Black people of the 80s
A list of black celebrities whose fame either started in the 80s or who had their 15 minutes in the 80s. And there were quite a few! As somebody who didn't really grow up around alot of black people until I went to a prominent HBCU, these people influenced my images of blacks as a whole when I was a kid.
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- Actor
- Soundtrack
Mr. T was born Laurence Tureaud on 21 May 1952, in the rough south side ghetto of Chicago. He is the second to youngest of twelve children (he has four sisters and seven brothers) and grew up in the housing projects. His father, Nathaniel Tureaud, left when Laurence was 5, and his mother raised the family on $87 a month welfare in a three-room apartment. Mr. T's brothers encouraged him to build up his body in order to survive in the area; he has commented, "If you think I'm big, you should see my brothers!" His mother is a religious woman who has had a strong influence on him. He says, "Any man who don't love his momma can't be no friend of mine." He was an average student in school. "Most of the time," he says, "I stared out the windows, just daydreaming. I didn't study much because I have a photographic memory." Apart from one spell between 5th and 7th grades when he went a little astray -- playing hooky, cursing, acting tough, being disrespectful -- he was a well-behaved child (he worried about how his mother would feel if he ended up in jail, and stayed out of trouble). He attended Dunbar Vocational High School. He was a football star, studied martial arts, and was three times city wrestling champion. He won a scholarship to play football at Prairie View A&M University in Texas, but he was thrown out after a year.
He was involved in the world of pro wrestling in 1985-86 and 1994-95. Was Hulk Hogan's tag team partner at the first WrestleMania I (1985), defeating the team of Paul Orndorff and Roddy Piper on March 31, 1985. His feud with Piper continued into WrestleMania 2 (1986), when he defeated Piper in a boxing match by disqualification. Mr. T returned to the WWF as a special guest referee in 1987, then disappeared from the wrestling world. Seven years later, he reappeared as a special referee for a Hogan-Ric Flair match, in October 1994. He stayed with Hogan for a few matches before returning to obscurity.I think Mr T's image on The A Team was the most powerful, in that he continued the image of black people as threatening and badass. Before Cosby came to show people a more wholesome image, Mr T reigned supreme on prime time TV. He even had his own Saturday Morning Cartoon!- Music Artist
- Actor
- Composer
Michael Joseph Jackson was born on August 29, 1958 in Gary, Indiana, and entertained audiences nearly his entire life. His father, Joe Jackson (no relation to Joe Jackson, also a musician), had been a guitarist, but was forced to give up his musical ambitions following his marriage to Michael's mother Katherine Jackson (née Katherine Esther Scruse). Together, they prodded their growing family's musical interests at home. By the early 1960s, the older boys Jackie, Tito and Jermaine had begun performing around the city; by 1964, Michael and Marlon had joined in.
A musical prodigy, Michael's singing and dancing talents were amazingly mature, and he soon became the dominant voice and focus of the Jackson 5. An opening act for such soul groups as the O-Jays and James Brown, it was Gladys Knight (not Diana Ross) who officially brought the group to Berry Gordy's attention, and by 1969, the boys were producing back-to-back chart-busting hits as Motown artists ("I Want You Back," "ABC," "Never Can Say Goodbye," "Got to Be There," etc.). As a product of the 1970s, the boys emerged as one of the most accomplished black pop / soul vocal groups in music history, successfully evolving from a group like The Temptations to a disco phenomenon.
Solo success for Michael was inevitable, and by the 1980s, he had become infinitely more popular than his brotherly group. Record sales consistently orbited, culminating in the biggest-selling album of all time, "Thriller" in 1982. A TV natural, he ventured rather uneasily into films, such as playing the Scarecrow in The Wiz (1978), but had much better luck with elaborate music videos.
In the 1990s, the downside as an 1980s pop phenomenon began to rear itself. Michael grew terribly child-like and introverted by his peerless celebrity. A rather timorous, androgynous figure to begin with, his physical appearance began to change drastically, and his behavior grew alarmingly bizarre, making him a consistent target for scandal-making, despite his numerous charitable acts. Two brief marriages -- one to Elvis Presley's daughter Lisa Marie Presley -- were forged and two children produced by his second wife during that time, but the purposes behind them appeared image-oriented.
Michael Jackson died on June 25, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. His passion and artistry as a singer, dancer, writer and businessman were unparalleled, and it is these prodigious talents that will ultimately prevail over the extremely negative aspects of his troubled adult life.MJ was the most known black man on the whole planet in the 80s. Everybody had a Thriller album. His jacket and glove were staples of the whole decade! His image was cool, and this was long before the disheveled, confused MJ he would later become. Not to say he wasn't that way before, but the way he did that moonwalk, you would never know!- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Without a doubt Gary Coleman was THE child TV star of the late 1970s and early 1980s. A refreshingly confident little tyke with sparkling dark, saucer-like eyes and an ingratiating, take-on-anyone burst of personality, the boy charmed the pants right off of TV viewers the minute he was glimpsed in national commercials. Amazed by how mature he came across, Gary was in truth older than he looked, which was brought upon by a congenital kidney condition. Sadly, the pint-sized phenomena outgrew his chubby-cheeked welcome and found the course of his grown-up Hollywood career brutally rough and patchy. The fragile condition of his health coupled with this lack of adult career acceptance, sparked an aggressively defensive behavior mechanism in his adult years and led to great personal unhappiness, chronic legal/financial hassles and early death.
He was born Gary Wayne Coleman on February 8, 1968, to a homeless woman, and was adopted by a fork-lift operator and his nurse practitioner wife from a Chicago hospital when he was just a few days old. Raised in Zion, Illinois, it was discovered that little Gary had severe health issues before the age of 2. Born with one atrophied kidney and an endangering weak second one, he had two kidney transplants by the time he reached age 16 and the effects of his dialysis medication permanently stunted his growth (to 4'8").
A highly precocious comedy cut-up on-camera, Gary proved a natural in local Chicago commercials. As his commercials spread nationwide, audiences began wondering just who this diminutive dynamo was. Norman Lear's talent scout spotted him in a Chicago bank commercial (he was 9 at the time) and decided to reveal to the world who the little guy was. Brought in to brighten up such Lear sitcoms as "The Jeffersons" and "Good Times" (the latter as a friend of little Janet Jackson's character), NBC quickly recognized the boy's comedy prowess and handed the 10-year-old his own prime-time sitcom playground to mug in.
