Esther Rolle
| Esther Rolle | |
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| Born | November 8, 1920 Pompano Beach, Florida, US |
| Died | November 17, 1998 (aged 78) Culver City, California, US |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1964–1998 |
| Spouse | Oscar Robinson (1955-1960) |
Esther Rolle (November 8, 1920 – November 17, 1998) was an American actress. She was perhaps best known for her portrayal of Florida Evans on the CBS television sitcom Maude and its spin-off series Good Times.
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[edit] Biography
Esther Rolle was born in Pompano Beach, Florida, to Bahamian immigrants Jonathan Rolle (a farmer) and Elizabeth Rolle. Esther was the tenth of 18 children.[1]
Rolle attended Booker T. Washington High School in Miami, Florida[2] and graduated from Blanche Ely High School. She initially studied at Spelman College in Atlanta, but she moved to New York City.[2] She attended Hunter College, The New School for Social Research, and Yale University.[citation needed] She was also a member of Zeta Phi Beta sorority.[3] For many years, Rolle worked in a traditional "day job" in New York City's garment district.[4]
She received the NAACP Chairman's Civil Rights Leadership Award in 1990. She was the first woman to receive this award.
Her marriage ended in divorce, and she had no children.
After residing in Los Angeles, California, Rolle died on November 17, 1998, aged 78, in Culver City, California,[1] from complications of diabetes. Her body was flown back to her hometown, Pompano Beach, Florida.
[edit] Career
[edit] Dance
Rolle was a member of Asadata Dafora's dance troupe, Shogolo Oloba[1] (later renamed the Federal Theater African Dance Troupe). She became the troupe’s director in 1960.[2]
[edit] Theater
Rolle's earliest roles were on the stage; her New York stage debut was in the 1962 play The Blacks. She was often cast in plays produced by Robert Hooks and the Negro Ensemble Company. She also appeared in productions of The Crucible and Blues for Mr. Charlie.[4]
Rolle's most prominent early role was as Miss Maybell in the 1973 Melvin Van Peebles play, Don't Play Us Cheap.[5]
[edit] Television
Rolle is perhaps best known for her television role as Florida Evans, the character she played on two 1970s sitcoms. The character was initially introduced as Maude Findlay's housekeeper on Maude, and was spun off in the show's second season into Good Times, a show about Florida's family. Rolle was nominated in 1975 for the Best Actress in a Musical/Comedy Golden Globe Award for her role in Good Times.
Rolle fought for more relevant themes and scripts, and was unhappy when the success of Jimmie Walker's character J.J. Evans took the show in what she thought was a frivolous direction. As a result, actor John Amos, who played the role of the father, James Evans, ultimately left the show. Later on, in a stand-off with Good Times producer Norman Lear, Rolle also quit when her contract concluded. Although the series continued without her for a time, she returned for the show's final season.
In 1979 she won an Emmy for her role in the TV movie Summer of My German Soldier.[6]
Among her guest star roles was one on The Incredible Hulk in an episode entitled "Behind the Wheel" where she played a taxicab business owner.[4]
In the 1990s, Rolle was a surprise guest on RuPaul's VH-1 talk show. Her Maude co-star Bea Arthur was the guest, and Rolle was brought out to surprise Arthur. The two had not seen each other in years, Arthur said, and embraced warmly.
Rolle also appeared in a series of psychic hotline TV commercials in the 1990s. "Tell them Esther sent you," was her trademark line.
[edit] Music
Rolle released an album of music titled The Garden of My Mind in 1975.[7]
[edit] Film
Rolle's first screen appearance is a small, uncredited role in To Kill a Mockingbird (1962), and she later appeared in Gordon Parks' The Learning Tree (1969).[8] Her sister, actress Estelle Evans, performs in both films as well.[8] Esther Rolle appears early in her career in the 1964 feature film, Nothing But a Man.
After Good Times, she performed in a number of made-for-television movies and feature films, including Driving Miss Daisy and My Fellow Americans. A memorable role was that of Aunt Sarah in the 1997 film Rosewood.
She had a major role in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings based on Maya Angelou's memoir of the same name, and has the distinction of having won the first Emmy Award for the category Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie, in 1979, for her work in the television movie Summer of My German Soldier. Her last film, Train Ride was released in 2005 despite being filmed in 1998.
[edit] Work
[edit] Filmography
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[edit] Stage
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[edit] References
- ^ a b c Sterngold, James. "Esther Rolle, 78, Who Played Feisty Maid and Matriarch", The New York Times, 19 November 1998.
- ^ a b c Esther Rolle at the African American Registry
- ^ Notable Zetas at Zeta Phi Beta's official website
- ^ a b c Erickson, Hal. "Esther Rolle Biography". The New York Times. http://movies2.nytimes.com/gst/movies/filmography.html?p_id=61226. Retrieved 2007-04-28.
- ^ Associated Press. "'Good Times' matriarch Esther Rolle dies at 78". CNN. http://www.cnn.com/SHOWBIZ/TV/9811/18/rolle.obit. Retrieved 2007-04-28.[dead link] Reprinted as Esther Rolle's Obituary From CNN at sitcomsonline.com
- ^ The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present. Ballantine Books. 2003. pp. 1431. ISBN 0-345-45542-8.
- ^ http://www.wfmu.org/365/2003/024.shtml
- ^ a b Esther Rolle at the TCM Movie Database
[edit] External links
- Esther Rolle at the Internet Broadway Database
- Esther Rolle at the Internet Movie Database
- Esther Rolle at Find a Grave
- Esther Rolle at the Lortel Archives
- Esther Rolle at the TCM Movie Database
- Esther Rolle at Yahoo! Movies
- Esther Rolle at the African American Registry
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- 1920 births
- 1998 deaths
- African American actors
- Alumni of women's universities and colleges
- American film actors
- American television actors
- Hunter College alumni
- Yale University alumni
- Savoy Records artists
- American people of Bahamian descent
- Deaths from diabetes
- African Americans' rights activists
- Emmy Award winners
- People from Broward County, Florida
- Spelman College alumni
