Larry Riley (June 20, 1953 – June 6, 1992) was an American actor and musician, best known for his role as C.J. Memphis in the film ''
A Soldier's Story'' (1984) and as Frank Williams in the prime-time TV soap opera ''
Knots Landing''.
Early life and career
Born in
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...
, Riley began acting in high school before studying drama at Memphis State University.
He made his professional stage debut in 1971, and went on to appear in various stage productions on and
off-Broadway including ''
A Broadway Musical'', ''Shakespeare's Cabaret'', ''
I Love My Wife
''I Love My Wife'' is a musical with a book and lyrics by Michael Stewart and music by Cy Coleman, based on a play by Luis Rego.
A satire of the sexual revolution of the 1970s, the musical takes place on Christmas Eve in suburban Trenton, ...
'', and ''
Big River'', a musical based on ''
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
''Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' or as it is known in more recent editions, ''The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'', is a novel by American author Mark Twain, which was first published in the United Kingdom in December 1884 and in the United S ...
''. In 1982, Riley won a
Clarence Derwent and
Obie Award for his performance in ''
A Soldier's Play''. He later reprised the role in the
1984 film based on the play. From 1984 to 1985, Riley portrayed the role of Curtis Taylor, Jr. in the national touring company of ''
Dreamgirls
''Dreamgirls'' is a Broadway musical, with music by Henry Krieger and lyrics and book by Tom Eyen. Based on the show business aspirations and successes of R&B acts such as The Supremes, The Shirelles, James Brown, Jackie Wilson, and others,G ...
''. He also appeared as the leading player in the U.S. touring company of ''
Pippin
Pippin or Pepin may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Pippin (comics), ''Pippin'' (comics), a children's comic produced from 1966 to 1986
* Pippin (musical), ''Pippin'' (musical), a Broadway musical by Stephen Schwartz loosely based on the life ...
''.
From 1980 to 1982, Riley portrayed Calvin Barnes in the NBC daytime soap opera ''
The Doctors''. He later had guest roles on ''
Hill Street Blues
''Hill Street Blues'' is an American serial police procedural television series that aired on NBC in prime-time from January 15, 1981, to May 12, 1987, for 146 episodes. The show chronicles the lives of the staff of a single police station loca ...
'' and ''
Miami Vice
''Miami Vice'' is an American crime drama television series created by Anthony Yerkovich and produced by Michael Mann for NBC. The series stars Don Johnson as James "Sonny" Crockett and Philip Michael Thomas as Ricardo "Rico" Tubbs, two M ...
'', and appeared in
Louis Malle
Louis Marie Malle (; 30 October 1932 – 23 November 1995) was a French film director, screenwriter, and producer who worked in both French cinema and Hollywood. Described as "eclectic" and "a filmmaker difficult to pin down," Malle's filmogr ...
's 1984 film ''
Crackers''. In 1985, Riley starred in the short-lived sitcom ''
Stir Crazy'', based on the
1980 film of the same name.
In 1988, he won the role of Frank Williams on the long-running nighttime soap ''
Knots Landing'', becoming the series' first regular African American cast member.
The role garnered Riley a
Soap Opera Digest Award
''The Soap Opera Digest Awards'', originally known as ''The Soapy Awards'' when introduced in 1977, is an awards show held by the daytime television magazine ''Soap Opera Digest''.
History
1977 until 1983
The Soapy Awards were an award presen ...
for Outstanding Actor in a Primetime Supporting Role in 1991. Riley also created a musical tribute to
Louis Jordan entitled "
Let The Good Times Roll", which enjoyed success at the Cinegrill of the
Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel
The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel is a historic hotel located at 7000 Hollywood Boulevard in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles, California. It opened on May 15, 1927, and is the oldest continually operating hotel in Los Angeles.
History
The hote ...
in 1988.
He also voiced the arch-villain Dumping Jack Trash in the children's animated series ''
Fantastic Max
''Fantastic Max'' is an animated cartoon series, originally aired from 1988 to 1990 created by Hanna-Barbera Productions, Kalisto Ltd., Booker PLC and Tanaka Promotion Co. and in association with S4C. It centers on a boy named Maxwell "Fantastic ...
''.
In addition to acting, Riley was also a musician and singer. He performed two songs in his role as Reverend Gillis in the
Emmy-nominated ''
Polly
Polly is a given name, most often feminine, which originated as a variant of Molly (name), Molly (a diminutive of Mary (name), Mary). Polly may also be a short form of names such as Polina (given name), Polina, Polona (given name), Polona, Paula (g ...
'' and the following year's sequel, ''Polly! Comin' Home''. He sang in several episodes of ''Knots Landing'' and also composed the score for several episodes.
Illness and death
In May 1989, Riley entered rehab for drug and alcohol abuse. The following year, he discovered he was
HIV positive. According to his wife Nina, Riley "was not gay. He was not bisexual. He did not use needles at all. He speculated it was from a woman. Because he was quite the womanizer."
Fearful that news of his diagnosis would ruin his career, Riley did not disclose his illness to anyone except his wife and continued working on ''Knots Landing'' until his death. To explain his dramatic weight loss, Riley claimed that he was suffering from kidney failure due to
high blood pressure. Riley's true illness was revealed by his wife and doctor after his death.
On June 6, 1992, Riley died of AIDS-related
kidney failure
Kidney failure, also known as end-stage kidney disease, is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney failure is classified as eit ...
in
Burbank, California, only fourteen days short of his 39th birthday. He was survived by his second wife Nina and a son, Larry, Jr.
The Memphis Theatre Awards (now called "The Ostrander Awards") have, since his death, been annually presenting the "Larry Riley Award" to the best local young thespian in the college or community theatre scene who is about to embark on a professional theatre career. It is the only award of the approximately 50 annual awards that is accompanied with a check.
Filmography
Awards and nominations
References
External links
*
*
*
ArtistswithAIDS.org*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Riley, Larry
African-American male actors
AIDS-related deaths in California
American male film actors
American male musical theatre actors
American male soap opera actors
American male stage actors
American male television actors
American male voice actors
American television composers
Deaths from kidney failure
Singers from Tennessee
Male actors from Memphis, Tennessee
University of Memphis alumni
1952 births
1992 deaths
20th-century American male actors
20th-century American composers
20th-century African-American male singers