Hawthorne James is an American character actor and director, known for his role as Big Red Davis in the 1991 film ''

The Five Heartbeats ''The Five Heartbeats'' is a 1991 musical drama film directed by Robert Townsend, who co-wrote the script with Keenen Ivory Wayans. Produced and distributed by 20th Century Fox, the film's main cast includes Townsend, Michael Wright, Leon Robi ...

''. He is also known for his role as Sam, the injured bus driver, in ''

Speed In everyday use and in kinematics, the speed (commonly referred to as ''v'') of an object is the magnitude Magnitude may refer to: Mathematics *Euclidean vector, a quantity defined by both its magnitude and its direction *Magnitude (ma ...

'' and for films and television series such as '' Seven'', '' NYPD Blue'' and guest-starring on ''

Frasier ''Frasier'' () is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for 11 seasons. It premiered on September 16, 1993, and ended on May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee (as Grub ...

'' as Bill in the season one episode "Miracle on Third or Fourth Street". He was born James Hawthorne in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Robert Hawthorne and A. M. Alene. He earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

in Theater from the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic university, Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend, Indiana, South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin fo ...

, a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

from the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

, and taught Theater at

Illinois State University Illinois State University (ISU) is a public university in Normal, Illinois. Founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University, it is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teaching and is recognized as one of th ...

. James was responsible for his appearance in the funeral scene of Jimmy Potter in ''The Five Heartbeats'', which he based on a scene Shakespeare's ''Richard III''.

Selected filmography

* 1979 '' Disco Godfather'' as Ray 'Stinger Ray' * 1982 '' Penitentiary II'' as 1st Referee * 1985 ''

The Color Purple ''The Color Purple'' is a 1982 epistolary novel by American author Alice Walker which won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Award for Fiction.

'' as Jook Joint Patron * 1988 '' Patty Hearst'' as Tall Muslim * 1988 ''

I'm Gonna Git You Sucka ''I'm Gonna Git You Sucka'' is a 1988 American blaxploitation parody film written, directed by, and starring Keenen Ivory Wayans in his directorial debut. Featured in the film are several noteworthy African-American actors who were part of the ...

'' as Sam 'One Eyed Sam' * 1989 '' Ricky 1'' as 'Silver Shadow', The Champ * 1989 ''Othello'' as Iago * 1991 ''

The Doors The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential rock acts ...

'' as Chuck Vincent * 1991 ''

'' as 'Big Red' * 1992 ''Prophet Nat'' as Runaway Slave * 1993 ''

'' (TV Series) as Bill * 1994 ''

Caroline at Midnight ''Caroline at Midnight'' is a 1993 erotic thriller film, written by Travis Rink and directed by Scott McGinnis. Rated R, it was released direct-to-video in December 1993. It aired on Cinemax in 1994 and the Showtime Network in 1995. In 1995 it w ...

'' as Stan Donovan * 1994 ''

'' as Sam * 1994 ''

Martin Martin may refer to: Places * Martin City (disambiguation) * Martin County (disambiguation) * Martin Township (disambiguation) Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Austr ...

'' (TV Series) as Brother Claus * 1995 '' Seven'' as George, The Night Guard At The Library * 1996 '' Heaven's Prisoners'' as Victor Romero * 1997 '' Campfire Tales'' as Cole (segment "The Honeymoon") * 1997 '' Amistad'' as Creole Cook * 1998 '' NYPD Blue'' (TV Series) as Calvin Chester * 1999 ''The Art of a Bullet'' as Walter Simmons * 2000 ''

Auggie Rose ''Auggie Rose'', also known as ''Beyond Suspicion'', is a 2000 American drama film directed by Matthew Tabak and starring Jeff Goldblum and Anne Heche. It was originally shown on Cinemax and then released on video with the title ''Beyond Suspic ...

'' as MacDougall * 2004 '' ER'' (TV Series) as Hawthorne * 2005 '' Boss'n Up'' as 'Orange Juice' * 2006 ''

Hood of Horror ''Hood of Horror'' (a.k.a. ''Snoop Dogg's Hood of Horror'') is a horror film adaptation of a fictional comic book, which is an anthology of three short tales set in an urban milieu in a style reminiscent of ''Tales from the Crypt'' and '' Tale ...

'' as Liore * 2006 ''

Stargate SG-1 ''Stargate SG-1'' (often stylized in all caps, or abbreviated ''SG-1'') is a military science fiction adventure television series within Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's ''Stargate'' franchise. The show, created by Brad Wright and Jonathan Glassner, ...

'' (TV Series) as Gavos * 2006 '' The System Within'' as Hays * 2013 ''A Christmas Wedding'' as Arthur * 2015 ''Lucky Girl'' as Reverend Thompson * 2016 '' The Night Stalker'' as Harrison Johnson * 2016 ''Blues for Life'' as 'Plank Road Slim'

References

External links

* Male actors from Chicago American male film actors African-American film directors American film directors American male television actors African-American male actors Living people 21st-century American male actors 20th-century American male actors Year of birth missing (living people) University of Michigan alumni 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American people {{US-screen-actor-stub