Donald T. Bexley (March 10, 1910 – April 15, 1997) was an American actor and comedian, best known for playing Fred Sanford (Redd Foxx)'s friend Bubba Bexley on the 1970s television sitcom Sanford and Son. He was a standup comedian on the Chitlin' Circuit as a solo act and as part of comedy teams, during which time he became acquainted with Redd Foxx. Bexley recorded party albums with partner Dave Turner and worked constantly throughout the United States, though mainstream stardom eluded him. His greatest exposure came from his Sanford and Son appearances. He appeared as the same character in the Sanford and Son spin-off series The Sanford Arms. His other television credits include Laverne & Shirley, Cheers, T.J. Hooker, Hunter and The Royal Family He was the MC and comedian in the movie Sparkle. He retired from show business in the 1980s and returned to his native Virginia.
Donald T. Bexley died on April 15, 1997, at the age of 87, due to heart and kidney failure.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Whitman Mayo (Grady Wilson) Mini Bio Pt. 3
Though his role as Grady typecast him, Mayo did not let it define him. His professional growth took him some distance from the Watts junkyard of the NBC sitcom. He rounded out his career teaching drama at Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, Georgia, as well as hosting Liars and Legends on Turner South.
Although best known for his television work, Mayo made several film appearances, including The Main Event with Barbra Streisand, D.C. Cab, Boyz in the Hood and Waterproof with Burt Reynolds.
Mayo also appeared as Reverend Banyon on the BET TV Movie Boycott in 2001 and in an episode of "Martin."
Mayo died of a heart attack at Atlanta's Grady Memorial Hospital, a hospital bearing the same name as the character for which he was most well-known. He had resided in Fayetteville, Georgia since 1994 and was survived by his third wife Gail and their two children as well as his son of a previous relationship. His son Rahn Mayo is currently a member of the Georgia House of Representatives[2] representing House District 91. He is also survived by his daughters Tanya Mayo, Suni Mayo Simpson, and sons Pangi Rayson, Jon-jo Raysor and Jabrie Lovelace who currently resides in Washington, DC
Although best known for his television work, Mayo made several film appearances, including The Main Event with Barbra Streisand, D.C. Cab, Boyz in the Hood and Waterproof with Burt Reynolds.
Mayo also appeared as Reverend Banyon on the BET TV Movie Boycott in 2001 and in an episode of "Martin."
Mayo died of a heart attack at Atlanta's Grady Memorial Hospital, a hospital bearing the same name as the character for which he was most well-known. He had resided in Fayetteville, Georgia since 1994 and was survived by his third wife Gail and their two children as well as his son of a previous relationship. His son Rahn Mayo is currently a member of the Georgia House of Representatives[2] representing House District 91. He is also survived by his daughters Tanya Mayo, Suni Mayo Simpson, and sons Pangi Rayson, Jon-jo Raysor and Jabrie Lovelace who currently resides in Washington, DC
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Whitman Mayo (Grady Wilson) Mini Bio Pt. 2
In the late 1960s, he joined the New Lafayette Theater repertory company in New York City and began settling down in an acting career. His call to Sanford and Son came shortly thereafter when a friend from the New Lafayette group who was by that time writing for Norman Lear recommended Mayo for a part in a single episode. His portrayal caught on and he lasted through the entire duration of the show, even filling in as the leading character while the star, Redd Foxx, held out for more pay. Mayo's character, was Grady Wilson; Grady Demond Wilson is the birth name of the show's co-star, Demond Wilson, who played Fred Sanford's son. Having a plethora of experience with the tentative in his life, Mayo viewed his continuing success on the series as fleeting and ventured into other trades to assure financial stability. In 1975, for instance, he opened a travel agency in Inglewood, California. Mayo starred in an unsuccessful spin-off, Grady, in which his character moved in with his daughter and her husband in Beverly Hills.
In the late 1970s he appeared on the Los Angeles children's television program That's Cat, offering sage advice in a sweet manner to the main character, Alice.
