Tonye T. Patano (born October 16, 1961) is an American actress. She may be best known as Heylia James on the television series '' Weeds''. She has appeared in television shows such as ''

Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment, launching the '' Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire run on NBC, premiering on ...

'', ''

Sex and the City ''Sex and the City'' is an American romantic comedy, romantic comedy-drama television series created by Darren Star for HBO. An adaptation of Candace Bushnell's Sex and the City (newspaper column), newspaper column and 1996 book anthology of the ...

'', ''

Monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

'' and ''

Third Watch ''Third Watch'' is an American crime drama television series created by John Wells and Edward Allen Bernero that aired on NBC from September 26, 1999, to May 6, 2005, with a total of 132 episodes spanning over six seasons. It was produced by ...

''. Patano was in the original cast of the

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

play, '' 45 Seconds from Broadway'' by

Neil Simon Marvin Neil Simon (July 4, 1927 – August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly film adaptations of his plays. He has received mo ...

Career

Film and television

Patano's first screen role was in the 1984 television film ''

The Jesse Owens Story ''The Jesse Owens Story'' is a 1984 American two-part, four-hour made-for-television biographical film about the black athlete Jesse Owens. Dorian Harewood plays the Olympic gold-winning athlete. The drama won a 1985 Primetime Emmy Award and was ...

''. She has appeared on several television series in guest roles, including ''

'', ''

Curb Your Enthusiasm ''Curb Your Enthusiasm'' is an American television sitcom produced and broadcast by HBO since October 15, 2000, and created by Larry David, who stars as a semi-fictionalized version of himself. It follows David's life as a semi-retired televisio ...

'' and ''

Elementary Elementary may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * ''Elementary'' (Cindy Morgan album), 2001 * ''Elementary'' (The End album), 2007 * ''Elementary'', a Melvin "Wah-Wah Watson" Ragin album, 1977 Other uses in arts, entertainment, an ...

''. Patano has played various characters throughout the ''

'' franchise. She appeared as Carolyn in '' Highway Heartbreaker'' (1992), and had a small role in ''

A Price Above Rubies ''A Price Above Rubies'' is a 1998 British-American drama film written and directed by Boaz Yakin and starring Renée Zellweger. The story centers on a young woman who finds it difficult to conform to the restrictions imposed on her by her communi ...

'' (1998). Other film work includes ''

Little Manhattan ''Little Manhattan'' is a 2005 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Mark Levin and written by Jennifer Flackett, starring Josh Hutcherson and Charlotte Ray Rosenberg. It is set in Manhattan, and follows a ten-year-old boy as he expe ...

'' and ''

The Great New Wonderful ''The Great New Wonderful'' is a 2005 American comedy-drama film written by Sam Catlin and directed by Danny Leiner. It stars Naseeruddin Shah, Tony Shalhoub, Jim Gaffigan, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Olympia Dukakis, and tells the tales of several New ...

'', both released in 2005. In 2005, Patano landed the role of Heylia James, a marijuana dealer, on '' Weeds''. She received a

Screen Actors Guild Award Screen Actors Guild Awards (also known as SAG Awards) are accolades given by the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA). The award was founded in 1952 to recognize outstanding performances in movie an ...

nomination for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series alongside her ''Weeds'' co-stars in 2006. Two years later, Patano earned an

NAACP Image Award The NAACP Image Awards is an annual awards ceremony presented by the U.S.-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to honor outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music, and literature. Similar to ...

nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series as Heylia. Patano left the series at the conclusion of its third season, later returning in season 7 on a recurring basis. Following ''Weeds'', she portrayed Emily in

Hallmark A hallmark is an official mark or series of marks struck on items made of metal, mostly to certify the content of noble metals—such as platinum, gold, silver and in some nations, palladium. In a more general sense, the term ''hallmark'' can al ...

movie ''

Loving Leah ''Loving Leah'' is a television film that aired on CBS as a '' Hallmark Hall of Fame'' movie on January 25, 2009. The film is directed by Jeff Bleckner and stars Adam Kaufman as a non-observant Jewish bachelor who feels compelled to marry his ra ...

'' (2009). Patano was Beverly, a counselor, in '' A Vigilante'' (2018). She played a probation officer in drama ''

Jack of the Red Hearts ''Jack of the Red Hearts'' is an American film directed by Janet Grillo and centered on the issues of orphanage, family, autism, exclusion and inclusion. The film premiered on May 6, 2015 at the Bentonville Film Festival and released theatricall ...

'' (2015).

Stage

Patano portrayed Nurse O'Neil in a 1997 production of ''

The Sunshine Boys ''The Sunshine Boys'' is an original two-act play written by Neil Simon that premiered December 20, 1972 on Broadway starring Jack Albertson as Willie Clark and Sam Levene as Al Lewis and later adapted for film and television. Plot The play's ...

'' at the

George Street Playhouse George Street Playhouse is a theater company in New Brunswick, New Jersey, in the city's Civic Square government and theater district. It's one of the state's preeminent professional theaters committed to the production of new and established ...

. One reviewer claimed she was "excellent" in the role. In 2000, she received a Connecticut Critics Circle Award for best ensemble after acting in ''From the Mississippi Delta''. Patano appeared on

as Ms. Gravátt in '' 45 Seconds from Broadway'' (2001). She played the role of brothel owner Mama Nadi in ''

Ruined Ruins () are the remains of a civilization's architecture. The term refers to formerly intact structures that have fallen into a state of partial or total disrepair over time due to a variety of factors, such as lack of maintenance, deliberate ...

'' for the Huntington Theater. Her performance in this production received positive reception, with one critic calling her "delightful" and "magnetic." Another found her superb in the role of Mama Nadi.

Personal life

At age 35, she was diagnosed with

diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ap ...

, and she suffered a

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

in 2005."Tonye Patano Weighs Her Options"
Women Health web site

Filmography

Films

Television

References

External links

* 1961 births Living people Actresses from Los Angeles 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses American television actresses African-American actresses American film actresses American stage actresses American soap opera actresses 20th-century African-American women 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American women 21st-century African-American people {{US-screen-actor-1960s-stub