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IMDbPro

Roscoe Lee Browne(1922-2007)

  • Actor
  • Soundtrack
IMDbProStarmeter
See rank
Roscoe Lee Browne in Dear God (1996)
This is the trailer for Smiley Face, directed by Gregg Araki.
Play trailer1:20
Smiley Face (2007)
18 Videos
31 Photos
He was a master class in cerebral eloquence and audience command...and although his dominant playing card in the realm of acting was quite serious and stately, nobody cut a more delightfully dry edge in sitcoms than this gentleman, whose calm yet blistering put-downs often eluded his lesser victims.

Acting titan Roscoe Lee Browne was born to a Baptist minister and his wife on May 2, 1922, in Woodbury, New Jersey. He attended Lincoln University, an historically black university in Pennsylvania until 1942, when he enlisted in the U.S. Army during World War II, where he served in Italy with the Negro 92nd Infantry Division and organized the Division's track and field team. He graduated from Lincoln University in 1946, and studied French through Middlebury College's summer language program. He received his master's degree from Columbia University, then subsequently returned to Lincoln and taught French and comparative literature, seemingly destined to settle in completely until he heard a different calling.

Roscoe relished his first taste of adulation and admiration as a track star, competing internationally and winning the world championship in the 800-yard dash in 1951. He parlayed that attention into a job as a sales representative for a wine and liquor importer. In 1956, he abruptly decided to become an actor. And he did. With no training but a shrewd, innate sense of self, he boldly auditioned for, and won, the role of the Soothsayer in "Julius Caesar" the very next day at the newly-formed New York Shakespeare Festival. He never looked back and went on to perform with the company in productions of "The Taming of the Shrew", "Titus Andronicus", "Othello", "King Lear" (as the Fool), and "Troilus and Cressida".

Blessed with rich, mellifluous tones and an imposing, cultured air, Roscoe became a rare African-American fixture on the traditionally white classical stage. In 1961 he appeared notably with James Earl Jones in the original off-Broadway cast of Jean Genet's landmark play "The Blacks". Awards soon came his way -- the first in the form of an Obie only a few years later for his portrayal of a rebellious slave in "The Old Glory". Additionally, he received the Los Angeles Drama Critic's Circle Award for both "The Dream on Monkey Mountain" (1970) and "Joe Turner's Come and Gone" (1989). Roscoe found less successful ventures on 1960s Broadway, taking his first curtain call in "A Cool World" in 1960, which folded the next day. He graced a number of other short runs including "General Seegar" (1962), "Tiger, Tiger Burning Bright" (1962), "The Ballad of the Sade Cafe" (1964), "Danton's Death" (1965), and "A Hand Is on the Gate: An Evening of Negro Poetry and Folk Music" (1966), which he also wrote and directed. He did not return to Broadway until 1983 with the role of the singing Rev. J.D. Montgomery in Tommy Tune's smash musical "My One and Only" in which his number "Kicking the Clouds Away" proved to be one of many highlights. Roscoe returned only once more to Broadway, earning acclaim and a Tony nomination for his supporting performance in August Wilson's "Two Trains Running" (1992).

Although he made an isolated debut with The Connection (1961), he wouldn't appear regularly in films until the end of the decade with prominent parts in the Elizabeth Taylor/Richard Burton film, The Comedians (1967), Jules Dassin's Uptight (1968), Hitchcock's Topaz (1969) and, his most notable, The Liberation of L.B. Jones (1970). Thereafter, he complimented a host of features, both comedic and dramatic, including Super Fly (1972) (and its sequel), Uptown Saturday Night (1974), Logan's Run (1976), Legal Eagles (1986), The Mambo Kings (1992) and Dear God (1996)

Elsewhere, Roscoe's disdainful demeanor courted applause on all the top 70s sitcoms including "All in the Family", "Maude," "Sanford and Son", "Good Times" and "Barney Miller" (Emmy-nominated), and he played the splendidly sardonic role of Saunders, the Tate household butler, after replacing Robert Guillaume's popular "Benson" character on Soap (1977). In 1986 he won an Emmy Award for his guest appearance on The Cosby Show (1984). His trademark baritone lent authority and distinction to a number of documentaries, live-action fare, and animated films, as well as the spoken-word arena, with such symphony orchestras as the Boston Pops and the Los Angeles Philharmonic to his credit. A preeminent recitalist, he was known for committing hundreds of poems to memory. For many years he and actor Anthony Zerbe toured the U.S. with their presentation of "Behind the Broken Words", an evening of poetry and dramatic readings.

