Anne-Marie Johnson (born July 18, 1960) is an American actress and

impressionist Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...

. She is perhaps best known for her roles as Nadine Hudson–Thomas in ''

What's Happening Now!! ''What's Happening Now!!'' is an American sitcom sequel to the original American Broadcasting Company, ABC 1976–1979 sitcom ''What's Happening!!'' focusing on its main characters as independent people. It aired in first-run broadcast syndicati ...

'' (1985–1988), Althea Tibbs in '' In the Heat of the Night'' (1988–1993), or her recurring role as fashion designer Donna Cabonna on ''

That's So Raven ''That's So Raven'' is an American television fantasy teen sitcom that was created by Michael Poryes and Susan Sherman, and aired on Disney Channel for four seasons between January 2003 and November 2007. The series centers on Raven Baxter ( ...

'' (2006) during its final season. Johnson is known as a cast member of the

FOX Foxes are small-to-medium-sized omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull; upright, triangular ears; a pointed, slightly upturned snout; and a long, bushy tail ("brush"). Twelve species ...

sketch comedy television series ''

In Living Color ''In Living Color'' is an American sketch comedy television series that originally ran on Fox from April 15, 1990, to May 19, 1994. Keenen Ivory Wayans created, wrote and starred in the program. The show was produced by Ivory Way Productions ...

'' (1993–1994) during its final season, and has had recurring or regular roles in ''

Melrose Place ''Melrose Place'' is an American prime-time television soap opera that aired on Fox from July 8, 1992, to May 24, 1999, for seven seasons. The show follows the lives of a group of young adults living in an apartment complex in West Hollywood, ...

'', '' JAG'', '' Girlfriends'' and ''

The InBetween ''The InBetween'' is an American supernatural drama television series created by Moira Kirland that premiered on NBC on May 29 and aired through August 14, 2019. In November 2019, the series was canceled after one season. Premise Cassie Bed ...

''.

Biography

Early life and education

Anne-Marie Johnson was born in Los Angeles, California. For high school, she attended John Marshall High School, graduating in 1978. Johnson graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a degree in Acting and Theater.

Career

Johnson's first US television appearance was as a contestant on the game show ''

Card Sharks ''Card Sharks'' is an American television game show. It was created by Chester Feldman for Mark Goodson-Bill Todman Productions. Contestants attempt to predict the outcome of survey questions to gain control of a row of oversized playing cards ...

,'' which originally aired on June 5, 1979, and her name was listed as Anne Johnson. She appeared on the game show '' Child's Play'' under her full name as well as a pilot episode for the game show ''

Body Language Body language is a type of nonverbal communication in which physical behaviors, as opposed to words, are used to express or convey information. Such behavior includes facial expressions, body posture, gestures, eye movement, touch and the use o ...

'' as Anne Marie Johnson, where she described herself as a "struggling actress". Johnson began her career appearing in episodes of the Australian dramas ''

Homicide Homicide is an act in which a person causes the death of another person. A homicide requires only a Volition (psychology), volitional act, or an omission, that causes the death of another, and thus a homicide may result from Accident, accidenta ...

'' and ''

Matlock Police ''Matlock Police'' is an Australian television police drama series made by Crawford Productions for The 0-10 Network (now known as Network 10) between 1971 and 1976. The series focused on the police station and crime in the Victorian town of Ma ...

'' in the 1970s. In 1984, she played the role of Aileen Lewis on the short-lived

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 ...

comedy series '' Double Trouble'', and at the same time had a recurring role on the NBC police drama ''

Hill Street Blues ''Hill Street Blues'' is an American serial police procedural television series that aired on NBC in prime-time from January 15, 1981, to May 12, 1987, for 146 episodes. The show chronicles the lives of the Metropolitan Police Department staff ...

''. She played Raj's wife Nadine Hudson Thomas in the syndicated sitcom ''

'' from 1985 to 1988. In 1988, Johnson began starring as Althea Tibbs in the NBC/

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

police drama series '' In the Heat of the Night'', playing the role through 1993. While appearing on ''In the Heat of the Night,'' Johnson recorded the song "

Little Drummer Boy "The Little Drummer Boy" (originally known as "Carol of the Drum") is a popular Christmas song written by American composer Katherine Kennicott Davis in 1941. First recorded in 1951 by the Austrian Trapp Family, the song was further popularize ...

" for the 1991 cast Christmas CD ''Christmas Time's A Comin''. Providing vocals behind her were the country gospel group The Marksmen Quartet. The song was produced by co-stars

Randall Franks Randall Franks is an American entertainer recognized for his multifaceted career in the arts. He is known for his roles as a film and television actor, author, and as a Bluegrass music, bluegrass singer and musician. Franks is proficient in playi ...

and

Alan Autry Carlos Alan Autry Jr. (also known for a time as Carlos Brown; born July 31, 1952) is an American actor, politician, and former football player. During his brief career in the National Football League, he played as a quarterback and was known as ...