While Diff'rent Strokes (1978)'s underlying approach was to preach racial and social tolerance (it revolved around two lower-class African-American brothers from Harlem who are taken in and adopted by a wealthy, debonair Park Avenue white man after their housekeeper mother dies), the show's powers-that-be smartly deduced that it was the wisecracking gifts of young Coleman, who played the youngest brother, Arnold Jackson, that gave the show its spark. Deemed "NBC's Littlest Big Man," Gary's sly, pouting-lipped delivery of, "What'chu talkin' about, Willis?" soon became a popular American catchphrase.
Legendary comics such as Bob Hope and Lucille Ball absolutely gushed about the little boy's comedy genius and Gary soon became a hit on the talk show circuit, trading clever banter with the likes of Johnny Carson among others. The boy was also outfitted with a series of lightweight TV-movie showcases which included The Kid from Left Field (1979), Scout's Honor (1980), The Kid with the Broken Halo (1982), The Kid with the 200 I.Q. (1983), The Fantastic World of D.C. Collins (1984) and Playing with Fire (1985). All of them wisely centered around Gary's adorable persona. Modest film comedies also came his way with On the Right Track (1981) and Jimmy the Kid (1982). Topping it all off, the Hanna-Barbera-produced series The Gary Coleman Show (1982) produced an animated version of the child star. Little Gary would make close to $18 million during his nearly decade-long TV reign.
Like many others in his shoes, however, the aging Coleman felt trapped and pigeonholed by his stifling juvenile image and begged to get out from under it. The 18-year-old was truly thankful when the series ended in 1986. Coleman found, however, that a very fickle public was not as receptive to seeing him grow up. Like fellow TV star Emmanuel Lewis, Coleman began aging in appearance but remained trapped in the body of a young boy and the contrast proved too strange for audiences. As a result, Hollywood had little resources as to what to do with Gary Coleman the man. It wasn't long before Coleman was reduced to making weird guest appearances and small parts in even smaller films.
This crash course in reality triggered an increasingly erratic and aggressive behavior in Gary Coleman as he became increasingly angry and bitter about his lack of work when he was so used to be on top of everything. The subsequent tragedies suffered by all three young stars from the "Diff'rent Strokes" show, in fact, was sold out as a jinx package known as the "Diff'rent Strokes curse". While distaff co-star Dana Plato fell heavily into drug addiction, petty crime and pornography before taking her own life in 1999, Todd Bridges, who played Coleman's older brother, battled major cocaine abuse and was later charged (but acquitted of) attempted murder in the late 1980s.
In addition to his life-long health issues, Gary's adult problems came in the form of scattered financial and legal entanglements, as well as scrapes with the law. He was once arrested in 1999 for punching a persistent female autograph fan, in which he was fined and ordered to take anger-management classes. This became tabloid fodder for late night comics who joked that he must have landed "several good uppercuts." He also had many disorderly conduct and reckless driving charges brought up against him at various times. He would admit that the tally of his life problems led to more than a few feigned suicide attempts. In 1989, Coleman successfully sued his adopted parents and business manager after they allegedly pilfered his youthful fortune for their own self interest totaling $3.8 million in losses, and he won $1,280,000. Despite the large settlement, all of the money was soon spent on taxes, legal fees, as well as his increasingly high medical bills for his continuing dialysis treatments. As a result by 1999 (with no steady acting work) Coleman had to declare bankruptcy, finding work outside the Hollywood industry as a security guard. For self-preservation, he went the reality-show route and became the object of self-mocking cameos to help bring in some cash. As a gag, he ran for California's 2003 governorship during its recall election.
In 2007, he married the much younger actress Shannon Price, whom he met on the set of the low budget film Church Ball (2006), but the quickly marriage dissolved quickly into domestic squabbles that put him in front of the court system yet again on domestic abuse charges. He later moved and settled in Utah.
In early 2009, Coleman managed to star in his very last film, the crude independent comedy Midgets vs. Mascots (2009) filmed in Dallas, Texas before the end came. Following heart surgery complicated by pneumonia in the fall of 2009, he suffered a heart seizure in February 2010 while performing on a Hollywood set. The 42-year-old actor died of a brain hemorrhage on May 28, 2010, after suffering an epidural haematoma from a fall at home. A sad end to a very bright and talented, but very troubled and bitter, child star who, at his peak, brought such joy to TV audiences.In contrast to Mr T, you had Gary Coleman, a big boy who, due to a medical condition, seemed to look forever young. This was one of the most unique aspects of the 80s, the success of this actor who played the perpetual child but could never find his place in society. A metaphor for black people as a whole? Interesting thought....- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Edward Regan Murphy was born April 3, 1961 in Brooklyn, New York, to Lillian Lynch (born: Lillian Laney), a telephone operator, and Charles Edward Murphy, a transit police officer who was also an amateur comedian and actor. After his father died, his mother married Vernon Lynch, a foreman at a Breyer's Ice Cream plant. His brothers are Charlie Murphy & Vernon Lynch Jr. Eddie had aspirations of being in show business since he was a child. A bright kid growing up in the streets of New York, Murphy spent a great deal of time on impressions and comedy stand-up routines rather than academics. His sense of humor and wit made him a stand out amongst his classmates at Roosevelt Junior-Senior High School. By the time he was fifteen, Murphy worked as a stand-up comic on the lower part of New York, wooing audiences with his dead-on impressions of celebrities and outlooks on life.
In the early 1980s, at the age of 19, Murphy was offered a contract for the Not-Ready-For-Prime-Time Players of Saturday Night Live (1975), where Murphy exercised his comedic abilities in impersonating African American figures and originating some of the show's most memorable characters: Velvet Jones, Mr. Robinson, and a disgruntled and angry Gumby. Murphy made his feature film debut in 48 Hrs. (1982), alongside Nick Nolte. The two's comedic and antagonistic chemistry, alongside Murphy's believable performance as a streetwise convict aiding a bitter, aging cop, won over critics and audiences. The next year, Murphy went two for two, with another hit, pairing him with John Landis, who later became a frequent collaborator with Murphy in Coming to America (1988) and Beverly Hills Cop III (1994). Beverly Hills Cop (1984) was the film that made Murphy a box-office superstar and most notably made him a celebrity worldwide, and it remains one of the all-time biggest domestic blockbusters in motion-picture history. Murphy's performance as a young Detroit cop in pursuit of his friend's murderers earned him a third consecutive Golden Globe nomination. Axel Foley became one of Murphy's signature characters. On top of his game, Murphy was unfazed by his success, that is until his box office appeal and choices in scripts resulted into a spotty mix of hits and misses into the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Films like The Golden Child (1986) and Beverly Hills Cop II (1987) were critically panned but were still massive draws at the box office. In 1989, Murphy, coming off another hit, Coming to America (1988), found failure with his directorial debut, Harlem Nights (1989). Another 48 Hrs. (1990), his turn as a hopeless romantic in Boomerang (1992) and as a suave vampire in Vampire In Brooklyn did little to resuscitate his career. However, his remake of Jerry Lewis's The Nutty Professor (1996) brought Murphy's drawing power back into fruition. From there, Murphy rebounded with occasional hits and misses but has long proven himself as a skilled comedic actor with laudable range pertaining to characterizations and mannerisms. Though he has grown up a lot since his fast-lane rise as a superstar in the 1980s, Murphy has lived the Hollywood lifestyle with controversy, criticism, scandal, and the admiration of millions worldwide for his talents. As Murphy had matured throughout the years, learning many lessons about the Hollywood game in the process, he settled down with more family-oriented humor with Doctor Dolittle (1998), Mulan (1998), Bowfinger (1999), and the animated smash Shrek (2001), in a supporting role that showcased Murphy's comedic personality and charm. Throughout the 2000s, he further starred in the hits The Haunted Mansion (2003), Shrek 2 (2004), Dreamgirls (2006) (for which he was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar), Norbit (2007), Shrek the Third (2007), and Shrek Forever After (2010).
