Anna Maria Horsford is an American actress, known for her performances in television comedies. Horsford is best known for her roles as Thelma Frye on the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

sitcom ''

Amen Amen (, ; , ; , ; , ) is an Abrahamic declaration of affirmation which is first found in the Hebrew Bible, and subsequently found in the New Testament. It is used in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic practices as a concluding word, or as a respons ...

'' (1986–91), and as Dee Baxter on the WB sitcom ''

The Wayans Bros. ''The Wayans Bros.'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on The WB from January 11, 1995, to May 20, 1999. The series starred real life brothers Shawn Wayans, Shawn and Marlon Wayans, comedian John Witherspoon (actor), John Withe ...

'' (1995–99). She had dramatic roles on the FX crime drama '' The Shield'' playing A.D.A. Beth Encardi, and CBS daytime soap opera ''

The Bold and the Beautiful ''The Bold and the Beautiful'' (often referred to as ''B&B'') is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. It premiered on March 23, 1987, as a sister show to the Bells' other soap opera ''Th ...

'' as Vivienne Avant, for which she was nominated for the

Daytime Emmy Award The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York-based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NA ...

for Outstanding Special Guest Performer in a Drama Series in 2016 and Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series in 2017. Horsford appeared in a number of movies, most notable as Craig Jones' mother Betty in 1995 comedy film ''

Friday Friday is the day of the week between Thursday and Saturday. In countries that adopt the traditional "Sunday-first" convention, it is the sixth day of the week. In countries adopting the ISO 8601-defined "Monday-first" convention, it is the fifth ...

'' and its sequel '' Friday After Next'' (2002). Her other film credits include ''

Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and Neighborhoods in New York City, neighborhood in the Midtown Manhattan section of New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway (Manhattan), ...

'' (1980), '' The Fan'' (1981), '' Presumed Innocent'' (1990), '' Set It Off'' (1996), '' Along Came a Spider'' (2001), '' Our Family Wedding'' (2010), and '' A Madea Christmas'' (2013).

Early life

Horsford was born in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater ...

, New York City to Victor Horsford, an investment real estate broker originally from Barbuda and Lillian Agatha (née Richardson) Horsford, who emigrated from Antigua and Barbuda in the 1940s. She grew up in a family of five children. Horsford attended Wadleigh Junior High School and the High School of Performing Arts. After high school, she got into acting through the Harlem Youth for Change program. Her first job out of high school was with the Joe Papp’s Public Theater, a part in Coriolanus at the Delacorte in Central Park. According to a DNA analysis, she has maternal ancestry from the Limba people of Sierra Leone.

Career

Her first major role in television was as a producer for the

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

show ''

Soul! ''Soul!'' (also stylized in uppercaseC. Gerald Fraser January 30, 1991, ''New York Times''. Accessed online 21 April 2008.) is a performance/ variety television program that showcased African American music, dance and literature in the late 1960 ...

'', hosted by Ellis Haizlip, which aired between 1968 and 1973. One of her first TV appearances was in 1973 on the first run syndication game show of ''

To Tell the Truth ''To Tell the Truth'' is an American television panel show. Four celebrity panelists are presented with three contestants (the "team of challengers", each an individual or pair) and must identify which is the "central character" whose unusual ...

'' where she was an imposter for Laura Livingston, one of the first female military police. Horsford made guest appearances on such sitcoms as '' The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'', '' Sparks'', ''

Moesha ''Moesha'' (, ) is an American television sitcom that aired on UPN from January 23, 1996, to May 14, 2001. The series stars Contemporary R&B, R&B singer Brandy Norwood, Brandy as Moesha Denise Mitchell, an African-American teenager living with ...

'', ''

The Bernie Mac Show ''The Bernie Mac Show'' (often shortened to ''Bernie Mac'' in syndication) is an American sitcom television series created by Larry Wilmore, that aired on Fox for five seasons from November 14, 2001, to April 14, 2006. The series featured Ber ...

'', '' The Shield'', '' Girlfriends'', and ''

Everybody Hates Chris ''Everybody Hates Chris'' (stylized in all lowercase) is an American semi-autobiographical sitcom created by Chris Rock and Ali LeRoi that originally aired on UPN from 2005 to 2006, and then on The CW until 2009. The series is based loosely ...

''. She had main roles on the sitcoms ''

'' as "Dee Baxter" and "Thelma Frye" on ''

''. She appeared on the drama ''

Judging Amy ''Judging Amy'' is an American legal drama television series that was telecast from September 19, 1999, through May 3, 2005, on CBS. This television series starred Amy Brenneman and Tyne Daly. Its main character (Brenneman) is a judge who serves ...

''. More recently, she was seen in the first season of ''

Grey's Anatomy ''Grey's Anatomy'' is an American medical drama television series focusing on the personal and professional lives of surgical internship (medicine), interns, residency (medicine), residents, and attending physician, attendings at the fictional ...

''. She returned to the big screen in the 2013 film '' A Madea Christmas''. She portrayed Helen on the BET sitcom '' Reed Between the Lines''. Horsford currently has a recurring role as Vivienne Avant on ''

''. For the role, she was nominated for Outstanding Special Guest Performer in a Drama Series in the 43rd Daytime Emmy Awards. She began playing a recurring role on '' B Positive'' in the show's second-season premiere. She also has appeared in the TBS sitcom '' The Last O.G.'' featuring Tracy Morgan, as a recurring character (Tray's mother).

Personal life

On October 29, 2011, Horsford was awarded the title of Ambassador of Tourism of

Antigua Antigua ( ; ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the local population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the most populous island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua ...

. She is also a member of Sigma Gamma Rho sorority.

Filmography

Film

Television

Live performances

Theater

Awards and nominations

In popular culture

Horsford has been featured on the cover of several magazines, including: * ''TV Guide'', August 29 – September 4, 1987, issue #1796. Cover photograph featured Sherman Hemsley and Anna Maria Horsford of NBC's ''Amen''. * ''Jet Magazine'', November 23, 1987. Cast members, including Horsford, are featured on the cover. Article titled "Fun-filled ''Amen'' still one of hottest TV shows”. * ''TV Guide'', February 3, 1990, Four television shows are featured including Amen with photo of Horsford and Clifton Davis. Article titled "Oh, what a week! February is off with a bang." * ''Jet Magazine'', February 5, 1990. Cover photo and article: "Clifton Davis and Anna Maria Horsford Tie Knot on TV's ''Amen''" * ''Jet Magazine'', May 13, 1991, Photo and cover article feature Clifton Davis and Horsford. Article titled "New baby and guest star James Brown climax fifth season of TV’s Amen." * ''Solo Magazine'', 2011 Holiday Issue. Cover photograph and article: Anna Maria Horsford: Brings the Laughs and Drama to new BET Show.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Horsford, Anna Maria Living people Actresses from Manhattan People from Harlem Comedians from Manhattan American film actresses American television actresses American soap opera actresses 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses American sketch comedians American people of Sierra Leonean descent American people of Antigua and Barbuda descent 20th-century African-American actresses 21st-century African-American actresses Year of birth missing (living people)