Ella Joyce (born Cherron Hoye; June 12, 1954) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Eleanor Emerson on the Fox comedy-drama

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ...

'' Roc'', which originally ran from 1991 until 1994.

Early years

The daughter of an autoworker and a hairdresser, Joyce was born Cherron Hoye in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, and raised in

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

. She graduated from the Performing Arts Curriculum at

Cass Technical High School Cass Technical High School (simply referred to as Cass Tech) is a public high school in Midtown Detroit, Michigan, United States.

, and went on to attend the Dramatic Arts program at

Eastern Michigan University Eastern Michigan University (EMU, Eastern Michigan or simply Eastern), is a public research university in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Founded in 1849 as Michigan State Normal School, the school was the fourth normal school established in the United Sta ...

. When financial problems caused her to leave, she returned to Detroit, where she graduated from a business school and then worked as an executive secretary at General Motors. She supplemented the income from that job by reading scripts for director

Lloyd Richards Lloyd George Richards (June 29, 1919 – June 29, 2006) was a Canadian-American theatre director, actor, and dean of the Yale School of Drama from 1979 to 1991, and Yale University professor emeritus. Biography Richards was born in Toron ...

, who encouraged her to act on-screen. After she moved to

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 on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Ha ...

, New York City, she worked as a word processor while she improved her acting skills. After she earned her first film credit in 1979, she changed her name to honor her mother and great-grandmother. She has studied with several professional mentors, and worked in many regional theaters across America and overseas.

Career

Joyce's career as an actress began on stage. Her many theater credits include ''

Fences A fence is a barrier enclosing or bordering a field, yard, etc., usually made of posts and wire or wood, used to prevent entrance, to confine, or to mark a boundary. Fence or fences may also refer to: Entertainment Music * Fences (band), an Amer ...

'' (at the

National Black Theater Festival The National Black Theatre Festival (NBTF) was founded in 1989 by Larry Leon Hamlin in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Serving as its executive director, Hamlin’s goal in creating the Festival was "to unite black theatre companies in America to ...

), as well as ''Medea and the Doll'', ''Steppin' into Tomorrow''; she was the first to play the roles of Risa at the

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

world premiere production of ''

Two Trains Running ''Two Trains Running'' is a 1990 play by American playwright August Wilson, the sixth in his ten-part series ''The Pittsburgh Cycle''. The play takes place in 1968 in the Hill District, an African-American neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. ...

'', Tonya in the world premiere production of ''

King Hedley II ''King Hedley II'' is a play by American playwright August Wilson, the ninth in his ten-part series, '' The Pittsburgh Cycle''. The play ran on Broadway in 2001 and was revived Off-Broadway in 2007. Productions ''King Hedley II'' premiered at th ...

'', and Lily Ann Green in '' Crumbs from the Table of Joy'', earning a Jefferson Award. Other stage plays in which she has appeared include ''Bossa Nova'', ''Last Street Play (The Mighty Gents)'', ''Checkmates'', ''Brothers, Sisters, Husbands and Wives'', ''Don't Get God Started!'', ''Louis and Ophelia'', ''Split Second'', ''Home'', ''Not a single Blade of Grass'', ''Odessa'', ''

Barefoot in the Park ''Barefoot in the Park'' is a romantic comedy by Neil Simon. The play premiered on Broadway in 1963, starring Robert Redford and Elizabeth Ashley. It was made into a film in 1967, which starred Redford and Jane Fonda. Productions ''Barefoot ...

'', and ''Anna Lucasta''. Joyce's television credits include the pilot for ''

NewsRadio ''NewsRadio'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on NBC from March 21, 1995 to May 4, 1999, focusing on the work lives of the staff of a New York City AM news radio station. It had an ensemble cast featuring Dave Foley, Steph ...

'', playing the part that eventually went to Khandi Alexander, and series regular "Eleanor Emerson" on '' Roc''. She also played the recurring role of "Jasmine" on ''

My Wife & Kids ''My Wife and Kids'' is an American sitcom that ran on ABC from March 28, 2001, to May 17, 2005. The series was produced by Touchstone Television. It starred Damon Wayans as Michael Kyle, the patriarch of an African-American family. Wayans and ve ...

''. She made a cameo appearance in the music video for TLC's "

Waterfalls A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in several w ...

". She has received numerous awards, nominations, and accolades for her performances in the theater, including the New York

AUDELCO AUDELCO, the Audience Development Committee, Inc., was established in 1973 by Vivian Robinson to honor excellence in African American theatre in New York City. AUDELCO presents the Vivian Robinson/AUDELCO Recognition Awards (also known as Viv awa ...

and the

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.&n ...

Image Nomination (for theater and television). She is also a recipient of the Spirit Of Detroit Award from the Mayor's Office in 1998. Joyce has also had a role in the

Tyler Perry Tyler Perry (born Emmitt Perry Jr., September 13, 1969) is an American actor, comedian, filmmaker, and playwright. He is the creator and performer of the Madea character, a tough elderly woman. Perry's films vary in style from orthodox filmma ...

film '' Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor''. She played The Nurse in

Don Coscarelli Don Coscarelli Jr. (born February 17, 1954) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Born to Italian settlers in Libya, he is best known for his work in horror films. His directing credits include the first four films in the ' ...

's 2003 film '' Bubba Ho-Tep'',The New York
/ref> and Sister Watkins in Warner Bros.' ''

Preacher's Kid Preacher's kid is a term to refer to a child of a preacher, pastor, deacon, vicar, lay leader, priest, minister or other similar church leader. Although the phrase can be used in a purely descriptive way, it may also be used as a stereotype. I ...

''. She appeared as Clifton's mother in ''

Nina Nina may refer to: * Nina (name), a feminine given name and surname Acronyms * National Iraqi News Agency, a news service in Iraq * Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, on the campus of Norwegian University of Science and Technology * No income ...

''. She also had a role in the F. Gary Gray action film '' Set It Off''. Joyce is also a personal acting coach and consultant, and has worked with many high-profile artists, such as

Toni Braxton Toni Michele Braxton (born October 7, 1967) is an American R&B singer, songwriter, actress and television personality. She has sold over 70 million records worldwide and is one of the best-selling female artists in history. Braxton has won ...

. She has also written her first book ''Kink Phobia, Journey Through a Black Woman's Hair''. Joyce is also teaching fitness classes called Funkacize which she created and teaches to old school music using old school dance moves to get you moving and healthy.

Personal life

Joyce married Dan Martin, an actor.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

*
Kinkphobia

Ms. Thing Productions, Inc.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Joyce, Ella Living people Cass Technical High School alumni Eastern Michigan University alumni Actresses from Detroit 1954 births American television actresses African-American actresses American film actresses American stage actresses 21st-century African-American people 21st-century African-American women 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women