Murphy was married to Nicole Mitchell Murphy from 1993 to 2006. Murphy has ten children.Eddie's movies made for some fun Saturday afternoons in the 80s. Later on, I would always approach situations but I figured if I couldn't do it like Eddie, I was falling short. Whereas Mr T was badass, Eddie was the smart ass. Fast talking, witty, and mischievous.- Producer
- Actress
- Director
Deborah Kaye Allen was born in Houston, Texas, to African-American parents, Vivian Elizabeth (Ayers), a poet and art director, and Andrew Arthur Allen, an orthodontist. As a child, Debbie, her older brother, Andrew (called Tex), and her older sister, actress Phylicia Rashad, lived in Mexico to escape US racism. Their mother decided to live there to give the Allen children a brief experience of not having to endure the chronic racism and segregation that was typical of Texas during the 1950s. Debbie and Phylicia are fluent in Spanish.
Debbie graduated from Jack Yates Senior High School in Houston, TX in 1967. She graduated cum laude from Howard University in 1971 with a BFA in Classical Greek Literature, Speech, and Theater from Howard University. She used her experiences from attending Historically Black College Howard to inform her production and direction of the TV show A Different World (1987).
Although her parents divorced, Debbie remained extremely close to her father until his death. With Phylicia she has production company "D.A.D." which stood for "Doctor Allen's Daughters". Her Pulitzer-nominated poet mother Vivian is, the artistic and free spirit that has influenced and encouraged the remarkable creativity that so marks Allen as a performer.Debbie was that master dancer, who epitomized the craft on all levels. She dominated movies and TV being the face of the Fame television show. One of the greatest choreographers of all time.- Music Artist
- Composer
- Actor
Prince Rogers Nelson was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, to Mattie Shaw, a jazz singer and social worker, and John L. Nelson, a lyricist and pianist. His father's stage name was "Prince Rogers". His parents were both from African-American families from Louisiana. They separated during his youth, which lead him to move back and forth. Prince had a troubled relationship with his step-father which lead him to run away from home. Prince was adopted by a family called the Andersons. Prince soon after became friends with the Anderson's son, Andre Anderson (Cymone) together along with Charles Smith they joined a band called Grand Central. The band later renamed themselves Champagne and were a fairly successful live band, however soon diminished.
Prince at the age of eighteen started working on high-quality demo tracks with Chris Moon. With these demo tracks Prince eventually ended up signing a recording contract with Warner Brothers Records and was the youngest producer associated with the label. Prince made his debut on the record label with his 1978 album, For You. It wasn't a strong successful album, however it was fair for a beginning artist and ranked 163 on the U.S. Pop Charts. Prince's next releases would tend to do much better on the charts with his singles, "Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad?" and I Wanna Be Your Lover in 1979. This would start to introduce Prince as a person who presented sexually explicit material into the music industry. However Prince didn't begin to attract mainstream artists until he release his single, 1999. This single began to be noticed by M.T.V. viewers and this would make him a part of the main-stream music media. Prince released two more singles called Little Red Corvette and Delirious. The album featured Prince's new band, The Revolution. In 1984 Prince would release what would be seen as an admired and profound masterpiece the feature film/sound-track album, Purple Rain in 1984. Prince's father contributed to this album, by cowriting the chord sequence for a couple of his songs. Prince continued to give cowriting credit to his father on several other albums, as his famous chord sequence would be used in several of Prince's singles and albums.
A lot of Prince's songs did not agree with listeners and one of his songs, Darling Nikki prompted a group of people to start a censorship organization called, Parents Music Resource Center (P.M.R.C.) as the track implemented grinding ludicrous acts such as masturbating, which stunned listeners. Prince however continued to release various other singles with the same platform his memorable releases being, Around The World In A Day, Parade, Love Sexy, and Batman.
Prince released a sequel to Purple Rain in 1990 called Graffiti Bridge, a soundtrack album accompanied this movie entitled, Graffiti Bridge. The film did terrible in box-office and was nominated for several Razzie awards. Many people saw the sound-track album, as the high point of the film.
In 1991, Prince assembled a new band called, The New Power Generation with this band he would release singles such as Diamond And Pearls, Cream, and Gett Off. Prince eventually changed his stage name from Prince to a symbol, which lead people to call him, "The Artist Formerly Known As Prince". Prince soon took back his old stage name.
In the 1990s, Prince continued to release singles such as Came, The Gold Experience, Chaos And Disorder, and Emancipation. With the rise of the new millennium, Prince released material such as a religious album called The Rainbow Children,One Nite Alone,The Chocolate Invasion,The Slaughter House, and had a collaboration with Stevie Wonder on Stevie's single called, What The Fuss in 2005.
Prince died on April 21, 2016 in Chanhassen, Minnesota, at his Paisley Park recording studio complex. He was 57.
Prince will be remembered as a musician and artist who inspired millions through his music, and set an inspirational platform which others still abide by.Prince's Purple Rain and his discography was synonymous with the 80s. In my opinion, his 80s swagger just could not go past the 80s. He's still one of the greatest musicians ever, though.- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Emmanuel Lewis was born March 9th, 1971 in Brooklyn, New York. The youngest son of Margaret Lewis, a former computer-science professional, Emmanuel attended regular public schools in Brooklyn until his busy acting career took him to Hollywood. He has four siblings. His acting career began one day when he was jogging with an actor-friend who asked him if he wanted to be in the business. The friend suggested that Emmanuel's mother contact the Shuller Talent Agency, which handles gifted children for TV commercials. He thought that Emmanuel had the perfect face and personality for commercials. The friend proved right. Emmanuel was signed by the agency the minute the agents saw him and before long he was appearing in commercials for such products as fruit juice, cars, stereos, glue, soup, toys, coffee, pudding, pizza, and, of course, Burger King. He did around 50-60 commercials including one for Campbell's Soup and Life Cereal and the 4 Burger King commercials. His Colgate commercial can be seen in the movie 'Splash' when Madison (the mermaid) goes to the mall (it can be seen on the TVs in the background).
