Debbi Morgan
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Deborah Ann "Debbi" Morgan is an American film and television actress. Morgan has appeared in a number of film and TV productions, and may be best known for the role of Angie Baxter–Hubbard on the ABC soap opera ''
All My Children ''All My Children'' (often shortened to ''AMC'') is an American television soap opera that aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from January 5, 1970, to September 23, 2011, and on The Online Network (TOLN) from April 29 to September 2, 2 ...
''. Morgan was the first African American to win 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 Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her performance as Angie in 1989. She is also known for her role as the Seer in the fourth and fifth seasons of '' Charmed''. In film, her performance as Mozelle Batiste-Delacroix in '' Eve's Bayou'' (1997) earned critical acclaim and the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female. More recently she played a recurring role as Estelle Green in the starz crime drama series '' Power'' and its spinoff '' Power Book II: Ghost'' from 2014 to 2021, and also co-starred in the Fox drama series '' Our Kind of People''.


Early life

Morgan was born in
Dunn, North Carolina Dunn is the most populous city of Harnett County, North Carolina, Harnett County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 8,446 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is, along with Harnett County, part of the Anderson Creek ...
, the daughter of Lora, a teacher, and George Morgan Jr., a butcher. She has a younger sister, Terry. The family relocated to the Bronx when Morgan was still a child. In a 1997 interview with ''
People The term "the people" refers to the public or Common people, common mass of people of a polity. As such it is a concept of human rights law, international law as well as constitutional law, particularly used for claims of popular sovereignty. I ...
'', Morgan revealed that her father was an abusive alcoholic. While he never physically harmed his daughters, Morgan recalled her mother running from her father often. Her father died of
leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...
in 1975. Morgan graduated from Aquinas High School.


