Vanessa A. Williams

Vanessa A. Williams

Williams (left) with Nicole Ari Parker in 2011.
Born May 12, 1963
New York City, New York, U.S.
Occupation Actress
Years active 1988–present

Vanessa A. Williams (born May 12, 1963) is an American actress[1] who has appeared in numerous television series. She is best known for her roles as Rhonda Blair in Melrose Place and as Maxine Chadway on the Showtime cable television series Soul Food. In 1995, she was also a series regular in the television series Murder One.

Though not related, she is sometimes confused with singer-actress (and former Miss America winner) Vanessa L. Williams, and both women were coincidentally born in the same year.

Life and career

Williams was born in New York City. In an ABC News interview, she stated that her background is from a family of slaves from Georgia and Virginia.[2] After high school she went on to get a bachelor's degree in theater and business management from Marymount Manhattan College. In 1993, she met Andre Wiseman and they began dating, then married in Stuyvesant, New York. They have two sons together.

Filmography

  • The Cosby Show as Jade Marsh (2 episodes, 1991) & recurring role as Cheryl Lovejoy
  • 227: "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Pageant" (1988)
  • Law & Order: "Happily Ever After" (1990) as Vera
  • New Jack City (1991) as Keisha
  • Fatal Bond (1992) as Waitress
  • Candyman (1992) as Anne-Marie McCoy
  • Melrose Place (1992–1993) as Rhonda Blair
  • Drop Squad (1994) as Mali
  • NYPD Blue: "Don We Now Our Gay Apparel" (1995) as Kira
  • Living Single: "Another Saturday Night" (1995) as Hellura
  • Buddies: Marry Me... Sort Of" (1996) as Janice Rollins
  • Murder One (1995–96) as Lila
  • Mother (1996) as Donna
  • Malcolm & Eddie: "Big Brother Is Watching" (1996) as Stephanie
  • Chicago Hope (4 episodes, 1996) as Dr. Grace Carr
  • A Woman of Color (1997)
  • Breakdown (1997)
  • Between Brothers: "The Interview" (1997) as Rebecca
  • The Pretender: "Collateral Damage" (1998) as Denise Clements
  • The Steve Harvey Show: "Rent" (1998) as Nina
  • Total Recall 2070: "Self-Inflicted" (1999) as Violet Whims
  • Incognito (1999) as Wilhelmina Hunter
  • Playing with Fire (2000) as Riana Roberts
  • Punks (2000) as Jennifer
  • Soul Food (2000–04) as Maxine Chadway
  • Afrocentricity (2000)
  • Heavy Gear: The Animated Series (5 episodes, 2001) as Sonja Briggs
  • Baby of the Family (2002) as Gloria
  • Our America (2002) as Sandra Williams
  • Like Mike (2002) as Pharmacist
  • Black Listed (2003) as J.W.
  • Allergic to Nuts (2003) as Jennie
  • Gift for the Living (2005) as Voiceover
  • Cold Case: "Shuffle, Ball Change" (2007) as Crystal Stacy
  • Drawing Angel (2007) as Thulani
  • Ice Spiders (2007) as Dr. April Sommers
  • Hummingbird (2008) as Donya
  • Lincoln Heights: "Ode to Joy" (2008) as Naomi Bradshaw
  • Flirting with Forty (2008) as Kristine
  • Contradictions of the Heart (2009) as Lea
  • Knight Rider: (2 episodes, 2009) as Ambassador Olara Kumali
  • Imagine That (2009) as Lori Strother
  • Everybody Hates Chris: "Everybody Hates Bomb Threats" (2009)
  • Sugar Mommas: (2012) as Lynn Moore
  • Raising Izzie:: (2012) as Tonya Freeman
  • ; Producer
  • Dense (2004), executive producer & producer
  • Allergic to Nuts (2003), executive producer
  • Driving Fish (2004), co-executive producer

References

  1. ↑ McCann, Bob (2010). Encyclopedia of African American Actresses in Film and Television. McFarland. pp. 362–. ISBN 978-0-7864-3790-0. Retrieved 6 July 2011.
  2. ↑ "Vanessa A. Williams and African Ancestry on ABC News". Youtube/ABC News. Retrieved 2013-12-12.

External links