Wendy Raquel Robinson is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as high school principal Regina "Piggy" Grier on

The WB The WB Television Network (for Warner Bros., or the "Frog Network", for its former mascot, Michigan J. Frog) was an American television network launched on terrestrial television, broadcast television on January 11, 1995, as a joint venture be ...

comedy sitcom ''

The Steve Harvey Show ''The Steve Harvey Show'' is an American television sitcom that aired on The WB from August 25, 1996, to February 17, 2002. It was created by Winifred Hervey and directed by Stan Lathan. Synopsis Steve Hightower ( Steve Harvey) is a 1970s funk ...

'' (1996–2002), and as sports agent Tasha Mack on

The CW ''The'' () is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite ...

BET Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los ...

Paramount+ Paramount+ is an American subscription video on-demand service owned by Paramount Global. The service's content is drawn primarily from the libraries of CBS Media Ventures (including CBS Studios), Paramount Media Networks (formerly Viacom Media ...

comedy-drama '' The Game'' (2006–present).

Early life and education

Robinson was born in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. She attended

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a Private university, private, University charter#Federal, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, classifie ...

, where she graduated '' cum laude'' with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in drama.

Career

She made her acting debut in 1993 on an episode of ''

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 ...

''. That same year she guest starred on episodes of '' Thea'' and ''

The Sinbad Show ''The Sinbad Show'' is an American sitcom starring comedian David "Sinbad" Adkins that was premiered on September 16 of 1993 on Fox. The show's main plot is about a bachelor taking in two orphaned children. Chuck Brown performed this sitcom's th ...

''. From 1995 to 1996, Robinson co-starred on the short-lived

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

sitcom ''

Minor Adjustments ''Minor Adjustments'' is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC from September 16, 1995 until November 26, 1995, and on UPN from January 23, 1996 until June 4, 1996. The series starred stand-up comedian Rondell Sheridan in his first head ...

'', starring Rondell Sheridan. The following year she won the role of Regina "Piggy" Grier in The WB sitcom ''

'' which aired for six seasons. After the series ended its run in 2002, she appeared on the short-lived sketch comedy series ''

Cedric the Entertainer Presents ''Cedric the Entertainer Presents'' is an American sketch comedy television series and television program featuring dance numbers starring Cedric the Entertainer. The series premiered September 18, 2002 on Fox and after the first season, Fox rene ...

'' with her former ''Steve Harvey'' co-star

Cedric the Entertainer Cedric Antonio Kyles (born April 24, 1964), better known by his stage name Cedric the Entertainer, is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He hosted BET's '' ComicView'' during the 1993–1994 season and '' Def Comedy Jam'' in 1995. He is ...

. Robinson also made guest appearances on ''

The Parkers ''The Parkers'' is an American television sitcom aired on UPN from August 30, 1999, to May 10, 2004. A spin-off of UPN's ''Moesha'', ''The Parkers'' features the mother-daughter team of Nikki (played by Mo'Nique) and Kim Parker (played by Counte ...

'', ''

All of Us ''All of Us'' is an American sitcom television series that premiered on the UPN network in the United States on September 16, 2003, where it aired for its first three seasons. On October 1, 2006, the show moved to The CW, a new network formed ...

'', and ''

The New Adventures of Old Christine ''The New Adventures of Old Christine'' (often shortened to simply ''Old Christine'') is an American sitcom television series starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Christine Campbell, a divorced mother doing her best to keep pace with those around her ...

''. Robinson has also appeared in several films including '' The Walking Dead'', followed by roles in '' A Thin Line Between Love and Hate'' (1996), '' Ringmaster'' (1998), '' Two Can Play That Game'' (2001), and '' Rebound'' (2005). In 2000, she played Miss California in the film '' Miss Congeniality''. In 2006, Robinson began portraying the role of Tasha Mack, in the comedy '' The Game''. After three seasons, the series was canceled by

on May 21, 2009.

struck a deal with ''The Games parent company

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

to develop new episodes of the series, relocating taping of the show from Los Angeles to

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, and announcing its renewal at the April 2010

upfronts In the television industry, an upfront is a gathering at the start of important advertising sales periods, held by television network executives and attended by major advertisers and the media. It is so named because of its main purpose, to allow ...

. ''The Game'' returned to the air for a fourth season on January 11, 2011, The series ended in 2015. She also appeared on

Shonda Rhimes Shonda Lynn Rhimes (born January 13, 1970) is an American television screenwriter, producer, and author. She is best known as the showrunner—creator, head writer, and executive producer—of the television medical drama '' Grey's Anatomy'', ...

' ''

Grey's Anatomy ''Grey's Anatomy'' is an American medical drama television series that premiered on March 27, 2005, on ABC as a mid-season replacement. The series focuses on the lives of surgical interns, residents, and attendings as they develop into s ...

'' in 2010. In 2014, she was cast as

Cruella de Vil Cruella de Vil is a fictional character in British author Dodie Smith's 1956 novel '' The Hundred and One Dalmatians''. A pampered and glamorous London heiress and fashion designer, she appears in Walt Disney Productions' 17th animated feature ...

in the

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

's '' Descendants''. In 2017, she has appeared in the film '' Flatliners'', and had a recurring role on the short-lived ABC comedy series, '' The Mayor''. In 2018, Robinson was cast in the ABC comedy-drama series '' Grand Hotel'' opposite

Demián Bichir Demián Bichir Nájera (; born 1 August 1963) is a Mexican actor. After starring in telenovelas, he began to appear in Hollywood films. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in '' A Better Life''. Personal life Bic ...

and

Roselyn Sánchez Roselyn Milagros Sánchez Rodríguez (born April 2, 1973) is a Puerto Rican singer-songwriter, dancer, model, actress, producer, and writer. On television, she is best known for her roles as Elena Delgado on the CBS police procedural ''Without ...

. In 2022 she featured in the Netflix series ''

Family Reunion A family reunion is an occasion when many members of an extended family congregate. Sometimes reunions are held regularly, for example on the same date of every year. A typical family reunion will assemble for a meal, some recreation and discussi ...

'' as Joyce.

Philanthropy

In 1996, Robinson co-founded the Amazing Grace Conservatory, a school that predominantly serves children from 5 to 18 years old from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds in the fields of the arts and media production. Robinson serves as the school's artistic director. The school has provided a safe haven and training for thousands of young people. Some notable members include Issa Rae,

Rhyon Nicole Brown Rhyon Nicole Brown (; born October 6, 1992) is an American actress, singer, and dancer. Career She made her film debut in ''Santa & Pete'' (1999) And has since appeared in various television shows. Brown has had recurring roles on shows such as ...

, and

Elle Varner Gabrielle Serene Varner (born February 12, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Born into a musical family in Brooklyn, New York and raised in Los Angeles, Varner studied at New York University's Clive Davis Department of Recorded Music. In ...

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

References

External links

wendyraquel.com
Wendy Raquel Robinson Official Website * {{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, Wendy Raquel Living people African-American actresses American film actresses American television actresses Howard University alumni Actresses from Los Angeles 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses American voice actresses 20th-century African-American women 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American women 21st-century African-American people Year of birth missing (living people)