Cleavant Derricks Jr. (born May 15, 1953) is an American actor and Tony Award winning singer-songwriter, who is best known for his role of Rembrandt Brown on '' Sliders''.

Biography

Derricks was born in

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state ...

to a pianist mother Cecile G. and

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christianity, Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe ...

preacher/composer Cleavant Derricks Sr., famous for his popular gospel music hymn

Just a Little Talk with Jesus "Just a Little Talk with Jesus" is a gospel music song published by Stamps-Baxter Music Company on January 1, 1937, written by Cleavant Derricks. In 1936, he sold the song to Stamps-Baxter in exchange for fifty songbooks, which he then sold for ...

. His twin brother is actor and musician Clinton Derricks-Carroll. Derricks began his career as a Nashville gospel songwriter. With his father, he wrote the gospel album ''Satisfaction Guaranteed''. He was the musical director and composer for the musical ''When Hell Freezes Over I'll Skate''. Derricks went to New York City to study acting with Vinnette Carroll at the Urban Arts Theatre. He received rave reviews for his performance in his Broadway shows, including ''But Never Jam Today''. He also won a Tony Award and Drama Desk Award for creating the role of James "Thunder" Early in ''

Dreamgirls ''Dreamgirls'' is a Broadway musical, with music by Henry Krieger and lyrics and book by Tom Eyen. Based on the show business aspirations and successes of R&B acts such as The Supremes, The Shirelles, James Brown, Jackie Wilson, and other ...

''. Off-Broadway he was in the

William Finn William Alan Finn (born February 28, 1952) is an American composer and lyricist. He is best known for his musicals, which include '' Falsettos'', for which he won the 1992 Tony Awards for Best Original Score and Best Book of a Musical, '' A New ...

musical '' Romance in Hard Times'' in 1989. He also starred in the Broadway musical ''

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Kings County is the most populous Administrative divisions of New York (state)#County, county in the State of New York, ...

'' as the Streetsinger. Soon afterwards, Derricks appeared in films such as ''

Moscow on the Hudson ''Moscow on the Hudson'' is a 1984 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Paul Mazursky which stars Robin Williams as a Soviet circus musician who defects while on a visit to the United States. It co-stars María Conchita A ...

'',

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 ...

's '' The Slugger's Wife'' and recently,

Wes Craven Wesley Earl Craven (August 2, 1939 – August 30, 2015) was an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and editor. Craven has commonly been recognized as one of the greatest masters of the horror genre due to the cultural imp ...

's ''Carnival of Souls''. He was a series regular on the short-lived television series ''

Thea Thea may refer to: * Thea (name), a given name * Ancient Greek term for goddess, including an alternative spelling of Theia * ''Thea'', the former name of the tea plant genus, now included in ''Camellia'' * Thea, a village in the municipal unit Me ...

'' with Thea Vidale and Brandy, and ''Good Sports'' with

Farrah Fawcett Farrah Leni Fawcett (born Ferrah Leni Fawcett; February 2, 1947 – June 25, 2009) was an American actress. A four-time Primetime Emmy Award nominee and six-time Golden Globe Award nominee, Fawcett rose to international fame when she played ...

and

Ryan O'Neal Ryan O'Neal (born April 20, 1941) is an American actor and former boxer. He trained as an amateur boxer before beginning his career in acting in 1960. In 1964, he landed the role of Rodney Harrington on the ABC nighttime soap opera '' Peyton Pla ...

. His role as Rembrandt Brown on '' Sliders'' with

Jerry O'Connell Jerry O'Connell (born February 17, 1974) is an American actor and television host. He is known for his roles as Quinn Mallory in the television series '' Sliders'', Andrew Clements in '' My Secret Identity'', Vern Tessio in the film '' Stand by ...

Sabrina Lloyd Sabrina Anne Lloyd (born November 20, 1970) is an American retired film and television actress. She is known for portraying Wade Welles in the science fiction series '' Sliders'', Natalie Hurley in the ABC sitcom '' Sports Night'' and Kelly in '' ...

and

John Rhys-Davies John Rhys-Davies (born 5 May 1944) is a Welsh actor best known for portraying Sallah in the ''Indiana Jones'' franchise and Gimli in ''The Lord of the Rings'' trilogy. His other roles include Michael Malone in the 1993 series ''The Untouch ...

was the only ''Sliders'' character to appear throughout the entire series. In addition, Derricks has had numerous guest-starring roles in series such as '' Roseanne'', ''

A Different World ''A Different World'' is an American sitcom (and a spin-off of ''The Cosby Show'') television series that aired for six seasons on NBC from September 24, 1987 to July 9, 1993. The series originally centered on Denise Huxtable (Lisa Bonet) and ...

'', ''

Miami Vice ''Miami Vice'' is an American crime drama television series created by Anthony Yerkovich and produced by Michael Mann for NBC. The series stars Don Johnson as James "Sonny" Crockett and Philip Michael Thomas as Ricardo "Rico" Tubbs, two Me ...