In 1996, the show Late Night with Conan O'Brien wished to use him in a sketch, but were unable to locate him. The show mounted a highly publicized tongue-in-cheek search for Mayo called "Where's Grady?". After three weeks and over 50,000 calls to NBC from fans who claimed to have spotted him, Mayo finally appeared on Late Night with Conan O'Brien to a standing ovation from the audience, and the highest ratings Late Night with Conan O'Brien had seen in years. Mayo revealed that it was his mother who told him of the search after a repairman saw his picture in her house and told her she could be eligible for a reward.[1] At the time, Mayo was in Cape Canaveral, Florida as a member of the cast of the short-lived syndicated action/drama television show, The Cape. In the show, Mayo played Sweets, the lovable owner of the Moonshot Bar and Grill.
In the late 1970s he appeared on the Los Angeles children's television program That's Cat, offering sage advice in a sweet manner to the main character, Alice.
In 1996, the show Late Night with Conan O'Brien wished to use him in a sketch, but were unable to locate him. The show mounted a highly publicized tongue-in-cheek search for Mayo called "Where's Grady?". After three weeks and over 50,000 calls to NBC from fans who claimed to have spotted him, Mayo finally appeared on Late Night with Conan O'Brien to a standing ovation from the audience, and the highest ratings Late Night with Conan O'Brien had seen in years. Mayo revealed that it was his mother who told him of the search after a repairman saw his picture in her house and told her she could be eligible for a reward.[1] At the time, Mayo was in Cape Canaveral, Florida as a member of the cast of the short-lived syndicated action/drama television show, The Cape. In the show, Mayo played Sweets, the lovable owner of the Moonshot Bar and Grill.
Friday, May 14, 2010
Whitman Mayo (Grady Wilson) Mini Bio
Whitman B. Mayo (November 15, 1930 – May 22, 2001) was an American actor best known for his character Grady Wilson on the 1970s television sitcom Sanford and Son.
Noted for portraying characters older than his actual age, Mayo was in his 40s while he played Grady on Sanford and Son.
Mayo was born in New York City, New York and grew up in Harlem and Queens. He moved with his family to Southern California at age seventeen and from there entered the United States Army from 1951 to 1953. Upon release, he studied at Chaffey College, Los Angeles City College, and UCLA. During this time he began acting in small parts, while waiting tables, working in the vineyards and as a probation officer and a variety of other small jobs.
For seven years he was a counselor to delinquent boys.
Noted for portraying characters older than his actual age, Mayo was in his 40s while he played Grady on Sanford and Son.
Mayo was born in New York City, New York and grew up in Harlem and Queens. He moved with his family to Southern California at age seventeen and from there entered the United States Army from 1951 to 1953. Upon release, he studied at Chaffey College, Los Angeles City College, and UCLA. During this time he began acting in small parts, while waiting tables, working in the vineyards and as a probation officer and a variety of other small jobs.
For seven years he was a counselor to delinquent boys.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Lawanda Page (Aunt Esther) Mini Bio Pt. 2
Page also appeared on several episodes of Dean Martin's "Celebrity Roasts," and over the next two decades occasionally guest-starred in episodes of other popular television shows, including Amen, Martin, 227, Family Matters, and Diff'rent Strokes. In the early 1990s she appeared on several tracks of the debut album by RuPaul entitled Supermodel of the World, most notably the hit song Supermodel (You Better Work). She also appeared in several music videos from the album. Shortly before her death she appeared in a series of comical Church's Chicken television commercials featuring the catchphrase "Gotta love it!" Among her movie credits are an appearance in the Steve Martin film My Blue Heaven; as an extremely foul-mouthed clown in Bobcat Goldthwait's 1991 comedy Shakes the Clown; a cameo appearance in the hit movie Friday, stealing the opening scene with a salty one-liner; and a role in the 'hood parody film Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood as the overbearing mother of aging gangsta "Old School."
Page succumbed to diabetes in September 2002. She is interred in an outdoor crypt at Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, California.
Her daughter, the evangelist Clara Estella Roberta Johnson, died on June 4, 2006, in Los Angeles, California, at the age of 69.
Page succumbed to diabetes in September 2002. She is interred in an outdoor crypt at Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, California.
Her daughter, the evangelist Clara Estella Roberta Johnson, died on June 4, 2006, in Los Angeles, California, at the age of 69.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Lawanda Page (Aunt Esther) Mini Bio Pt. 1
LaWanda Page, born Alberta Peal (October 19, 1920 – September 14, 2002) was an American actress best known for her portrayal of Aunt Esther in the 1970s sitcom Sanford and Son.
