Marsha Francine Warfield (born March 5, 1954) is an American actress and comedian. She grew up on Chicago's South Side, graduating from Calumet High School. She is best known for playing tough, no-nonsense

bailiff A bailiff is a manager, overseer or custodian – a legal officer to whom some degree of authority or jurisdiction is given. There are different kinds, and their offices and scope of duties vary. Another official sometimes referred to as a '' ...

Roz Russell 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 ''

Night Court ''Night Court'' is an American television sitcom that premiered on NBC on January 4, 1984, and ended on May 31, 1992, after nine seasons consisting of List of Night Court episodes, 193 episodes. The show is set in the night shift of a Manhattan ...

'' from 1986 to 1992, reprising the role on a guest basis for its 2023 revival. Warfield also starred in the sitcom ''

Empty Nest ''Empty Nest'' is an American television sitcom that aired for seven seasons on NBC from October 8, 1988, to June 17, 1995. The series, which was created as a spin-off of ''The Golden Girls'' by creator and producer Susan Harris, starred Richa ...

'' as Dr. Maxine Douglas (1993–95). Before ''Night Court'', she was a writer and performer on the short-lived '' Richard Pryor Show''. Warfield appeared in feature films such as '' D.C. Cab'' (1983) and ''

Mask A mask is an object normally worn on the face, typically for protection, disguise, performance, or entertainment, and often employed for rituals and rites. Masks have been used since antiquity for both ceremonial and practical purposes, ...

'' (1985), hosted '' The Marsha Warfield Show'' for ten months (March 1990–January 1991) and has made guest appearances on many television shows, including '' Riptide'', '' Family Ties'', '' Clueless'', ''

Cheers ''Cheers'' is an American television sitcom, created by Glen and Les Charles, Glen Charles & Les Charles and James Burrows, that aired on NBC for eleven seasons from September 30, 1982, to May 20, 1993. The show was produced by Charles/Burrows/C ...

'', ''

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 ...

'', ''

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 ...

'', ''

Cybill ''Cybill'' is an American television sitcom created by Chuck Lorre, which aired for four seasons and 87 episodes on CBS from January 2, 1995, to July 13, 1998. Starring Cybill Shepherd, the show revolves around the life of Cybill Sheridan, a t ...

'', ''

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 ...

,'' Smart Guy, and ''

Touched by an Angel ''Touched by an Angel'' is an American 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 by Ma ...

''. As of 2024 she has a recurring role on

9-1-1 911, sometimes written , is an emergency telephone number for Argentina, Canada, the Dominican Republic, Fiji, Jordan, Mexico, Pakistan, Maldives, Palau, Panama, Iraq, the Philippines, Sint Maarten, the United States, and Uruguay, as well as ...

as the mother of main character paramedic and firefighter Henrietta "Hen" Wilson, played by Aisha Hinds. She has also done

stand-up comedy Stand-up comedy is a performance directed to a live audience, where the performer stands on a stage (theatre), stage and delivers humour, humorous and satire, satirical monologues sometimes incorporating physical comedy, physical acts. These ...

including appearances on the '' Norm Crosby'' hosted ''The Comedy Shop'' television series. She won the San Francisco International Comedy Competition in 1979, over such competition as

Dana Carvey Dana Thomas Carvey (born June 2, 1955) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, podcaster, screenwriter and producer. Carvey is best known for his seven seasons on ''Saturday Night Live'', from 1986 to 1993, which earned him five consecutive Pri ...

and A. Whitney Brown.

Personal life

In 2017, Warfield publicly came out stating: Warfield's ''Night Court'' character, Roz, was portrayed as gay and marrying another woman in the 2023 revival, something Warfield says could not have happened at the time of the original show.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Warfield, Marsha American television actresses American television talk show hosts American stand-up comedians American film actresses Actresses from Chicago 1954 births Living people American women comedians 20th-century African-American actresses 20th-century American actresses 20th-century American comedians 21st-century African-American actresses 21st-century American actresses 21st-century American comedians Comedians from Chicago Lesbian comedians African-American LGBTQ people LGBTQ people from Illinois American lesbian actresses 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American people American LGBTQ comedians African-American female comedians African-American comedians