The first acting job Emmanuel had that wasn't in a commercial was the part of The Changeling Boy in the Joseph Papp New York Shakespeare Festival Production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. Emmanuel also guest-starred on such TV talk shows as "The Tonight Show" and "The Phil Donahue Show" but "Webster" was Emmanuel's first major role on a TV series.
Emmanuel also became one of the biggest stars in Japan as well as America. He made three personal-appearance tours in that country, and a record he made there shot to the top of the charts. He even made a television movie for Japanese television called Samurai in New York.
He has maintained a friendship with music superstar Michael Jackson for many years. It all began when they met at an awards ceremony. After that, Michael insisted that Emmanuel accompany him to such events as "The Emmy Awards Show" and "The Academy Awards Presentations" (they would often dress alike). The two young men spent many happy hours together discussing performing and show business.
Besides Webster, Emmanuel has done guest spots on The Love Boat, In the House, Family Matters (as himself), Malcolm & Eddie (as himself), and Moesha (in the episode "The Short Story"). He also did a 1985 TV movie called Lost in London which co-starred Ben Vereen. He also did 'The New Adventures of Mother Goose Special' with Sally Struthers.
The 3' 6" tall (he says there is no known medical reason for his still-short stature and has grown 6" since the age of 12) Lewis graduated from Clark Atlanta University with a theater arts degree in 1997. He is said to be looking for another TV series and to possibly go into directing. He is good friends with Marc Price ('Skippy' on Family Ties and now a stand-up comedian) and has gone on tour with him and done various promotional appearances with him.
He founded his own musical label called Emmanuel Lewis Entertainment. He is said to have a black belt in karate and is a martial arts expert. He also is a student of Billy Blanks' Tae-Bo.
Emmanuel guest-starred on the new original USA Network thriller called GvsE. In the August 1st 1999 episode, he played an...uh...explosive character proving that not only Good things come in small packages.
In February 2002, he appeared in a commercial for Denny's.Much like NBC's Gary Coleman, ABC's Emmanuel was another perpetual man child who just could not grow up. When I found out how old he really was, I was shocked!- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Shavar Ross was born on 4 March 1971 in Bronx, New York, USA. He is an actor and director, known for Friday the 13th: A New Beginning (1985), Diff'rent Strokes (1978) and A Taste of Us (2004). He has been married to Jacqueline Ross since 15 December 1992. They have two children.He was Gary Coleman's sidekick, but he was way better in Friday the 13th Part 5 as the charismatic little man who you just knew he was going to be a star someday.- Actor
- Producer
- Executive
Magic Johnson was born on 14 August 1959 in Lansing, Michigan, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Obsessed (2009), Dead Tone (2007) and Hair Show (2004). He has been married to Cookie Johnson since 14 September 1991. They have two children.Back in the 80s, basketball players had class. Magic was one of the greatest ever. I'd take Magic today over the knuckleheads in the game now.- Actress
- Producer
- Director
Rae Dawn Chong was born February 28, 1961 in Edmonton, Canada. After a few film and television spots, Rae Dawn earned a Genie for her performance in Jean-Jacques Annaud's prehistoric-drama Quest for Fire (1981). She played the young, Ivaka prisoner, Ika. Other notables roles include Harpo's girlfriend "Squeek", aka, Mary Agnes in Steven Spielberg's five-time Academy Award-nominated film, The Color Purple (1985), and James Remar's beautiful and mysterious wife, Carola in Tales from the Darkside: The Movie (1990).Rae Dawn Chong may have been "mixed" but back then she was the black female actress who was pretty much the only one! She played the part with dignity and class, without taking off her clothes or being a slut.- Actor
- Writer
- Composer
Philip Michael Thomas - the multi-talented performer best known as Detective Rico Tubbs in the iconic 1980s TV series Miami Vice (1984) - made his Broadway debut in 1971 in the Pulitzer Prize-winning play No Place to Be Somebody...and hasn't looked back since.
In a remarkable career that spans nearly four decades, PMT has worked with some of the top stage, screen, and recording personalities in the world.
He first guest starred on TV in 1973 in the pilot for the series Pilot (1973), followed by parts in Good Times (1974), Police Woman (1974), Medical Center (1969), Wonder Woman (1978)_, _Starsky and Hutch (1978)_, and Trapper John, M.D. (1979) before landing the role on Miami Vice (1984) in 1984 that made him a household name - and took him on a whirlwind tour of the globe and into the presence of heads of state (including President Ronald Reagan and Nelson Mandela), fellow celebrities, and countless adoring fans.
Despite world-wide stardom as an actor of both stage and screen, it is music that is PMT's biggest passion. He wrote his first song at the age of 11 and, over the next 40 years, wrote, composed, and sung everything from Gospel to R&B to pop standards to rock. One long-time friend recently referred to the musical side of PMT as "an undiscovered diamond."
During the stratospheric years of Miami Vice (1984-1989), PMT released two highly regarded albums: Livin' the Book of My Life (1985) and Somebody (1988), both on his own Starship Records label, with distribution by industry giant Atlantic Records. Although much loved by fans to this day, his albums didn't sell as well as expected (perhaps due to a wide range of musical styles that defied pigeonhole) and remain out of print, although they often fetch a tidy sum on eBay. PMT is considering reissuing his solo albums with bonus tracks sometime in 2007 or 2008.
The power of imagination and love to overcome circumstances is a theme that runs through the fabric of his life. He cites singing "The Impossible Dream" (from Man of La Mancha) while at Oakwood College in 1967 as a turning point for him.
Considered by long-time friends and family members alike to be one of the most compassionate, spiritual, and generous men they've ever known, PMT credits his uplifting, positive outlook on life to a vegetarian diet, regular exercise, life-long learning, friends he's made through the years, and books such as The Holy Bible, Napoleon Hill's Think and Grow Rich, and Paramahansa Yogananda's Autobiography of a Yogi, among many others.
