFarlane, who also stars as series protagonist Ed Mercer, an officer in the Planetary Union's line of exploratory space vessels in the 25th century ...

'', voicing Sarafina in the films ''

The Lion King ''The Lion King'' is a 1994 American animated musical drama film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The 32nd Disney animated feature film and the fifth produced during the Disney Renaissance, it ...

'' and '' Mufasa: The Lion King''.

Early life

Penny Johnson was born 14 March 1961 in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, one of seven children. Johnson aspired to be an actress as a child. She first attended

Western High School Western High School may refer: Schools in the United States *Western High School (Anaheim, California) – Anaheim, California * Western High School (Illinois) – Barry, Illinois * Western High School (Florida) – Davie, Florida * Western High S ...

before transferring to

Park School of Baltimore The Park School of Baltimore, known as Park, is a private, coeducational, non-sectarian, progressive day school for children in Pre-Kindergarten (age 4) through grade twelve. Park is located in Brooklandville, Maryland, near the city of Baltimo ...

. Johnson trained at the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most el ...

, where her classmates in 1982 included Megan Gallagher,

Jack Kenny Jack Kenny (born March 9, 1958) is an American writer, director, actor, and producer. Early life and education Kenny was born in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Sally (from Guantanamo, Cuba), a mother and housewife, and Jack, Jr. (from Chicago, I ...

Jack Stehlin John Anthony Stehlin III (pronounced "Stay-lin"; born July 21, 1966), known as Jack Stehlin, is an American television and theater actor who has played the role of Drug Enforcement Administration, DEA Captain Roy Till on the Showtime (TV network) ...

, and

Lorraine Toussaint Lorraine Toussaint () is a Trinidadian-American actress. She is the recipient of various accolades, including a Black Reel Award, a Critics' Choice Television Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award. Toussaint began her career in theatre before ...

Career

Jerald began her career with small guest roles. She made her screen debut on an episode of ''

American Playhouse ''American Playhouse'' is an American anthology television series periodically broadcast by Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). Overview It premiered on January 12, 1982, with ''The Shady Hill Kidnapping'', written and narrated by John Cheever an ...

'' in 1983. Her first major role on television was Vivian Conway in '' The Paper Chase'' from 1984 to 1986. She appeared in ''

General Hospital ''General Hospital'' (often abbreviated as ''GH'') is an American daytime television soap opera. It is listed in ''Guinness World Records'' as the list of longest-running television shows by category, longest-running American soap opera in pro ...

'' in 1986 and ''

Do the Right Thing ''Do the Right Thing'' is a 1989 American comedy-drama film produced, written, and directed by Spike Lee. It stars Lee, Danny Aiello, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Richard Edson, Giancarlo Esposito, Bill Nunn, John Turturro, and Samuel L. Jackson, a ...

'' in 1989. She portrayed Virginia "Vicki" Harper on short-lived sitcom ''

Homeroom A homeroom, tutor group, form class, or form is a brief administrative period that occurs in a classroom assigned to a student in primary school and in secondary school. Within a homeroom period or classroom, administrative documents are distri ...

'' in 1989. In 1992, Jerald landed the role of unflappable personal assistant, Beverly Barnes, on ''

''. For her work on ''Larry Sanders'', Jerald received a

CableACE Award The CableACE Award (earlier known as the ACE Awards; ACE was an acronym for "Award for Cable Excellence") is a defunct award that was given by what was then the National Cable Television Association from 1978 to 1997 to honor excellence in Amer ...

nomination for Best Actress in a Comedy Series in 1996. Two years later, she earned an

NAACP Image Award The NAACP Image Awards is an annual awards ceremony presented by the U.S.-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to honor outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music, and literature. Similar to ...

nomination in the category of Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. She continued playing Beverly until the show ended in 1998. Throughout the 1990s, Jerald guest starred in several television series, including ''

Parker Lewis Can't Lose ''Parker Lewis Can't Lose'' is an American teen sitcom that originally aired on Fox from September 1990 to June 1993. It was produced by Clyde Phillips Productions in association with Columbia Pictures Television. During the last season, the se ...

'', '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'', ''

Grace Under Fire ''Grace Under Fire'' is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from September 29, 1993, to February 17, 1998. The show starred Brett Butler as a single mother learning how to cope with raising her three children alone after finally divorcing her ...

'', '' Cosby'' and ''

Family Law Family law (also called matrimonial law or the law of domestic relations) is an area of the law that deals with family matters and domestic relations. Overview Subjects that commonly fall under a nation's body of family law include: * Marriage, ...

''. She appeared as Lavinia in television film ''

Class of '61 ''Class of '61'' is a 1993 American war drama television film produced by Steven Spielberg as a projected television series about the American Civil War. It focused on men who were classmates at West Point and separated by the war between the No ...

'' and portrayed Lorraine in '' What's Love Got to Do with It?'' (1993). Following ''Larry Sanders'', Jerald appeared in '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' playing freighter captain

, the love interest for the series's main character

Benjamin Sisko Benjamin Lafayette Sisko is a fictional character in the '' Star Trek'' franchise portrayed by Avery Brooks. He first appeared in the television series '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' (''DS9'') and became prominent on the TV show in the United ...

