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 ''The Shield'' is an American crime drama television series created by Shawn Ryan and starring Michael Chiklis that aired on FX from March 12, 2002 to November 25, 2008 for seven seasons. The show is known for its portrayal of corrupt police ...

'' 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 The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series is an award presented by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS). In early Primetime Emmy Award ceremonies, the supporting categories were not always genre-, ...

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 ''Friday After Next'' is a 2002 American stoner comedy film directed by Marcus Raboy and starring Ice Cube (who also wrote the film), Mike Epps (in a dual role), John Witherspoon, Don "D.C." Curry, Anna Maria Horsford, and Clifton Powell. It ...

'' (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 ''Our Family Wedding'' is a 2010 American romantic comedy film directed by Rick Famuyiwa. It stars Forest Whitaker, America Ferrera, Carlos Mencia, Diana-Maria Riva, Lance Gross, Charlie Murphy and Regina King. The story is about an African-Ame ...

'' (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 The High School of Performing Arts (informally known as "PA") was a public alternative high school established in 1947 and located at 120 West 46th Street in the borough of Manhattan, New York City, from 1948 to 1984. In 1961, the school was ...

. 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 Joseph Papp (born Joseph Papirofsky; June 22, 1921 – October 31, 1991) was an American theatrical producer and director. Papp is a pioneering figure in American theater, known for creating Shakespeare in the Park, which aimed to make classi ...

’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 Ellis B. Haizlip (September 21, 1929 – January 25, 1991) was an American television and theatrical producer, broadcaster and promoter of African American culture. Haizlip is best known as the creator, producer and host of the television var ...

, 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 ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'' is an American television sitcom created by Andy and Susan Borowitz that aired on NBC from September 10, 1990, to May 20, 1996. The series stars Will Smith as a fictionalized version of himself, a street-smart ...

'', '' 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 ...

'', ''

'', '' 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 Black Entertainment Television (BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting Black American audiences. It is the flagship channel of the BET Media Group, a subsidiary of Paramount Global's CBS Entertainment Group. Originally launched ...

sitcom ''

Reed Between the Lines ''Reed Between the Lines'' is an American television family sitcom that premiered on October 11, 2011, on BET. The series was renewed for a second season on April 12, 2012. It was later announced in August 2012 that Tracee Ellis Ross would not r ...

''. Horsford currently has a recurring role as

Vivienne Avant ''The Bold and the Beautiful'' is an American television soap opera. It was first broadcast on March 23, 1987, and aired on CBS. The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the soap opera between 2010 and 2019. All characters we ...

on ''

''. For the role, she was nominated for Outstanding Special Guest Performer in a Drama Series in the

43rd Daytime Emmy Awards The 43rd Daytime Emmy Awards, presented by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS), "recognizes outstanding achievement in all fields of daytime television production and are presented to individuals and programs broadcast fro ...

. She began playing a recurring role on ''

B Positive ''B Positive'' is an American television sitcom created by Marco Pennette, who is also the show's executive producer along with Chuck Lorre for Chuck Lorre Productions and Warner Bros. Television. The series aired on CBS from November 5, 2020 ...

'' in the show's second-season premiere. She also has appeared in the TBS sitcom ''

The Last O.G. ''The Last O.G.'' is an American comedy television series created by Jordan Peele and John Carcieri that premiered on March 31, 2018, on TBS. The series follows a convict released after serving fifteen years who returns to Brooklyn to find his o ...

'' 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 Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. () is a historically African American sorority. The sorority was founded on November 12, 1922. The organization was formed as a sorority in 1922, by seven African American women in Indianapolis, Indiana. At its i ...

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 Sherman Alexander Hemsley (February 1, 1938 – July 24, 2012) was an American actor and comedian. He was known for his roles as George Jefferson on the CBS television series ''All in the Family'' (1973–1975; 1978) and ''The Jeffersons'' (1975 ...

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)