PMT loves Florida and has chosen to make his home there instead of L.A. or New York as do most of his colleagues. Naturally, this keeps him out of the limelight, but it's a mistake to assume that just because his name isn't regularly splashed across the tabloids that he's not keeping himself busy. In fact, he is working (2007) on his autobiography, his official web site, reading scripts, performing, writing music, and helping young performers reach the heights he has reached - and doing it all with characteristic charm, grace, vitality...and with his trademark banner, "Treasure beyond measure!" flying proudly overhead.Even though I was into TV hard in the 80s, I wasn't really a Miami Vice fan. The show was on every Friday night in the 80s and should have been a weekly ritual, but for me, it wasn't. I got bored with it everytime I watched it. Even the new updated movie bored me! But, I give Phillip props for being the cool black character on the show who was more than a "sidekick".- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Animation Department
Michael Chambers was born on 13 November 1967 in Long Beach, California, USA. He is an actor, known for Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey (1991), Breakin' (1984) and Casper (1995).Now, when I first saw Breakin I was amazed at this man's skills at pop locking. Hours were spent in front of the mirror trying to movie like this guy. Never got it, though.- Music Artist
- Actor
- Producer
Ice Cube was born in South Central Los Angeles, to Doris (Benjamin), a custodian and hospital clerk, and Hosea Jackson, a UCLA groundskeeper. He first came to public notice as a singer and songwriter with the controversial and influential band N.W.A. His compositions with that group included many of the classic cuts from their debut LP "Straight Outta Compton" (Ruthless/Priority, 1989), including the title track, "Gangsta Gangsta" and "Express Yourself". He quit the band over business differences in 1990 and began a still-growing series of commercially and critically acclaimed solo albums, starting with "AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted" (Priority, 1990). His second solo album, "Death Certificate" (Priority, 1991), a concept album about the fall and rise of the Black man, sold two million copies, and his subsequent solo output (six albums to date total) has sold over ten million copies. He has also discovered Yoyo, Del the Funky Homosapien, K-Dee and Mack 10. He has also produced, written, toured and recorded with Public Enemy, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, George Clinton, The D.O.C., Michel'e, Big Daddy Kane, WC & The Madd Circle (which spawned the solo career of Coolio), former N.W.A. bandmate Dr. Dre and Cypress Hill. He has also recorded with two post-N.W.A. side-project bands, Da Lench Mob ("Guerillas In Tha Mist", Street Knowledge/East-West, 1991) and Westside Connection ("Bow Down", Priority, 1996). His movie career has been no less stellar. Ice Cube's debut in Boyz n the Hood (1991) led to more roles in such films as Trespass (1992), Dangerous Ground (1997) and Anaconda (1997). He also appeared as himself in the comedy CB4 (1993). He is also no stranger to the other side of the camera, directing videos for himself as well as Prince and Color Me Badd, as well as co-writing his screenwriting debut, Friday (1995).He was pretty obscure back in the 80s, but his earlier late 80s material with NWA put the Mr T scowl up a notch, complete with guns, misogyny, and ultra violence all to a funky beat.- Music Artist
- Actress
- Composer
With almost fifty years in the music business, Tina Turner became one of the most commercially successful international female rock stars. Her sultry, powerful voice, her incredible legs, her time-tested beauty and her unforgettable story all contributed to her legendary status.
Born to a share-cropping family in the segregated South, Anna Mae Bullock and her elder sister were abandoned by their sparring parents early on. After her grandmother's death, she eventually moved to St. Louis, Missouri to reunite with her mother. This opened up a whole new world of R&B nightclubs to the precocious 16-year-old. Called up to sing onstage with Ike Turner's Kings of Rhythm in 1956, she displayed a natural talent for performing which the bandleader was keen to develop. Soon, Anna Mae's aspirations of a nursing career were forgotten and she began to hang around with the group. When the singer booked to record "A Fool in Love" failed to turn up for the session, Ike drafted Anna Mae to provide the vocal with the intention of removing it later. However, once he heard her spine-tingling performance of the song, he soon changed his plans. He changed her name to Tina Turner, and when the record became a hit, Tina became a permanent fixture in Ike's band and his quest for international stardom. One thing led to another: they were married in Mexico after the births of Tina's two sons - the first a result of an earlier relationship with a musician, the second with Ike.
Before too long, the Ike and Tina Turner Revue was tearing up large and small R&B and soul venues throughout the early and mid-1960s. The hits were relatively few, but the unsurpassed energy and excitement generated by the live stage show, primarily Tina, made the Revue a solid touring act, along with the likes of James Brown and Ray Charles. Their greatest attempt to "cross over" came in 1966 with the historic recording of the Phil Spector production, "River Deep, Mountain High". While it was a commercial flop in the United States, it was a monster hit in Europe - and the start of Tina's European superstar status, which never faded during her long stint of relative obscurity in America in the late 1970s. The Revue entered that decade as a top touring and recording act, with Tina becoming more and more recognized as the star power behind the group's international success. Ike, while having been justly described as an excellent musician, a shrewd businessman and the initial "brains" behind the Revue, was also described (by Tina and others) as a violent, drug-addicted wife-beater who was not above frequently knocking Tina (and other women) around both publicly and privately. Despite hits such as "Proud Mary" and Tina's self-penned "Nutbush City Limits", further mainstream success eluded the group and Ike blamed Tina. After years of misery and a failed suicide attempt, Tina finally had enough in July 1976, when she fled the marriage (and the Revue) with the now-famous 36 cents and a Mobil gasoline credit card.
Tina, nearing 40, endured a long and, at times, humiliating trek back to superstardom through working many substandard gigs and performing a repertoire of current Top 40 hits and old Ike & Tina tunes in hotel ballrooms and supper clubs. She later admitted she was having the time of her life at this point, simply putting together her own show and performing. She refused to wrangle for a settlement from the divorce, despite being in huge debt to all the tour promoters she had let down by fleeing the Revue. After an appearance on Olivia Newton-John: Hollywood Nights (1980), Tina - in a wise business move - persuaded Newton-John's management team to take her on. With Roger Davies at her side, Tina's profile began to rise, and performances alongside the likes of Rod Stewart and The Rolling Stones introduced her to the rock market she so wanted to pursue.
The European release of her cover of Al Green's "Let's Stay Together" in 1983 was a major turning point in Tina's career. The record hit #6 on the British chart, and Capitol Records were soon demanding a full album. "Private Dancer" was hurriedly produced in England in two weeks flat. The rest is rock and roll history. The next single - "What's Love Got to Do with It?" - became Tina's first #1 single the following year, and the album hung around the Top 10 for months, spawning two further hits. At the 1985 Grammy Awards, her astonishing comeback was recognized with nominations in the rock, R&B and pop categories and rewarded with four trophies. After that time, the successes just kept coming: a starring role in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985); duets with Bryan Adams, David Bowie, Eric Clapton and Mick Jagger amongst others; several sell-out world tours; a string of hit albums and awards; a bestselling autobiography, "I, Tina"; and the blockbuster biopic What's Love Got to Do with It (1993) chronicling her life.