'', '' Spenser: For Hire'', '' Charmed'', and many others. In 2019, Derricks took over the role of the Wizard of Oz in the 2nd U.S. tour of ''

Wicked Wicked may refer to: Books * Wicked, a minor character in the ''X-Men'' universe * '' Wicked'', a 1995 novel by Gregory Maguire that inspired the musical of the same name * ''Wicked'', the fifth novel in Sara Shepard's ''Pretty Little Liars'' s ...

''.

Filmography

* '' Miami Magma'' (2011) as Ray Jackson * '' Rome & Jewel'' (2008) as Reverend Q * ''

Cold Case A cold case is a crime, or a suspected crime, that has not yet been fully resolved and is not the subject of a current criminal investigation, but for which new information could emerge from new witness testimony, re-examined archives, new or re ...

'' (2007) * ''

The Wedding Bells ''The Wedding Bells'' is an American comedy-drama television series that aired on Fox from March 2 to April 6, 2007. The series was greenlighted after the network became interested in a series centered on wedding planners. The network approached ...

'' (2007) * ''Basilisk: The Serpent King'' (2006) as Col. Douglas * ''

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 Berni ...

'' (2002) as Willie * '' World Traveler'' (2001) as Carl * ''

The Practice ''The Practice'' is an American legal drama television series created by David E. Kelley centering on partners and associates at a Boston law firm. The show ran for eight seasons on ABC, from March 4, 1997, to May 16, 2004. It won an Emmy i ...

'' (2001) as Mr. Lees * ''

18 Wheels of Justice ''18 Wheels of Justice'' is an American crime drama series that aired from 2000 to 2001 on TNN. It starred Lucky Vanous as federal agent Michael Cates (posing as a truck driver, with a Kenworth T2000 semi-truck), and G. Gordon Liddy as Jacob C ...

'' (2000) as Harold Baines * '' Charmed'' (2000) as Cleavant Wilson * ''

Touched by an Angel ''Touched by an Angel'' is an American fantasy drama television series that premiered on CBS on September 21, 1994, and ran for 211 episodes over nine seasons until its conclusion on April 27, 2003. Created by John Masius and executive produced ...

'' (1999) as Robert *

's ''

Carnival of Souls ''Carnival of Souls'' is a 1962 American independent horror film produced and directed by Herk Harvey and written by John Clifford from a story by Clifford and Harvey, and starring Candace Hilligoss. Its plot follows Mary Henry, a young woma ...

'' (1998) as Sid * '' Sliders'' (1995–2000) as Rembrandt 'Cryin' Man' Brown * '' Something Wilder'' (1994–1995) as Caleb * ''

'' (1993–1994) as Charles * ''

Woops! ''Woops!'' is an American postapocalyptic sitcom that aired on the Fox network from September 27 to December 6, 1992. The series was created by Gary Jacobs, and produced by Witt/Thomas Productions in association with Touchstone Television. S ...

'' (1992) as Frederick Ross * '' Drexell's Class'' (1991–1992) as George Foster * '' Good Sports'' (1991) as Jeff Mussberger * '' Sibs'' (1991) * '' L.A. Law'' (1991) as Mark Wright * ''

'' (1991) as Larry * '' Roseanne'' (1989) * " Sticks Henderson'' (1988) * ''

Moonlighting Moonlighting may refer to: * Side job, a job taken in addition to one's primary employment Entertainment * ''Moonlighting'' (film), a 1982 drama film by Jerzy Skolimowski * ''Moonlighting'' (TV series), 1985–1989 American television series, ...

'' (1987) as Leonard Haven * '' Spenser: For Hire'' (1987) as Mac Dickerson * '' Bluffing It'' (1987) as Cal * '' Mickey and Nora'' (1987) as Marvin * '' The Equalizer'' (1986) as Sonny Raines * '' Off Beat'' (1986) as Abe Washington *

's '' The Slugger's Wife'' (1985) as Manny Alvarado * ''

'' (1985) as David Jones * ''

'' (1984) as Lionel Witherspoon * '' The Ambush murders'' (1982) * '' Fort Apache the Bronx'' (1981) as Suspect No. 4 * ''

When Hell Freezes Over, I'll Skate When may refer to: * When?, one of the Five Ws, questions used in journalism * WHEN (AM), an Urban Adult Contemporary radio station in Syracuse, New York * WHEN-TV, the former call letters of TV station WTVH in Syracuse, New York Music * When (b ...

'' (1979) * '' Cindy'' (1978) as Michael Simpson

Discography

* '' Dreamgirls: Original Broadway Cast Album'' (1982) * ''Beginnings'' (1999) * ''Brooklyn'' (2004)

References

External links

Cleavant Derricks official website
* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Derricks, Cleavant 1953 births Living people African-American male actors African-American musicians American male film actors American male musical theatre actors American male television actors Drama Desk Award winners Identical twin male actors People from Knoxville, Tennessee Male actors from Tennessee Tony Award winners American twins 20th-century African-American male singers 21st-century African-American people