At the time of his death of cancer on April 11, 2007, the never-married octogenarian was still omnipresent, more heard than seen perhaps. Among his last works was his narrations of a Garfield film feature and the most recent movie spoof Epic Movie (2007).
BornMay 2, 1922
DiedApril 11, 2007(84)
BornMay 2, 1922
DiedApril 11, 2007(84)
IMDbProStarmeter
See rank
  • Won 1 Primetime Emmy

Photos31

Roscoe Lee Browne and Paula Kelly in Uptown Saturday Night (1974)
Roscoe Lee Browne and Paula Kelly in Uptown Saturday Night (1974)
Roscoe Lee Browne in Uptown Saturday Night (1974)
Roscoe Lee Browne in Uptown Saturday Night (1974)
Roscoe Lee Browne in Uptown Saturday Night (1974)
Roscoe Lee Browne and John Amos in Good Times (1974)
Michael Landon, Roscoe Lee Browne, and James Reynolds in Highway to Heaven (1984)
Roscoe Lee Browne in Logan's Run (1976)
John Wayne and Roscoe Lee Browne in The Cowboys (1972)
Roscoe Lee Browne and James Whitmore in Black Like Me (1964)
CCH Pounder and Roscoe Lee Browne in The Shield (2002)
Jenny Agutter, Michael York, and Roscoe Lee Browne in Logan's Run (1976)

Known for

The Cowboys (1972)
The Cowboys
7.4
  • Jebediah Nightlinger
  • 1972
Jenny Agutter, Farrah Fawcett, Michael York, Roscoe Lee Browne, and Richard Jordan in Logan's Run (1976)
Logan's Run
6.8
  • Box
  • 1976
Treasure Planet (2002)
Treasure Planet
7.2
  • Mr. Arrow(voice)
  • 2002
Cheech Marin, Billy Joel, and Joey Lawrence in Oliver & Company (1988)
Oliver & Company
6.6
  • Francis(voice)
  • 1988

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Actor

  • Claire-Marie Keyes, Marian McCargo, Tracy Nelson, Alex Marino, and Kent Yamowaki in The Telemarketers: 36 Hrs (2009)
    The Telemarketers: 36 Hrs
  • Marisa Coughlan in Side Order of Life (2007)
    Side Order of Life
  • Epic Movie (2007)
    Epic Movie
    • (voice)
  • Sweet Deadly Dreams (2006)
    Sweet Deadly Dreams
  • Bill Murray and Tim Curry in Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties (2006)
    Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties
    • (voice)
  • Spider-Man Venom Saga (2005)
    Spider-Man Venom Saga
  • Curtis Armstrong in Tales of a Fly on the Wall (2004)
    Tales of a Fly on the Wall
    • (voice)
  • Sean Hayes, Eric McCormack, Debra Messing, and Megan Mullally in Will & Grace (1998)
    Will & Grace
  • Static Shock (2000)
    Static Shock
    • (voice)
  • Treasure Planet Read-Along DVD (2003)
    Treasure Planet Read-Along DVD
    • (voice)
  • Ice-T, Sam Waterston, Mariska Hargitay, Camryn Manheim, Christopher Meloni, Jeffrey Donovan, Mehcad Brooks, Kelli Giddish, and Danielle Moné Truitt in Law & Order (1990)
    Law & Order
  • The Proud Family (2001)
    The Proud Family
    • (voice)
  • RLS Legacy Virtual 3D Tour and Treasure Hunt
    • (voice)
  • Behind the Broken Words
  • Treasure Planet (2002)
    Treasure Planet
    • (voice)

Soundtrack

  • Valentines. A Bouquet of Letters and Poetry of Lovers (1994)
    Valentines. A Bouquet of Letters and Poetry of Lovers
  • Cheech Marin, Billy Joel, and Joey Lawrence in Oliver & Company (1988)
    Oliver & Company
  • Abe Vigoda, Max Gail, Ron Glass, Hal Linden, Gregory Sierra, and Jack Soo in Barney Miller (1975)
    Barney Miller
    • (uncredited)

Videos19

Oliver and Company: 25th Anniversary Edition
Clip 0:58
Oliver and Company: 25th Anniversary Edition
Oliver and Company: 25th Anniversary Edition
Clip 1:03
Oliver and Company: 25th Anniversary Edition
Oliver and Company: 25th Anniversary Edition
Clip 1:04
Oliver and Company: 25th Anniversary Edition
Treasure Planet
Clip 1:31
Treasure Planet
Treasure Planet
Clip 1:06
Treasure Planet
Treasure Planet
Clip 1:01
Treasure Planet
Trailer
Trailer 1:48
Trailer
DVD Trailer - The Venom Saga
Trailer 0:43
DVD Trailer - The Venom Saga
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:23
Official Trailer
Trailer: Smiley Face
Trailer 1:20
Trailer: Smiley Face
Logan's Run
Trailer 2:57
Logan's Run
The Comedians
Trailer 1:19
The Comedians

Personal details

Edit
    • May 2, 1922
    • Woodbury, New Jersey, USA
    • April 11, 2007
    • Los Angeles, California, USA(cancer)
  • Other works
    Appeared on Broadway August Wilson's play "Two Trains Running" (1992)
  • Publicity listings
    • 3 Articles
    • 1 Pictorial

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    Ever the wry quipster, he was once told by a director that his speech sounded "white", to which he responded, "We had a white maid".
  • Quotes
    I remember when I chose acting I thought, 'This is it -- for the time being.' I didn't think I was finished yet. I still don't. I keep thinking about what I should be doing.
    • Rich smooth voice with dignified bearing

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