Jennifer Okere (30 August 1968 – 28 June 1999) was a Nigerian actress and one of the pioneers of the Nigerian film industry (

Nollywood Nollywood, a portmanteau of Nigeria and Hollywood, is a sobriquet that originally referred to the Nigerian film industry. The origin of the term goes back to the early 2000s, traced to an article in ''The New York Times''. Due to the history ...

) in the 1990s. Her two ground-breaking Nollywood blockbuster movies, ''

Living in Bondage ''Living in Bondage'' is a 1992/93 Nigerian two-part drama thriller directed by Chris Obi Rapu, written by Kenneth Nnebue and Okechukwu Ogunjiofor, produced by Ogunjiofor, and sponsored by Jafac Wine. The film starred Kenneth Okonkwo and Nnenna ...

'' and '' Glamour Girls'' have been re-adapted. She was the posthumous recipient, of the 2016 Afro Heritage Broadcasting and Entertainment Awards (AHBEA) in

Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

Early life

Jennifer Okere was born to the family of Chief Raymond Okere and Lolo Janet Okere in Okolochi, Owerri West, Imo State,

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

, where she lived through her teenage years. After completing her education, Okere moved to

Lagos State Lagos State (, ) is a States of Nigeria, state in South West, Nigeria. Of the 36 States of Nigeria, Nigerian states, Lagos is the second List of Nigerian states by population, most populous state but the List of Nigerian states by area, smallest ...

with her family, where she entered the movie industry.

Career

After studying Theater Art at the

University of Nigeria, Nsukka A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Univ ...

, Okere joined

in the early nineties. She made remarkable impacts in the industry with her ground-breaking movies

and Glamour Girls.

Movies

Okere played tremendous roles in her movies, especially her first movie ''

''. The movie was a notable

Igbo Igbo may refer to: * Igbo people, an ethnic group of Nigeria * Igbo language, their language * anything related to Igboland, a cultural region in Nigeria See also * Ibo (disambiguation) * Igbo mythology * Igbo music * Igbo art * * Igbo-Ukwu, a t ...

movie, starring

Kenneth Okonkwo Kenneth Okonkwo (born 6 November 1968) is a Nigerian actor, lawyer and politician, known for his role in the movie '' Living in Bondage'' as Andy Okeke. He was born in Nsukka, Enugu State, Nigeria, to Ozioko Francis Okonkwo and Beatrice Okonkwo. ...

, Nnenna Nwabueze, Okechukwu Ogunjiofor, Francis Agu and

Bob-Manuel Udokwu Bob-Manuel Obidimma Udokwu (born 18 April 1967) is a Nigerian actor, movie director, producer and politician. Udokwu was nominated for Best Actor in a Supporting Role at the 2013 Nollywood Movies Awards for his role in the film '' Adesuwa'' (20 ...

. Its two parts were released in 1992 and 1993, respectively. The first movie she was featured,

had the cast: *

as Andy Okeke *Nnenna Nwabueze as Merit, Andy's wife * Kanayo O. Kanayo as Chief Omego, cult member *Felicia Mayford as Obidia * Francis Agu as Ichie Million, cult member and Merit's boss *Okechukwu Ogunjiofor as Paul, Andy's friend and cult member *Ngozi Nwaneto as Caro, Merit's friend and Paul's girlfriend * Ngozi Nwosu as Ego, Andy's mistress *Chizoba Bosah as Merit's aunt *

as Mike, cult member *Sydney Diala as cult member/initiator *Daniel Oluigbo as cult chief priest *Obiageli Molugbe as cult mother *Rita Nzelu as Tina, local prostitute *Jennifer Okere as Chinyere, Caro's friend *Ruth Osu as Andy and Merit's neighbour *Grace Ayozie as Andy's mother *Benjamin Nwosu as Andy's father The makers of the movie first sold its right to Charles Okpaleke in 2015 for a possible remake. In 2015,

Ramsey Nouah Ramsey Nouah (born Ramsey Tokunbo Nouah Jr.; 19 December 1970) is a Nigerian actor and director. He won the Africa Movie Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role in 2010 for his performance in the movie '' The Figurine''. He made his direc ...

acquired the rights to

Living In Bondage ''Living in Bondage'' is a 1992/93 Nigerian two-part drama thriller directed by Chris Obi Rapu, written by Kenneth Nnebue and Okechukwu Ogunjiofor, produced by Ogunjiofor, and sponsored by Jafac Wine. The film starred Kenneth Okonkwo and Nnenna ...

from Kenneth Nnebue, and filmed the remake in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, and

. Both Charles Okpaleke and Nouah's rights resulted to becoming a sequel titled Living in Bondage: Breaking Free. Her second movie, Glamour Girls was starred by

Liz Benson Elizabeth 'Liz' Benson (born 5 April 1966) is a veteran Nigerian actress, television personality and philanthropist. Early life and education Liz was born in Etinan, Akwa Ibom State in southern Nigeria. She attended Sylvania State College in ...

, Ngozi Ezeonu, Eucharia Anuobi, Pat Attah, Ernest Obi,

Zack Orji Zachee Ama Orji (born 1960) is a Gabon born Nigerian actor, director, producer and filmmaker known for his role in Nollywood movies Glamour Girls (1994 film), Glamour Girls, and Blood Money. Aside from acting, Orji is a preacher. He is an indig ...

, and others. On 12 December 2019, a Nigerian filmmaker Charles Okpaleke, acquired it for the lifetime copyrights of the 1994 for a modern remake. Okere also featured in Ikuku and True Confession. She also acted The Oath, The Ripples, Strange Woman, Calabash. The Oath was Okere's final movie.

Awards

In 1996, Okere received The Movie Award as the Best Igbo Actress after acting Ikuku (part 2). After her death, she was awarded The Afro Heritage Broadcasting and Entertainment Awards (AHBEA) in 2016, in

. The award was received by her husband, Emeka Ossai at the 2nd edition of the prestigious award. Been made popular by

, and Glamour Girls, brought about the recognition and celebration of her talents at The Afro Heritage Broadcasting and Entertainment Awards (AHBEA).

Death

Okere died in 1999, possibly from mistreatment by her husband, Emeka Ossai, and in-laws due to her delay in childbearing. She was buried in her hometown, Okolochi, and was mourned by her colleagues in the

industry, the majority of whom were present at her funeral. Her death was the first to shake

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jonnifer, Okere 20th-century Nigerian actresses Actors from Imo State 1968 births 1999 deaths