Richard Roundtree
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Richard Roundtree (born July 9, 1942) is an American actor. Roundtree is noted as being "the first black action hero" for his portrayal of private detective
John Shaft John Shaft is a fictional character created by author/screenwriter Ernest Tidyman for the 1970 novel of the same name. He was portrayed by Richard Roundtree in the original 1971 film and in its four sequels, '' Shaft's Big Score!'' (1972), '' Sh ...
in the 1971 film '' Shaft'', and its four sequels, released between 1972 and 2019. For his performance in the original film, Roundtree was nominated for the
Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actor The Golden Globe for New Star of the Year – Actor was an award given by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association at their annual Golden Globe Awards. History The award was first introduced at the 6th Golden Globe Awards in 1948, where it was ...
in 1972.


Early life and education

Born July 9, 1942, in
New Rochelle, New York New Rochelle (; older french: La Nouvelle-Rochelle) is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States, in the southeastern portion of the state. In 2020, the city had a population of 79,726, making it the seventh-largest in the state of ...
,NNDB - Richard Roundtree
/ref> to John and Kathryn Roundtree, Roundtree attended
New Rochelle High School New Rochelle High School (NRHS) is a public high school in New Rochelle, New York. It is part of the City School District of New Rochelle and is the city's sole public high school. Its student body represents 60 countries from around the world. I ...
; graduating in 1961. During high school, Roundtree played for the school's undefeated and nationally ranked football team. After high school, Roundtree attended
Southern Illinois University Southern Illinois University is a system of public universities in the southern region of the U.S. state of Illinois. Its headquarters is in Carbondale, Illinois. Board of trustees The university is governed by the nine member SIU Board of Tr ...
in
Carbondale, Illinois Carbondale is a city in Jackson and Williamson Counties, Illinois, United States, within the Southern Illinois region informally known as "Little Egypt". The city developed from 1853 because of the stimulation of railroad construction into the ...
. Roundtree dropped out of college in 1963 to begin his career.


