Omar Miles Gooding Sr., also known by his stage name, Big OOmar Gooding Pursues Rap
March 15, 2010. Accessed April 17, 2012 (born October 19, 1976), is an American actor.

Early life and education

Omar Gooding was born in

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' ...

, on October 19, 1976, to Shirley (née Sullivan) and

Cuba Gooding Sr. Cuba Mark Gooding Sr. (April 27, 1944 – April 20, 2017) was an American singer. He was the most successful lead singer of the soul group The Main Ingredient, replacing former lead singer Donald McPherson who was diagnosed with leukemia in ...

, the former lead singer for

The Main Ingredient The Main Ingredient was an American soul and R&B group best known for their 1972 hit song "Everybody Plays the Fool". Early history The group was formed in Harlem, New York City in 1964 as a trio called the Poets, composed of lead singer Dona ...

. His older brother is

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

-winning actor

Cuba Gooding Jr. Cuba Mark Gooding Jr. (born January 2, 1968) is an American actor. He is the recipient of an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and an Emmy nomination. After his breakthrough role as Tre Styles in ''Boyz n the Hood'' (1991), he appeare ...

Omar graduated from

North Hollywood High School North Hollywood High School (NHHS) is a public high school in the North Hollywood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. It is located in the San Fernando Valley and enrolls approximately 2,500 students. Several neighborhoods, inc ...

in 1994.

Career

Gooding is best known for appearing in television shows, such as ''

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 ...

'', ''

Wild & Crazy Kids ''Wild & Crazy Kids'' is an American television game show in which large teams, usually consisting entirely of children, participated in head-to-head physical challenges on Nickelodeon. The show lasted for three seasons from 1990 until 1992 for a ...

'', '' Hangin' with Mr. Cooper'', ''

Smart Guy ''Smart Guy'' is an American sitcom television series centering on the exploits of child prodigy T.J. Henderson (Tahj Mowry), who moves from being an elementary school student in the fourth grade to a high school student in the tenth grade, atte ...

'', and ''

Playmakers ''Playmakers'' is an American drama series that aired on ESPN from August 26 to November 11, 2003. It depicted the lives of the Cougars, a fictional professional football team in an unidentified city. The show starred Omar Gooding, Marcello Thed ...

'', and also the

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

s ''

Ghost Dad ''Ghost Dad'' is a 1990 American fantasy comedy film directed by Sidney Poitier (in his final directorial effort) and starring Bill Cosby, in which a widower's spirit is able to communicate with his children after his death. It was critically pan ...

'' and '' Baby Boy'' for which he received critical praise for his role as "Sweetpea".Omar Gooding
Film Bug. Accessed April 16, 2012 He was one of the original hosts of the

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...

television show ''Wild & Crazy Kids'' from 1990 to 1992. Gooding played D.H., a running back, on ''

'' in 2003. He played the character Odell in the third season of ''Deadwood''. In 2005, he took the role of Calvin Palmer Jr. in the television series '' Barbershop'' (in the role originated by

Ice Cube An ice cube is a small piece of ice, which is typically rectangular as viewed from above and trapezoidal as viewed from the side. Ice cubes are products of mechanical refrigeration and are usually produced to cool beverages. They may be produc ...

in the film version), based upon the 2002 film of the same name. Coincidentally, he also appeared on the

UPN The United Paramount Network (UPN) was an American broadcast television network that launched on January 16, 1995. It was originally owned by Chris-Craft Industries' United Television. Viacom (through its Paramount Television unit, which prod ...

sitcom '' One on One'' as a barber in Flex Washington's barbershop. Gooding also appeared in the ''

Grey's Anatomy ''Grey's Anatomy'' is an American medical drama television series that premiered on March 27, 2005, on ABC as a mid-season replacement. The series focuses on the lives of surgical interns, residents, and attendings as they develop into se ...

'' episode "Superfreak". From April 2010 to July 2010, Gooding starred as trauma charge nurse, Tuck Brody, in the Bruckheimer television series

Miami Medical ''Miami Medical'' (formerly titled ''Miami Trauma'') is an American medical drama television series that aired on CBS from April 2 to July 2, 2010. It follows the professional and private lives of a team of trauma surgeons. The series was created ...

. In 2012, he premiered and starred in the first season of '' Family Time'', a television series for the

Bounce TV Bounce TV is an American digital multicast television network owned by Katz Broadcasting, a subsidiary of E. W. Scripps Company. Promoted as "the first 24/7 digital multicast broadcast network created to target African Americans", the channel fe ...

network that is also shown on TV One. This is another show created by Bentley Kyle Evans. Gooding plays a comedic father name Anthony Stallworth, alongside Angell Conwell, who plays Mrs. Stallworth. Currently, the series is in its fifth season. Gooding played a main role as Carter in the film ''Percentage''. He released a hip hop album titled The Excuse in 2019. It was announced on November 30, 2021, that Gooding will play Cal Johnson in the upcoming Disney Channel original series, ''Saturdays''.

Filmography

Film

Television

Guest appearances

References

External links

*
Interview with Omar Gooding about his rapping career

Omar "BigO" Gooding
MySpace, Photos, HipHop tracks,
Omar Gooding Twitter account
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gooding, Omar 1976 births American male comedians Living people American male film actors American male television actors African-American male actors University High School (Los Angeles) alumni Male actors from Los Angeles 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors Comedians from California American people of Barbadian descent 20th-century American comedians 21st-century American comedians North Hollywood High School alumni 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American people