After her "Twenty Four Seven Millenium Tour" in 2000, Tina announced she would retire from the concert stage, but continue to record and play live on a smaller scale. Four years later, at age 65, she released a career retrospective entitled "All the Best" featuring new recordings, and reached #2 in the American album chart, her highest ever placing for an album there. She ended 2005 as one of five recipients of the Kennedy Center Honors, the highest form of recognition of excellence in the arts in America. Despite changing the direction of her working life, she will always be remembered as a dynamic live performer and recording artist, able to thrill audiences like no other woman in music history. Tina Turner is the undisputed Queen of Rock and Roll.Though Tina Turner's career spanned decades up until the 80s, it was in the 80s when, even though she was old enough to be our mothers, me and every young boy in America would have still tried to date her!- Actress
Ola Ray is internationally known as Michael Jackson's girlfriend in the Grammy Award winning short film video ''Thriller." Her work in 'Thriller' brought her worldwide recognition and made her a household name.
Ola was born in St. Louis ,Missouri, where she spent the early part of her childhood with her parents, six brothers and two sisters . Ola and her Family then came to Sacramento, California and lived there until 1975 when Ola moved with her family to Tokyo, Japan where her stepfather was stationed at Yokota Air Force Base for three years.
Soon after her arrival in Tokyo, Ola began her professional dancing and singing career by forming a song and dance group called The Puppets with her twin brothers and sister. The musical talents of Ola and the other members of The Puppets landed them a year long performance contract at the Big Together Club in the Shinjuku District. The Puppets' increasing popularity led to appearances in TV commercials, performances in various cities throughout Japan and a recording offer from CBS Records in Tokyo .
Throughout Ola's singing and dancing career in Japan, she also engaged in a substantial number of modeling assignments through Eddie Arab Modeling Agency. She modeled as a poster girl and appeared in several TV commercials for such well known Japanese department stores as Daimaru, Isetan, Matsuya, and Parco.
After her successful stay in Japan, Ola and her family returned to the United States. Upon her arrival in 1978, Ola made Los Angeles her home so that she could further pursue her career in Entertainment.
Ola appeared as Playmate of the Month for Playboy magazine. After her appearance in Playboy , she entered into an exclusive contract with Johnson and Johnson for promotion of their Classy Curl hair product. As part of Ola's promotion , her pictures were displayed on all Classy Curl Kit Products, in magazine advertisements, television commercials, and posters.
Ola also served as spokesperson for the Classy Curl product promotion. Additionally, she sponsored on television and print nationally known products such as 'Milk'[sponsoring the Milk Advisory Board] , Coca Cola, Coors, McDonalds, and Leggs pantyhose, as well as several other products.
Resulting from a successful modeling career and her work in 'Thriller' , Ola landed several acting roles in motion pictures produced by Paramount Studios, Columbia Pictures, and Warner Bros. Studios , and also in various top television shows for the leading three networks - NBC, ABC, CBS. She has appeared in such movies as '48 Hours' [with Eddie Murphy and Nick Nolte] 'Night Shift' [with Michael Keaton and Henry Winkler] , Beverly Hills Cop 2' [with Eddie Murphy] '' Ten To Midnight' [with Charles Bronson] and 'Fear City' [with Billy Dee Williams and Tom Berenger] , Ola also played a leading role in a television pilot that was a spin-off from the popular sitcom , 'Gimme A Break' for NBC.
Ola has written and produced several songs , one of which rose to Number Five on the top ten chart in Houston, Texas.
Ola recently completed two features entitled Shooting Heroin opposite Lawrence-Hilton Jacobs , and It Wants Blood opposite Eric Roberts.
Ola has recently completed a book memoir entitled For The Thrill Of It All which she has recently signed a literary contract with a Major literary AgencyMan, Ola Ray left me speechless every time I saw her. Her role in the Michael Jackson video for "Thriller" was classic. Plus, her role as Eddie Murphy's chick in 48 Hrs was great. I would have loved to see much more of her, literally.- Actor
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The legendary gangsta hip-hop emcee Ice-T was born Tracy Marrow on February 16, 1958, in Newark, New Jersey. He moved to Los Angeles, California, to live with his paternal aunt after the death of his father while he was in the sixth grade; his mother had died earlier when he was in the third grade. His aunt lived in the South Los Angeles district of Crenshaw, colloquially referred to as South Central. He became immersed in the street life of the inner-city and eventually became a member of the West Side Rollin 30s Original Harlem Crips.
In 1979, Marrow joined the Army after leaving Crenshaw High School, but his 4-year hitch was enough for him, as he was a leader, not a follower. "I didn't like total submission to a leader other than myself," he said. After ETSing from the Army in 1983, he returned to South Central with the intention of becoming a hip-hop musician. More than music, his life got caught up in street life as as a jewel thief and as a pimp. (His nomme de guerre, Ice T, is an homage to the fabled pimp and raconteur Iceberg Slim (Robert Beck). He committed himself totally to his music after a 1985 car crash.
As a musician, Ice-T played a major role in the creation of the gangsta incarnation of hip-hop music and was a colossus of the West Coast hip-hop scene, despite his East Coast, greater New York, origins. Though his music displays a political consciousness, like the indictments of racism that were a hallmark of seminal hip-hop group Public Enemy, it also is nihilistic as befits a chronicler of street life. His most infamous song, the heavy metal "Cop Killer," was one of the major battle in the cultural wars of the 1990s, in which cultural conservatives enlisted the Moses of the right wing, Charlton Heston, to get Ice-T dropped from his then-label, Sire/Warner Bros.
The charismatic Ice-T has also achieved success as an actor in movies and on TV. He plays Detective Odafin Tutuola on the TV series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999), which is ironic for someone famous for "Cop Killer" and his feud with the L.A.P.D. Ice-T currently resides in North Bergen, New Jersey, with his wife, Coco Austin.He was right there from the beginning, going from the set of Breakin to the recording booth, telling everybody about the gang culture of Los Angeles, which then led to a whole new genre of rap.- Actor
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A true multi-hyphenate, Blair Underwood is enjoying success in film, television and theatre, as an actor, director and producer. Underwood recently returned to Broadway starring opposite David Alan Grier in the Pulitzer Prize winning drama "A Solider's Play" for director Kenny Leon and the Roundabout Theatre Company. He also co-stars in Justin Simien's "Bad Hair" which will premiere at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival. Also this year, Underwood stars opposite Octavia Spencer & Tiffany Haddish in Netflix's highly anticipated limited series "Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam CJ Walker" (March 20).
