William Allen Young (born January 24, 1954) is an American actor and director who has starred in over 100 television, stage, and film projects, including two Academy Award-nominated films, ''

A Soldier's Story ''A Soldier's Story'' is a 1984 American mystery drama film directed and produced by Norman Jewison, adapted by Charles Fuller from his Pulitzer Prize-winning '' A Soldier's Play'', an adaptation of Herman Melville's novella '' Billy Budd''. It ...

'' and ''

District 9 ''District 9'' is a 2009 science fiction mockumentary film directed by Neill Blomkamp in his feature film debut, written by Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell, and produced by Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham. It is a co-production of New Zeala ...

''. He is best known for his roles as Frank Mitchell on UPN's ''

Moesha ''Moesha'' () is an American television sitcom that aired on UPN from January 23, 1996, to May 14, 2001. The series stars R&B singer Brandy Norwood as Moesha Denise Mitchell, an African-American teenager living with her upper middle class famil ...

'', Dr. Rollie Guthrie on the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...

medical drama '' Code Black'', and as Judge Joseph Ratner on CBS's ''

CSI Miami ''CSI: Miami'' (''Crime Scene Investigation: Miami'') is an American police procedural drama television series that ran from September 23, 2002 until April 8, 2012 on CBS. Featuring David Caruso as Lieutenant Horatio Caine, Emily Procter as Dete ...

''. His other television credits include ABC's ''

The Day After ''The Day After'' is an American television film that first aired on November 20, 1983 on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television network. More than 100 million people, in nearly 39 million households, watched the film durin ...

'', ''

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 ...

'', CBS's '' Madam Secretary'', '' JAG'', ''

Atlanta Child Murders Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

'', and '' The Women of Brewster Place'', among other shows. He is also credited with helping to diversify the ranks of writers, actors, directors and producers in Hollywood through the landmark 2000 TV Network Agreement, which he helped broker while serving as a former co-chair of the African-American Steering Committee of the Directors Guild of America.

Early life and education

Young was born in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

but grew up in

South Central, Los Angeles South Los Angeles, also known as South Central Los Angeles or simply South Central, is a region in southwestern Los Angeles County, lying mostly within the city limits of Los Angeles, south of downtown. It is "defined on Los Angeles city maps as a ...

, during the

Civil Rights Movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional Racial segregation in the United States, racial segregation, Racial discrimination ...

. One of seven children, he was inspired by his mother, Mother Joan Walker of California Southwest Jurisdiction, a high-school dropout who worked as a maid before returning to school at night to get her diploma and a nursing license, which led to a career in the medical profession.

Career

His acting career includes starring roles in the Academy Award-nominated film, ''A Soldier's Story'', and in ''Women of Brewster Place'', ''The Atlanta Child Murders'', ''Simple Justice'', ''

Sins In a religious context, sin is a transgression against divine law. Each culture has its own interpretation of what it means to commit a sin. While sins are generally considered actions, any thought, word, or act considered immoral, selfish, s ...

'', '' Lock Up'', and ''In the Belly of the Beast'', and the award-winning Lifetime series '' Any Day Now''. He guest starred in the 6th-season episode "Home Court Advantage" of '' Sister, Sister'' in 1999. Millions of viewers still recognize him as Frank Mitchell, the tough-but-loving father, on the hit TV show, ''

'', or as Chief Judge Ratner on ''

CSI: Miami ''CSI: Miami'' (''Crime Scene Investigation: Miami'') is an American police procedural drama television series that ran from September 23, 2002 until April 8, 2012 on CBS. Featuring David Caruso as Lieutenant Horatio Caine, Emily Procter as Dete ...

''. Young has received critical praise for his stage performances in

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 ...

and

Los Angeles 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' ...

, and he has performed abroad in Africa, Austria, France, Italy, London, Sri Lanka, and Russia. Young appears in the movie ''

'', filmed on location in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

, and released in August 2009. He starred as Harry Wentz on the Disney Channel Original Series ''

Good Luck Charlie ''Good Luck Charlie'' is an American sitcom that originally aired on Disney Channel from April 4, 2010, to February 16, 2014. The series' creators, Phil Baker and Drew Vaupen, wanted to create a program that would appeal to entire families, no ...

'' (2010-2014). In 2013, Young reunited with ''Moesha'' co-star

Brandy Norwood Brandy Rayana Norwood (born February 11, 1979), better known by her mononym Brandy, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, actress and model. She is known for her distinctive sound, characterized by her peculiar timbre, voice-layer ...

on the season six episode, "The Blueprint" on the television show '' The Game''. In 2013, Young made a guest appearance in Madam Secretary episode ''The Show Must Go On'' as

United States Deputy Secretary of State The deputy secretary of state of the United States is the principal deputy to the United States Secretary of State, secretary of state. The current deputy secretary of state is Wendy Ruth Sherman, serving since April 2021 under United States Secre ...

Steven Cushing. He is a USC graduate and former #1 College Speaker in the Nation for two consecutive years, when he led the Trojan Debate Squad to a National Championship. He holds a master's degree in Sociolinguistics, a bachelor's degree in Rhetoric & Debate, and has lectured at major colleges and universities nationwide. As founder/president of the nonprofit Young Center for Academic and Cultural Enrichment, he has helped transform lives and create opportunities for countless underserved youth to obtain a college education. Students from over 250 schools have participated in the organization's award-winning programs, and its distinguished alumni have been accepted at more than 80 U.S. colleges and universities to date. He is the recipient of the Ford Foundation Freedom Unsung Award,

NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.&nb ...

Social Achievement Award, Thomas Kilgore, Jr. Humanitarian Service Award, Hero in Education Award, President's Icon Award; and National Organization of Women at Work Man of the Year Award. He was recently inducted into the African-American Hall of Education and deemed an Ambassador of Goodwill by former

President Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and again f ...

Personal life

He has two children.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Young, William Allen Living people African-American male actors American male television actors Male actors from Washington, D.C. 1954 births 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American people