Career

Roundtree began his professional career around 1963. Roundtree began modeling in the
Ebony Fashion Fair Ebony Fashion Fair (also known as the Ebony Traveling Fashion Fair) was an annual fashion event created by Eunice Johnson, co–founder of the Chicago, Illinois–based Johnson Publishing Company. The show ran across the United States and other co ...
after being scouted by
Eunice W. Johnson Eunice Walker Johnson (April 4, 1916 – January 3, 2010) was an American businesswoman. Johnson was the wife of publisher John H. Johnson and an executive at Johnson Publishing Company. Johnson was the founder and director of the ''Ebony'' Fashi ...
. After his modeling success with the Fashion Fair, Roundtree began modeling for such products as Johnson Products' Duke hair grease and Salem cigarettes. In 1967, Roundtree joined the
Negro Ensemble Company The Negro Ensemble Company (NEC) is a New York City-based theater company and workshop established in 1967 by playwright Douglas Turner Ward, producer-actor Robert Hooks, and theater manager Gerald S. Krone, with funding from the Ford Foundation ...
. His first role while a part of the company was portraying boxing legend Jack Johnson in the company's production of ''The Great White Hope.'' According to J. E. Franklin, he acted in the
Off-Off-Broadway Off-off-Broadway theaters are smaller New York City theaters than Broadway and off-Broadway theaters, and usually have fewer than 100 seats. The off-off-Broadway movement began in 1958 as part of a response to perceived commercialism of the prof ...
production of her play ''Mau Mau Room,'' by the
Negro Ensemble Company The Negro Ensemble Company (NEC) is a New York City-based theater company and workshop established in 1967 by playwright Douglas Turner Ward, producer-actor Robert Hooks, and theater manager Gerald S. Krone, with funding from the Ford Foundation ...
Workshop Festival, at St. Mark's Playhouse in 1969, directed by
Shauneille Perry Shauneille Gantt Perry Ryder (July 26, 1929 – June 9, 2022) was an American stage director and playwright. She was one of the first African-American women to direct off-Broadway. Biography Shauneille Perry was born on July 26, 1929, in Chicag ...
. Roundtree was a leading man in early 1970s
blaxploitation Blaxploitation is an ethnic subgenre of the exploitation film that emerged in the United States during the early 1970s. The term, a portmanteau of the words "black" and "exploitation", was coined in August 1972 by Junius Griffin, the president o ...
films, his best-known role being detective John Shaft in the action movie, '' Shaft'' (1971) and its sequels, '' Shaft's Big Score!'' (1972) and ''
Shaft in Africa ''Shaft in Africa'' is a 1973 American blaxploitation film directed by John Guillermin, and the third film of the '' Shaft'' series, starring Richard Roundtree as John Shaft. Stirling Silliphant wrote the screenplay. The film's budget was $1.5 m ...
'' (1973). Roundtree also appeared opposite
Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the Theatre of the U ...
and
Ben Gazzara Biagio Anthony Gazzara (August 28, 1930 – February 3, 2012) was an American actor and director of film, stage, and television. He received numerous accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award and a Drama Desk Award, in addition to nominatio ...
in ''
Inchon Incheon (; ; or Inch'ŏn; literally "kind river"), formerly Jemulpo or Chemulp'o (제물포) until the period after 1910, officially the Incheon Metropolitan City (인천광역시, 仁川廣域市), is a city located in northwestern South Kore ...
'' (1981). On television, he played the slave Sam Bennett in the 1977 television series ''Roots'' and Dr. Daniel Reubens on ''
Generations A generation is "all of the people born and living at about the same time, regarded collectively." Generation or generations may also refer to: Science and technology * Generation (particle physics), a division of the elementary particles * Gen ...
'' from 1989 to 1991. He played another private detective in 1984's ''
City Heat ''City Heat'' is a 1984 American buddy-crime-comedy film starring Clint Eastwood and Burt Reynolds, written by Blake Edwards, and directed by Richard Benjamin. The film was released in North America in December 1984. The pairing of Eastwood and ...
'' opposite
Clint Eastwood Clinton Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American actor and film director. After achieving success in the Western TV series '' Rawhide'', he rose to international fame with his role as the "Man with No Name" in Sergio Leone's "''Doll ...
and
Burt Reynolds Burton Leon Reynolds Jr. (February 11, 1936 – September 6, 2018) was an American actor, considered a sex symbol and icon of 1970s American popular culture. Reynolds first rose to prominence when he starred in television series such as ' ...
. Although Roundtree worked throughout the 1990s, many of his films were not well-received, but he found success elsewhere in stage plays. During that period, however, he reemerged on the small screen as a
cultural icon A cultural icon is a person or an artifact that is identified by members of a culture as representative of that culture. The process of identification is subjective, and "icons" are judged by the extent to which they can be seen as an authentic ...
. On September 19, 1991, Roundtree appeared in an episode of ''
Beverly Hills, 90210 ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' (often referred to by its short title, ''90210'') is an American teen drama television series created by Darren Star and produced by Aaron Spelling under his production company Spelling Television. The series ran fo ...
'' with
Vivica A. Fox Vivica Anjanetta Fox (born July 30, 1964) is an American actress, producer, and television host. Fox began her career on ''Soul Train'' (19821983). She eventually continued her career with roles on the daytime television soap operas ''Days of O ...
. The episode was "Ashes to Ashes", Roundtree playing Robinson Ashe Jr. Roundtree appeared in
David Fincher David Andrew Leo Fincher (born August 28, 1962) is an American film director. His films, mostly psychological thrillers and biographical dramas, have received 40 nominations at the Academy Awards, including three for him as Best Director. Fin ...
's critically acclaimed 1995 movie ''
Seven 7 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 7 or seven may also refer to: * AD 7, the seventh year of the AD era * 7 BC, the seventh year before the AD era * The month of July Music Artists * Seven (Swiss singer) (born 1978), a Swiss recording artist ...
'', and in the 2000 '' Shaft'', again as John Shaft, with
Samuel L. Jackson Samuel Leroy Jackson (born December 21, 1948) is an American actor and producer. One of the most widely recognized actors of his generation, the films in which he has appeared have collectively grossed over $27 billion worldwide, making him ...
playing the title character, who is described as the original Shaft's nephew. Roundtree guest-starred in several episodes of the first season of ''
Desperate Housewives ''Desperate Housewives'' is an American comedy-drama soap opera television series created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC Studios and Marc Cherry, Cherry Productions. It aired for eight seasons on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from Octobe ...
'' as an amoral private detective. He also appeared in 1997's ''
George of the Jungle ''George of the Jungle'' is an American animated television series produced and created by Jay Ward and Bill Scott, who also created ''The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show''. The character George was inspired by the story of Tarzan and a cartoon char ...
'' and played a high-school vice-principal in the 2005 movie, ''
Brick A brick is a type of block used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a block composed of dried clay, but is now also used informally to denote other chemically cured cons ...
''. His voice was utilized as the title character in the hit
PlayStation is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divisi ...
game ''
Akuji the Heartless ''Akuji the Heartless'' is an action-adventure video game developed by Crystal Dynamics and published by Eidos Interactive. It was released for the PlayStation on December 31, 1998, in North America and February 1999 in Europe. The game received m ...
'', where Akuji must battle his way out of the depths of hell at the bidding of the Baron. In 1997–1998, Roundtree had a leading role as Phil Thomas in the short-lived
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 ...
ensemble drama, ''
413 Hope St __NOTOC__ Year 413 ( CDXIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Herclianus and Lucius (or, less frequently, year 1166 ...
''. He portrayed
Booker T. Washington Booker Taliaferro Washington (April 5, 1856November 14, 1915) was an American educator, author, orator, and adviser to several presidents of the United States. Between 1890 and 1915, Washington was the dominant leader in the African-American c ...
in the 1999
television movie A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...
'' Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years''. Since 2005, Roundtree has appeared in the television series ''
The Closer ''The Closer'' is an Television in the United States, American television police procedural starring Kyra Sedgwick as Brenda Leigh Johnson, a Los Angeles Police Department Chief of police#United States, deputy chief. A CIA-trained interrogator o ...
'' as Colonel D. B. Walter, U.S.M.C. (retired), the father of a sniper, and in ''Heroes'' as Simone's terminally ill father, Charles Deveaux. Next, Roundtree appeared as Eddie's father-in-law in episodes of '' Lincoln Heights''. Most recently, Roundtree had a supporting role in the 2008 ''
Speed Racer ''Speed Racer'', also known as , is a Japanese media franchise about Auto racing, automobile racing. ''Mach GoGoGo'' was originally serialized in print in Shueisha's 1966 ''Shōnen Book''. It was released in tankōbon book form by Sun W ...
'' film as a racer-turned-commentator who is an icon and hero to Speed. He also appeared in the two-parter in ''
Knight Rider ''Knight Rider'' is an American entertainment franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The core of ''Knight Rider'' is its three television series: the original ''Knight Rider'' (1982–1986) and sequel series ''Team Knight Rider'' (1997–1998) ...
'' (2008) as the father of FBI Agent Carrie Ravai, and currently co-stars as the father of the lead character on ''Being Mary Jane'', which has aired on BET since 2013. In 2019, Roundtree co-starred in the comedy film ''
What Men Want ''What Men Want'' is a 2019 American romantic comedy film directed by Adam Shankman and starring Taraji P. Henson, Aldis Hodge, Josh Brener, Erykah Badu, Richard Roundtree and Tracy Morgan. The film is a loose remake of the 2000 film ''What Wome ...
'', and returned to the role of John Shaft in '' Shaft'', a sequel to the 2000 film, opposite
Samuel L. Jackson Samuel Leroy Jackson (born December 21, 1948) is an American actor and producer. One of the most widely recognized actors of his generation, the films in which he has appeared have collectively grossed over $27 billion worldwide, making him ...
and
Jessie Usher Jessie T. Usher Jr. (born February 29, 1992) is an American actor. Known for playing Lyle on the Cartoon Network series '' Level Up'', Cam Calloway on the Starz television series ''Survivor's Remorse'', and Reggie Franklin / A-Train in the Amazo ...
, who portray John Shaft II and John Shaft III, respectively. This time, Roundtree's character was described as Jackson's character's father, while acknowledging that Roundtree had pretended to be Jackson's Shaft's uncle in the 2000 movie. He also starred in the movie, Family Reunion in 2019.