Underwood recently appeared in the Netflix Emmy-Award winning limited series "When They See Us." He also had a recurring role on the Netflix comedy series, "Dear White People" and can be seen in Clark Johnson's "Juanita," opposite Alfre Woodard, also for Netflix. He spent two years as a series regular on the ABC drama series "Quantico," while also recurring on another hit ABC drama "MARVEL AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. " He also had a co-starring role in "The After Party," from writer/director Ian Edelman, which Netflix released late in 2018.
Past television credits include series regular roles on "Dirty Sexy Money," "The New Adventures of Old Christine," "In Treatment," "The Event" and "L.A. Law". Film credits include "Deep Impact," "Set It Off," "Rules of Engagement," "Just Cause," "Madea's Family Reunion" and Steven Soderbergh's "Full Frontal." Underwood co-starred opposite Cicely Tyson in the Lifetime telefilm & theatre production of "A Trip to Bountiful," based on the Tony Award-winning play.
In 2012 he made his acclaimed Broadway debut in the iconic role of Stanley in Tennessee Williams' "A Streetcar Named Desire," for which he earned a 2012 Drama League Distinguished Performance Award nomination. He also starred in "Paradise Blue" at the Williamstown Theatre Festival and "Othello" at the Old Globe Theatre.
Underwood also has several projects in the development pipeline as a director, including "Viral," a feature based on a Joe McClean script. In 2010 he made his feature film directing debut with "The Bridge to Nowhere," which starred Ving Rhames, Danny Masterson, Bijou Phillips and Alex Breckenridge.
Underwood is an Emmy Award-winner (as producer of the philanthropy-centered NBC Saturday morning series "Give"), a two-time Golden Globe Award nominee, and has been nominated for 17 NAACP Image Awards (seven wins). He won a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word as co-narrator of Al Gore's audiobook, An Inconvenient Truth. A newly minted member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, he is also active in several philanthropic endeavors.While Ice T was breaking down violent gang culture and Mr T was beating guys down on the A-Team, Blair Underwood was the pretty boy. Whereas Eddie was a smart ass, Blair was, well, charming, I guess.- Actor
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Alfonso Ribeiro was born in New York on September 21, 1971. Alfonso's family is from Trinidad & Tobago. Although rumor has been that he is of Dominican descent, he has stated in an interview that this is false. Neither he nor his family are from the Dominican Republic; they originate from Trinidad & Tobago.
Ribeiro began his career when he debuted on the PBS show "Oye Ollie." After getting the starring role in the Broadway musical "The Tap Dance Kid" Ribeiro was spotted by Michael Jackson who cast him in one of the singer's many Pepsi commercials of that decade. At the age of 10 Ribeiro dabbled as a musician, releasing singles such as "Dance Baby," "Not Too Young (To Fall In Love)", "Sneak Away With Me" and "Time Bomb". It was about this time that he was cast as Ricky Schroder's best friend on the long-running series Silver Spoons (1982).
He attended California State University at Los Angeles after the end of the series, and was later cast as Carlton Banks on the popular series The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990). An avid race car driver, Ribeiro resides in Los Angeles where he participates in celebrity car races.Alfonso brought his dance steps and his black guy coolness to the lily white set of Ricky Shroeder's Silver Spoons. Unlike the badass Mr T, or the perpetual children on other shows, Alfonso and his character were, well, normal; the type of guy you would be cool with, without thinking he would kick your ass and without thinking he was 10 years younger than he looked.- Actor
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L.L. Cool J was born James Todd Smith in Bay Shore, Long Island, New York, the son of Ondrea Griffith and James Louis Smith, Jr.
Todd, as he was called, did not have a very happy childhood. At the age of four, he saw his mother and grandfather shot by his own father. After they recovered from their injuries, his mother began to date a young physical therapist she met while in the hospital. The therapist treated Ondrea kindly, but for years he abused Todd physically and verbally, which resulted in Todd becoming a bully himself. It was during this period that he started wearing hats all the time (one of L.L. Cool J's trademarks is the fact that people never see him without a hat on--until recently). Fortunately, Ondrea finally discovered what this man was doing to her son and left him.
As he grew older, Todd found a way to escape the effects of his abuse and his bullying attitude: hip-hop music. He fell in love with it at the age of nine, and by 11 he was writing lyrics and making his own songs with some DJ equipment his grandfather gave him. At 15, he and one of his best friends came up with his present stage name, L.L. Cool J, which means "Ladies Love Cool James."
In 1984, when L.L. was 16, he met Rick Rubin, a student at NYU, who gave him his big break in music. Rick really liked L.L.'s music and decided to try to get him a record deal. Together, they made the single "I Need a Beat" and sent it to an artist manager named Russell Simmons. Simmons loved the single, and, in the same year, Rick and Russell co-founded the famous Def Jam Recordings; L.L.'s debut album, "Radio," released in 1985, after securing a distribution deal for Def Jam with Columbia/CBS Records, was the label's first long-playing release. Even today, L.L. is considered one of Def Jam's most prized possessions.
1985 was also the year L.L. started his acting career. He first appeared in Krush Groove (1985), which is a semi-biographical account of the early days of Def Jam Recordings. L.L. had a cameo appearance in the film. In 1986, L.L. also had a cameo appearance in the movie Wildcats (1986) and also wrote that movie's theme song. After that, L.L. took a break from film and concentrated more on his first love: music. His career took off, and after every one of his albums hit platinum-selling status, he was (and still is) regarded as one of the greatest hip-hop artists of all time.
After a few years, he had small roles in a few other films, but was still better known for his music. All this changed in 1995. By this time he was a happily married 27-year-old with three children. His first starring film, Out-of-Sync (1995), had also been released. It didn't do very well at the box office, but it got him noticed by executives at NBC-TV, who wanted to give him a part in a sitcom they were going to air. This sitcom was In the House (1995), which showed L.L.'s acting ability; the show stayed on the air until 1999.
He had been offered several films roles during the run of the show and decided to accept a part in Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998). Its success resulted in L.L. being cast in bigger and better film roles, and he has acted alongside such stars as Whoopi Goldberg, Samuel L. Jackson, Jamie Lee Curtis, James Woods, Al Pacino, Omar Epps, Pam Grier, Stanley Tucci, and Dennis Quaid, to name a few.