Career

Morgan's earliest film role was in the movie '' Monkey Hustle'' in 1976. She played the role of Vi. Morgan's earliest recurring role was on '' What's Happening!!'' from 1976 to 1977 as Diane Harris, and also appeared on '' Good Times''. In 1979, she received critical acclaim for her portrayal of Alex Haley's great-aunt Elizabeth Harvey on the 1979 miniseries '' Roots: The Next Generations'', and her guest-starring role as Curtis Jackson's ex-girlfriend turned prostitute on '' The White Shadow''. Her most notable role was Angie Baxter Hubbard on the
soap opera A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...
''All My Children'', a role she originally played from January 1982 to July 1990. Her portrayal of Angie struck a chord with many Black viewers across America. Angie and her love interest, Jesse Hubbard ( Darnell Williams), became the first
African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...
" supercouple" on daytime soap operas. In 1989, Morgan won 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 Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (which she shares with '' Santa Barbara'' actress Nancy Lee Grahn). She and Williams also co-hosted a music video show titled '' New York Hot Tracks'' in the mid-1980s. After leaving ''All My Children'', Morgan played the role of Chantal Marshall on the NBC soap opera, '' Generations'' (replacing actress Sharon Brown) and remained with the show until it ended. She then reprised her role as Angie Hubbard on ABC's '' Loving'' in 1993. In 1995, she brought the same character to '' The City'' (a retooled version of ''Loving''), making Morgan one of the few performers to portray the same character on three different soap operas. From 1997 to 1998, she also played Dr. Ellen Burgess on '' Port Charles''. In the 1980s and 1990s, Morgan became a ''de facto'' symbol for the possibilities for black women as all of her soap opera roles involved her playing a successful doctor. Morgan earned acclaim from movie critics for her portrayal of clairvoyant Mozelle Batiste Delacroix in director
Kasi Lemmons Kasi Lemmons (; born Karen Lemmons, February 24, 1959) is an American film director, screenwriter, and actress. She made her directorial debut with ''Eve's Bayou'' (1997), followed by ''The Caveman's Valentine'' (2001), ''Talk to Me (2007 film), ...
' drama film '' Eve's Bayou'' (1997). For her portrayal, she won a
Chicago Film Critics Association The Chicago Film Critics Association (CFCA) is an association of professional film criticism, film critics, who work in print, broadcast and online media, based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. The organization was founded in 1990 by film cri ...
Award and an Independent Spirit Award and was nominated for an Image Award. She later left soap operas and began her film career with roles in '' She's All That'' (1999), '' The Hurricane'' (1999), '' Love & Basketball'' (2000), '' Woman Thou Art Loosed'' (2004), '' Coach Carter'' (2005), '' Relative Strangers'' (2006), and '' Color of the Cross'' (2006). On television, she had roles in ''
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 ...
'', ''
Strong Medicine ''Strong Medicine'' is an American medical drama with a focus on feminist politics, health issues and class conflict that aired on the Lifetime network from 2000 to 2006. It was created and produced in part by Whoopi Goldberg, who made cam ...
'', ''
Boston Public ''Boston Public'' is an American drama (film and television), drama television series created by David E. Kelley and broadcast on Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox. Set in Boston, the series centers on Winslow High School, a fictional public high sc ...
'', '' Providence'', and '' Soul Food''. From 2002 to 2003, Morgan played lead character Lora Gibson, opposite Lea Thompson, on the Lifetime drama series '' For the People''. She also played the role of the Seer in the fourth and fifth seasons of '' Charmed''. Morgan, along with costar Darnell Williams, returned to ''All My Children'' in January 2008, 10 years after leaving daytime television. In May 2009 and 2011, 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 Lead Actress in a Drama Series. In 2011, ABC cancelled ''All My Children'', and Morgan joined the cast of ''
The Young and the Restless ''The Young and the Restless'' (often abbreviated as ''Y&R'') is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. The show is set in the fictional Genoa City (named after the real-life Genoa City, Wiscon ...
'' as Yolanda "Harmony" Hamilton on October 7, 2011, exactly two weeks after ''All My Children'' aired its final television episode on September 23, 2011. In 2013, Morgan appeared in the Web-based reboot of ''All My Children'', reprising her role of Angie Hubbard. The series premiered on April 29, 2013, and was cancelled after a single season. In November 2013, after ''All My Children'' was cancelled, Morgan was cast in Starz drama series, '' Power'', opposite Omari Hardwick and Naturi Naughton. In 2015, she co-starred alongside Richard Lawson and Vivica A. Fox in two TV One holiday movies: ''Royal Family Thanksgiving'' and ''Royal Family Christmas''. Morgan later played
Toni Braxton Toni Michele Braxton (born October 7, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and television personality. She has sold over 70 million records worldwide and is one of the best-selling female artists in history. Braxton has won seven ...
's mother in the Lifetime biopic '' Toni Braxton: Unbreak My Heart''. In 2017, Morgan appeared in the Marvel miniseries '' The Defenders'' playing Delores. The following year, she had a recurring role in the BET drama series '' The Quad''. In 2019, she appeared in the Netflix film '' Sextuplets'' starring
Marlon Wayans Marlon Lamont Wayans (born July 23, 1972) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. He is best known for his work with his brother Shawn Wayans on The WB sitcom ''The Wayans Bros.'' (1995–1999) and the comedy films ''Don't Be a M ...
. She starred with Kelly Rowland in the Lifetime movie ''Merry Liddle Christmas'' and its sequels. In 2021, she was cast in the Lee Daniels prime time soap opera, '' Our Kind of People'' opposite Yaya DaCosta. In 2023 she portrayed
Keyshia Cole Keyshia Myeshia Cole (née Johnson; born October 15, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, television personality and actress. Dubbed by critics as the " Princess of Hip-Hop Soul", she is known for her soulful voice and heartfelt lyrics. Bor ...
's mother in the Lifetime biopic ''Keyshia Cole: This is My Story''. Jasmine Blu from ''TVfanatic'' wrote in her review: "Debbi Morgan, though, has always been a force, a legend who deserves every last bit of her flowers right here and now. To say she stole this film would be the understatement of the century. She was magnificent. She did such a remarkable job playing Frankie; there were moments it literally gave me chills. It's almost eerie how well Morgan embodied the late mother and grandmother." Morgan later was cast in the drama film '' Divorce in the Black'' written and directed by
Tyler Perry Tyler Perry (born Emmitt Perry Jr., September 13, 1969) is an American actor, filmmaker, and playwright. He is the creator and performer of Madea, Mabel "Madea" Simmons, a tough elderly woman, and also portrays her brother Joe Simmons and her ...
.


Personal life

Morgan has been married four times and has no children. Her first marriage was to Charles Weldon from 1980 until 1984. In 1989, Morgan married actor Charles S. Dutton, divorcing in 1994. From 1997 until 2000, Morgan was married to photographer Donn Thompson. Morgan has been married to Jeffrey Winston since June 2009.


Filmography


Film


Television


Music video appearances

* Cameo – " Attack Me with Your Love" (1985), " Single Life" (1985)


Notes


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Morgan, Debbi 1950s births Living people Actresses from New York City American film actresses American soap opera actresses American television actresses Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series winners Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female winners Participants in American reality television series People from Dunn, North Carolina 21st-century African-American actresses 21st-century American actresses 20th-century African-American actresses 20th-century American actresses Year of birth missing (living people)