, a recurring role which she played from 1995 to the show's end in 1999. In 1997 she played Laura Simon in the film '' Absolute Power''. She also had a recurring guest role on '' ER'' as Lynette Evans from 1998 to 1999. She then appeared as Roscoe Dellums in the

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

-winning TV movie ''

The Color of Friendship ''The Color of Friendship'' is a 2000 television film based on actual events about the friendship between two girls; Mahree & Piper, one from the United States and the other from apartheid South Africa, who learn about tolerance and friendship. Th ...

''. Jerald also guest starred on ''

Frasier ''Frasier'' () is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for 11 seasons. It premiered on September 16, 1993, and ended on May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey (screenwriter), Peter Case ...

'', ''

The Practice ''The Practice'' is an American legal drama television series created by David E. Kelley centering on partners and associates at a Boston law firm. The show ran for eight seasons on ABC, from March 4, 1997, to May 16, 2004. It won an Emmy in 1 ...

'', ''

Touched by an Angel ''Touched by an Angel'' is an American fantasy drama television series that premiered on CBS on September 21, 1994, and ran for 211 episodes over nine seasons until its conclusion on April 27, 2003. Created by John Masius and executive produced b ...

'' and ''

The X-Files ''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation ...

''. Jerald's most-recognized role came in 2001 when she appeared in the pilot episode of the

Kiefer Sutherland Kiefer William Sutherland (born 21 December 1966) is a British-Canadian actor and musician. He is best known for his starring role as Jack Bauer in the Fox drama series '' 24'' (2001–2010, 2014), for which he won an Emmy Award, a Golden Glo ...

-led

series, '' 24'', playing

, the wife of

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

David Palmer. Jerald believed it was the first role to test her acting ability, claiming the majority of her previous characters were "easy-going." She appeared in all but two of the first season episodes and multiple episodes of the second and third seasons. She received a

Screen Actors Guild Award Screen Actors Guild Awards (also known as SAG Awards) are accolades given by the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA). The award was founded in 1952 to recognize outstanding performances in movie an ...

nomination for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series in 2003 alongside her ''24'' co-stars. In 2003, Jerald portrayed

Condoleezza Rice Condoleezza Rice ( ; born November 14, 1954) is an American diplomat and political scientist who is the current director of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. A member of the Republican Party, she previously served as the 66th Uni ...

in '' DC 9/11: Time of Crisis'', a TV movie about the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercia ...

in 2001. She reprised the role in the miniseries ''

The Path to 9/11 ''The Path to 9/11'' is a two-part miniseries that aired in the United States on ABC television on September 10–11, 2006 and in other countries. The film dramatizes the 1993 World Trade Center bombing in New York City and the events lead ...

'', which aired September 10–11, 2006. Jerald also guest-starred on the sitcom ''

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 ...

'', playing Shelly's mother Beverly in four episodes. She portrayed Rebecca Parrish in three episodes of sci-fi series ''

The 4400 ''The 4400'' (pronounced "the forty-four hundred") is a science fiction television series produced by CBS Paramount Network Television in association with BSkyB, Renegade 83, and American Zoetrope for USA Network in the United States and Sky ...

'' in 2007. Jerald had a recurring role on

midseason drama '' October Road'' for the 2007–08 season. She made guest appearances on episodes of ''

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 ...

''. Jerald gave voice to

Amanda Waller Amanda Blake Waller (née White), also known as "the Wall", is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in ''Legends'' #1 in 1986 and was created by John Ostrander, Len Wein, and ...

in animated series '' Justice League: Gods and Monsters Chronicles'' in 2015. Jerald joined the cast of

's ''

'' in its fourth season as the new captain of the 12th Precinct, Victoria "Iron" Gates, replacing

Ruben Santiago-Hudson Ruben Santiago-Hudson (born Ruben Santiago Jr., November 24, 1956) is an American actor, playwright, and director who has won national awards for his work in all three categories. He is best known for his role of Captain Roy Montgomery from 2009 ...

's deceased character Roy Montgomery as captain of the precinct. In 2015, Jerald announced on

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

that she had been let go from the series, and was herself "saddened" and "surprised" by the news. Regarding Jerald's exit from the series, ''Castle'' showrunner Alexi Hawley stated it was "very difficult" writing her out of the series. She was later cast in the role of Dr. Finn in the

science-fiction series ''

''. In 2019, Jerald provided the voice of Sarafina in ''

'', a remake of the 1994 film.

Personal life

She married Gralin Jerald in 1983. Jerald also teaches acting workshops and produces and directs for Outreach Christian Theater Company, which she and her musician husband founded in 1994. The couple have a daughter.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jerald, Penny Johnson African-American actresses American Christians American film actresses American television actresses American voice actresses Juilliard School alumni Living people Actresses from Baltimore Park School of Baltimore alumni 21st-century African-American people 21st-century African-American women 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women 1961 births