Personal life and health

Roundtree has been married twice and has five children. His first marriage was to Mary Jane Grant, whom he married on November 27, 1963. Roundtree and Grant had two children before divorcing in December 1973. He dated actress and TV personality
Cathy Lee Crosby Cathy Lee Crosby (born December 2, 1944) is an American actress and former professional tennis player. She achieved TV and film success in the 1980s and was a co-host of the television series ''That's Incredible!'' Early life Crosby was born i ...
shortly thereafter. Roundtree later married Karen M. Ciernia in September 1980; together they had three children. Roundtree and Ciernia divorced in 1998. Roundtree was diagnosed with
breast cancer Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or a re ...
in 1993 and underwent a double
mastectomy Mastectomy is the medical term for the surgical removal of one or both breasts, partially or completely. A mastectomy is usually carried out to treat breast cancer. In some cases, women believed to be at high risk of breast cancer have the operat ...
and
chemotherapy Chemotherapy (often abbreviated to chemo and sometimes CTX or CTx) is a type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs (chemotherapeutic agents or alkylating agents) as part of a standardized chemotherapy regimen. Chemotherap ...
.


Filmography


Film


Television


Video games


Awards and nominations


References


Notes


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Roundtree, Richard 1942 births Living people Male actors from New York (state) African-American male actors American male film actors Male models from New York (state) American male soap opera actors American male stage actors American male television actors Sportspeople from New Rochelle, New York Players of American football from New York (state) Southern Illinois Salukis football players Southern Illinois University Carbondale alumni 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American people African-American history of Westchester County, New York New Rochelle High School alumni