In 2000, he was finally rewarded for his acting talent. That year he won a Blockbuster Entertainment Award for the best supporting actor in the action film Deep Blue Sea (1999). Even though his film career has taken off, he hasn't forgotten his love of hip-hop music. In 1998, he was planning to retire from hip-hop and just concentrate on his film career, but he later decided to keep dividing his time between both fields. L.L. is not only known as one of the greatest MCs of all time, but he is also known as a great actor.LL started out in the 80s, bringing more of the Mr T talk to early Def Jam records, but he was a pretty boy on the other hand. He was badass but didn't force you to cross the street, and charming but not a softie!- Actress
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Jennifer Beals is an internationally renowned actress who has over 90 credits to her name, including critically acclaimed feature films and some of the highest rated television series to date. Beals is currently executive producing and returning as a lead cast member in the revival of her hit original series THE L WORD: GENERATION Q. The highly anticipated series will launch in December 2019 on Showtime. The ground-breaking lesbian-focused drama THE L WORD originally aired for six seasons. For her performance as Bette Porter, Beals received the prestigious GLAAD Golden Gate Award, as well as two NAACP Image Award nominations and a Satellite Award nomination. In 2012, Beals was presented with the Human Rights Campaign's Ally for Equality Award for her support of the LGBT community. Additionally, Beals and The L Word's Ilene Chaiken are set to executive produce the Freeform series "The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo," an adaption for Taylor Jenkins Reid's acclaimed novel.
Beals and filmmaker Tom Jacobson created the concept for the new novel, The Hive. The book is a gripping thriller set in the near future that focuses on escalating mob violence that ensues from online shaming and internet bullying. Released in September 2019, the novel was named one of People Magazine's 'Best Books of Fall 2019.'
Throughout her accomplished film career, Beals has worked with many of the industry's most acclaimed filmmakers and talent. She co-starred alongside Denzel Washington and Gary Oldman in the blockbuster THE BOOK OF ELI and starred opposite Garry Marshall, Faye Dunaway and Brendan Fraser in TWILIGHT OF THE GOLDS, for which she won a Golden Satellite Award. Beals was featured among an all-star cast including Dustin Hoffman, Gene Hackman and Rachel Weisz in the crime thriller RUNAWAY JURY. She also starred in THE MADONNA AND THE DRAGON from legendary film director Samuel Fuller. More recently, Beals co-starred in the feature film MANHATTAN NIGHT, opposite Adrien Brody and Campbell Scott, as well as AFTER, the film adaption of Anna Todd's series of bestselling young adult novels alongside Josephine Langford and Hero Fiennes Tiffin.
On the television side, Beals recurred in the Amazon series THE LAST TYCOON, receiving critical acclaim for her performance as Hollywood starlet Margo Taft. Los Angeles Magazine proclaimed "Beals stole every scene she's in as a ball-busting, piece-of-work Joan Crawford goddess with a very American secret" and Indiewire named her "the shows biggest stand out." Beals was also seen as the female lead in TAKEN, NBC's straight-to-series adaptation of the hit movie franchise, and co-starred in the Warner Bros TV/DC series SWAMP THING, released in May 2019. Beals starred in the TV movie A WIFE'S NIGHTMARE, for which she received a Canadian Screen Award nomination. Notable television credits include TNT's PROOF, NBC's medical drama THE NIGHT SHIFT and the FOX series THE CHICAGO CODE alongside Jason Clarke.
For her role in the iconic film FLASHDANCE, Beals earned a Golden Globe nomination and an NAACP Image Award for Best Actress. Beals starred in A HOUSE DIVIDED, for which she was nominated for a Satellite Award. Some of her acclaimed independent film projects include IN THE SOUP opposite Steve Buscemi, which won The Grand Jury Prize for Best Dramatic film at the Sundance Film Festival, and CINEMANOVELS which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. Beals extensive credits include films such as RODGER DODGER, MRS. PARKER AND THE VICIOUS CIRCLE, FOUR ROOMS, BEFORE I FALL and DEVIL IN A BLUE DRESS, which earned her another NAACP Image Award nomination. Beals received the Maverick Tribute Award at the Cinequest San Jose Film Festival in 1999.
In addition to her work on-camera, the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group recently named Beals a 'C40 Goodwill Ambassador.' Beals' partnership with C40 will help raise awareness about the bold climate action underway in leading cities driving forward solutions to the climate crisis worldwide. Through her ambassador role, she will support and amplify the voices of inspiring young climate activists in raising awareness of the current climate emergency. Additionally, Beals will also play a leading role in C40's Women4Climate Initiative, helping to celebrate the incredible leadership being delivered by women around the world in climate action.
Originally from Chicago, Beals attended Yale University, where she graduated with honors.There has been much debate as to Jennifer's ethnicity. However, for me, given the lack of prevalent black women in film in the 80s, and the fact that she was a star, makes her black to me!- Actor
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Bernie Casey was born on 8 June 1939 in Wyco, West Virginia, USA. He was an actor and director, known for Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989), Never Say Never Again (1983) and Revenge of the Nerds (1984). He was married to Paula. He died on 19 September 2017 in Los Angeles, California, USA.Though he was a 70s black exploitation movie icon, his role in the classic 80s flick "Revenge of the Nerds" showed a different kind of "brother"; which was the black fraternity brother who was serious, strong and silent.- Producer
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Russell Simmons was born on 4 October 1957 in Queens, New York City, New York, USA. He is a producer and writer, known for The Nutty Professor (1996), Dude, Where's My Car? (2000) and It's Kind of a Funny Story (2010). He was previously married to Kimora Lee Simmons.Russell is like so up there now, partying with Obama, but back then, he was a hustler! Charming, fast talking and manipulative, he was the subject of one of the only movies (besides Breakin) of the early 80s all black people came out to see, Krush Groove.- Actor
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Miguel A. Núñez Jr. is an Afro-Latino actor and writer who played Harris Grant from The Family Business, Marcus Taylor from Tour of Duty, Spider from The Return of the Living Dead, Biscuit from Life, and the Voodoo Maestro of Spooky Island from the 2002 Raja Gosnell/James Gunn film Scooby-Doo. He also collaborated with Eddie Murphy in several films.If you saw Friday the 13th A New Beginning, you would have seen him in all his 80s glory, looking like a cross between Cooly Jackson (the 80s dancer from Solid Gold and the Breakin' Movies) and Prince. He played a wannabe black rock star who didn't live past 15 minutes of the movie.- Director
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Fab 5 Freddy was born on 31 August 1959 in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA. He is a director and actor, known for Wild Style (1982), New Jack City (1991) and The Manchurian Candidate (2004).Before there was Diddy, Russell Simons, Eazy E, Master P or Andre Harrell, there was Fab 5 Freddy, the first hip hop hustler/businessman.- Actress
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Shari Headley was born on 15 July 1964 in Queens, New York City, New York, USA. She is an actress, known for Coming to America (1988), Coming 2 America (2021) and Towelhead (2007). She was previously married to Christopher Martin.The ideal cute well spoken sista with the most beautiful smile you would marry if you had the chance, just like the African prince in Coming To America!