. She also appeared in a number of films, including ''

Hollywood Shuffle ''Hollywood Shuffle'' is a 1987 American satirical comedy film about the racial stereotypes of African Americans in film and television. The film tracks the attempts of Bobby Taylor to become a successful actor and the mental and external roadb ...

'' (1987), I’m Gonna Git You Sucka (1988), ''

Robot Jox ''Robot Jox'' is a 1990 American post-apocalyptic mecha science-fiction film directed by Stuart Gordon and starring Gary Graham, Anne-Marie Johnson and Paul Koslo. Co-written by science-fiction author Joe Haldeman, the film's plot follows Achi ...

'' (1989), which featured her only career nude scene, ''

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 Rob ...

'' (1991), '' True Identity'' (1991), and '' Strictly Business'' (1991). On television, she played a leading role in the 1989 film ''Dream Date'' and starred as Carrie Jones/Carolyn Dimes in the 1990 miniseries '' Lucky Chances''. After leaving ''In the Heat of the Night'', Johnson joined the cast of the

Fox Foxes are small-to-medium-sized omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull; upright, triangular ears; a pointed, slightly upturned snout; and a long, bushy tail ("brush"). Twelve species ...

sketch comedy Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches" or, "skits", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. While the form developed and became popular in ...

series ''

'' in its last season (1993–1994). She portrayed Alycia Barnett in the Fox prime-time soap opera ''

'' from 1995 to 1996. From 1997 to 2002, she had a recurring role on the CBS series '' JAG'' as Representative Bobbi Latham. She also has made guest appearances on other TV series, including ''

''; ''

Living Single ''Living Single'' is an American television sitcom created by Yvette Denise Lee that aired for five seasons on the Fox network, from August 22, 1993, to January 1, 1998. The show centers on the lives of six New York City friends who share perso ...

''; ''

Murder, She Wrote ''Murder, She Wrote'' is an American crime drama television series, created by Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson and William Link, starring Angela Lansbury, and produced and distributed by Universal Television for the CBS network. The series f ...

''; '' Leverage''; ''

Ally McBeal ''Ally McBeal'' is an American legal comedy-drama television series created by David E. Kelley that originally aired on Fox from September 8, 1997, to May 20, 2002. It revolves around Calista Flockhart in the title role as a lawyer working ...

''; '' Girlfriends''; ''

The Parkers ''The Parkers'' is an American television sitcom created by Ralph Farquhar, Sara V. Finney and Vida Spears. The series ran for five seasons from August 30, 1999, to May 10, 2004, on UPN. It stars Mo'Nique, Countess Vaughn, Mari Morrow, Dorien Wi ...

''; ''

Dharma & Greg ''Dharma & Greg'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on ABC for five seasons from September 24, 1997, to April 30, 2002, with a total of 119 episodes. The show starred Jenna Elfman and Thomas Gibson as Dharma and Greg Mont ...

''; '' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation''; ''

NCIS NCIS or N.C.I.S. may refer to: Law enforcement * National Criminal Intelligence Service, the predecessor to the Serious Organised Crime Agency of the United Kingdom * Naval Criminal Investigative Service, a United States law enforcement and intelli ...

''; ''

Tyler Perry's House of Payne ''Tyler Perry's House of Payne'', also known as simply ''House of Payne'', is an American sitcom television series created and produced by Tyler Perry that premiered in syndication on June 21, 2006. The series revolves around a multi-generation ...

'' and ''

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 ...

''. In 2019, she had a regular role in the short-lived NBC drama ''

'' and in 2020 had a recurring role in the

Oprah Winfrey Network The Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN, also known as the OWN Network) is an American multinational basic cable television network which launched on January 1, 2011, effectively replacing the Discovery Health Channel, which one month later merged with ...

drama ''

Cherish the Day "Cherish the Day" is a song by English band Sade from their fourth studio album, ''Love Deluxe'' (1992). It was released as the album's fourth and final single in the United Kingdom on 19 July 1993. The music video was written and produced by ...

'' and ABC legal thriller ''

How to Get Away with Murder ''How to Get Away with Murder'' is an American legal drama thriller television series that premiered on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) on September 25, 2014, and concluded on May 14, 2020. The series was created by Peter Nowalk and pro ...

''.

Other activities

Johnson was elected first national vice president of the

Screen Actors Guild The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) was an American labor union which represented over 100,000 film and television principal and background performers worldwide. On March 30, 2012, the union leadership announced that the SAG membership voted to m ...

in 2008. She ran for president of the actors' union in 2009 on the Membership First ticket, but she lost to eventual winner

Ken Howard Kenneth Joseph Howard Jr. (March 28, 1944 – March 23, 2016) was an American actor. He was known for his roles as Thomas Jefferson in ''1776'' (1972) and as high school basketball coach and former Chicago Bulls player Ken Reeves in the televisi ...

Personal life

Johnson has been married once and has no children. Since January 1, 1996, she has been married to Martin Grey.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Anne-Marie 1960 births 20th-century African-American actresses 20th-century American actresses 21st-century African-American actresses 21st-century American actresses Actresses from Los Angeles American film actresses American television actresses American voice actresses Contestants on American game shows Living people UCLA Film School alumni 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American people