Raised in St. Louis, Missouri, Page began her career in show business working small nightclubs, billed as "The Bronze Goddess of Fire," an act which included her lighting cigarettes with her fingertips. She performed this feat on an episode of Sanford and Son, in which Fred held a circus in his front yard.
Page was convinced by her friend Redd Foxx to become a stand-up comedienne. She recorded several live comedy albums for the Laff Records label in the late 1960s and early 1970s; One release, a gold-selling album called Watch it, Sucka!, was titled after one of Aunt Esther's catchphrases to capitalize on her newfound TV fame.
On Sanford and Son, Page's Aunt Esther character was the sister of Elizabeth, Fred Sanford's late wife. Page was Foxx's only choice to play Aunt Esther. Esther would sometimes be accompanied by other formidable ladies from her church, or by her henpecked--and usually inebriated--husband Woodrow (played by Raymond Allen).
Aunt Esther was a combination of devout churchgoer and tough-as-nails realist, often sparring with Fred over both the state of his mortal soul and the lack of his success, resulting in her being insulted by Fred in return, with Fred opining on her homely appearance. The character of Esther was in direct contrast to the blue material of Page's stand-up act and record albums.
Raised in St. Louis, Missouri, Page began her career in show business working small nightclubs, billed as "The Bronze Goddess of Fire," an act which included her lighting cigarettes with her fingertips. She performed this feat on an episode of Sanford and Son, in which Fred held a circus in his front yard.
Page was convinced by her friend Redd Foxx to become a stand-up comedienne. She recorded several live comedy albums for the Laff Records label in the late 1960s and early 1970s; One release, a gold-selling album called Watch it, Sucka!, was titled after one of Aunt Esther's catchphrases to capitalize on her newfound TV fame.
On Sanford and Son, Page's Aunt Esther character was the sister of Elizabeth, Fred Sanford's late wife. Page was Foxx's only choice to play Aunt Esther. Esther would sometimes be accompanied by other formidable ladies from her church, or by her henpecked--and usually inebriated--husband Woodrow (played by Raymond Allen).
Aunt Esther was a combination of devout churchgoer and tough-as-nails realist, often sparring with Fred over both the state of his mortal soul and the lack of his success, resulting in her being insulted by Fred in return, with Fred opining on her homely appearance. The character of Esther was in direct contrast to the blue material of Page's stand-up act and record albums.
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Demond Wilson (Lamont Sanford) Pt.3
In 1984, Wilson became an ordained minister, fulfilling his childhood vow. Later, in 1995, he founded Restoration House, a center that helps rehabilitate former prison inmates by providing mentoring, spiritual guidance and vocational training. Wilson has written several Christian books concerning the New Age Movement and its hidden dangers to society. New Age Millennium by Wilson was released by CAP Publishing & Literary Co. LLC on December 1, 1998. (Demond's first name is misspelled "Desmond" on some book selling websites.) Wilson, who has also authored numerous children's books, stated the book to be an "exposé" of certain New Age "symbols and slogans".
Wilson has also authored the book Second Banana: The Bittersweet Memoirs of the Sanford & Son Years, which was scheduled for release on August 31, 2009.[dated info] According to an interview on the Celebrity Care.com website, Wilson said: "It's just a documented truth, behind the scenes factual account of what happened during those years. Redd (Foxx) and I were making history back in those days. We were the first blacks to be on television in that capacity and we opened the door for all those other shows that came after us." Wilson has been married to the former Cicely Loise Johnston since May 3, 1974. Together they have six children.
Wilson has also authored the book Second Banana: The Bittersweet Memoirs of the Sanford & Son Years, which was scheduled for release on August 31, 2009.[dated info] According to an interview on the Celebrity Care.com website, Wilson said: "It's just a documented truth, behind the scenes factual account of what happened during those years. Redd (Foxx) and I were making history back in those days. We were the first blacks to be on television in that capacity and we opened the door for all those other shows that came after us." Wilson has been married to the former Cicely Loise Johnston since May 3, 1974. Together they have six children.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)