Sheryl Lee Ralph

Sheryl Lee Ralph (born December 30, 1956) is an American actress, singer, author, and activist. She made her screen debut in the 1977 comedy film A Piece of the Action, before landing her breakthrough role as Deena Jones in the Broadway musical Dreamgirls (1981), for which she received Tony Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical.

Sheryl Lee Ralph
Ralph attending the Black Enterprise Pre-Oscar Party in 2008.
Born	(1956-12-30) December 30, 1956 Waterbury, Connecticut, U.S.
Other names	Sheryl L. Ralph
Education	Uniondale High School Rutgers University
Occupation	Actress singer activist
Years active	1977–present
Known for	Deena Jones – Dreamgirls (Broadway; 1981) Dee Mitchell – Moesha
Spouse(s)	Eric Maurice ​ ( m. 1990; div. 2001) Vincent Hughes ( m. 2005)
Children	2
Website	sherylleeralph.com

Ralph has appeared in a number of movies during her career. In 1991, she received Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female for her role in the drama film To Sleep with Anger. Her other film credits include The Mighty Quinn (1989), The Distinguished Gentleman (1992), Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit (1993), and Deterrence (1999). On television, Ralph starred from 1986 to 1989 in the syndicated sitcom It's a Living, and later had the leading roles in the short-lived ABC sitcom New Attitude (1990), and CBS medical drama Street Gear (1995). From 1996 to 2001, she starred as Dee Mitchell in the UPN sitcom Moesha, and from 2013 to 2015 as Maggie Turner in the Nick at Nite sitcom Instant Mom.

Sheryl Lee Ralph released her first book Redefining Diva: Life Lessons from the Original Dreamgirl (2012) by Simon & Schuster. In 2016 she played Madame Morrible in Wicked on Broadway.

Early life

Ralph was born in Waterbury, Connecticut, the daughter of Ivy, a fashion designer, and Stanley Ralph, a college professor.[1] Her father was African-American and her mother Ivy Ralph O.D. , was an African-Jamaican fashion designer and creator of kariba suit.[2][3] She has a younger brother actor, comedian Michael Ralph. According to a DNA analysis, she descends partly from the Tikar people of Cameroon.[4] She was raised between Mandeville, Jamaica, and Long Island.[5][6] Ralph attended Uniondale High School in Uniondale, New York. She starred in a high-school production of the musical Oklahoma!, portraying Ado Annie. Sheryl graduated in 1972. Earlier that year, she was crowned Miss Black Teen-age New York. At 19, Ralph was the youngest woman to ever graduate from Rutgers University; during her time at Rutgers, Ralph was one of the earliest winners of the Irene Ryan Acting Scholarships awarded by the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival.[7] Also that year she was named one of the top ten college women in America by Glamour magazine. Initially she hoped to study medicine, but after dealing with cadavers in a pre-med class and winning a scholarship in a competition at the American College Theater Festival, she gave up medicine for the performing arts.[8] Many years later, she served as the commencement speaker at Rutgers for the Class of 2003.

Career

Ralph in 1997

Ralph began her career on the stage, and was nominated in 1982 for a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her role as Deena Jones in Dreamgirls.[9] In 1984, Ralph released her only album In the Evening, in which the title track peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard Dance Music/Club Play Singles chart that same year. In 1988 she starred in the Disney movie Oliver & Company, providing the voice of Rita. Her first leading role in a film came as Denzel Washington's wife in The Mighty Quinn, released in 1989. In 1992 she starred with Robert De Niro in the title role in Mistress. That same year, she co-starred with Eddie Murphy in The Distinguished Gentleman. During the 1990s she also had roles in The Flintstones, Deterrence, and Unconditional Love.

On television, she was in the cast of the CBS daytime soap opera Search for Tomorrow while starring on Broadway in Dreamgirls. She is known for playing Ginger St. James on It's a Living,[10] Etienne Toussaint-Bouvier on Designing Women, and Dee Mitchell on Moesha. She provided the voice of Cheetah in Justice League and Justice League Unlimited. She also played Florence Watson, the mother of Rita Louise Watson (Lauryn Hill) in the 1993 film Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit. Ralph produced Divas Simply Singing, which has become an important AIDS fundraiser. She also appeared on the Showtime series Barbershop as Claire. Sheryl brought a new face to the sufferings of war in the NBC hit series ER. Ralph's 2002 project Baby of the Family concerns a young child who is born with a caul over her head, which enables her to see ghosts and the future. Ralph was also featured with son Etienne on MTV's My Super Sweet 16 and BET's Baldwin Hills, as well as an episode of Clean House that also featured her two children, Etienne and Ivy-Victoria (aka Coco), named after Ralph's mother.

On June 16, 2009, it was announced that Ralph would join the cast of the Broadway-bound musical The First Wives Club as Elyse. She replaced Adriane Lenox, who withdrew from the show due to health concerns.[11] In 2011, Ralph guest-starred in the Young Justice episode "Terrors" as Amanda Waller. In 2013, Ralph appeared in the NBC television show Smash as Cynthia, the mother of Jennifer Hudson's character.[12] On February 9, 2013, Ralph appeared at the 2013 Columbus Middle School youth rally in Columbus, Mississippi. In August 2014, she appeared on KTLA Los Angeles Morning News as a fill-in Entertainment Reporter. In November 2014, Ralph appeared on Nicky, Ricky, Dicky, and Dawn as the rich lady who claims her dog from Nicky, Ricky, Dicky, and Dawn.

Some of her recent TV appearances include the TNT dramedy Claws, and on the Nickelodeon sitcom Instant Mom as Stephanie's (Tia Mowry-Hardrict's) mother.

From January 10 to April 11, 2019 Ralph appeared as one of the main characters, "Rose" in the television series "Fam" which ran for one season & was canceled in May 2019.

Personal life

Ralph has been married to Pennsylvania State Senator Vincent Hughes since July 30, 2005.[13] In July 2004, Ralph was inducted as an honorary member of Delta Sigma Theta sorority at the 47th National Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada.[14]In May 2008, Ralph was awarded an honorary doctorate of humane letters from Tougaloo College after giving the commencement address.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1977	A Piece of the Action	Barbara Hanley
1988	Oliver & Company	Rita	Voice
1989	The Mighty Quinn	Lola Quinn
1989	Skin Deep	Receptionist
1990	To Sleep with Anger	Linda	Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female
1992	Mistress	Beverly
1992	The Distinguished Gentleman	Miss Loretta
1993	Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit	Florence Watson
1994	The Flintstones	Mrs. Pyrite
1995	White Man's Burden	Roberta
1995	Lover's Knot	Charlotte
1996	Bogus	Ruth Clark
1997	Jamaica Beat	Sylvia Jones
1998	The Easter Story Keepers	Risa
1999	Personals	Chantal
1999	Unconditional Love	Linda Cray
1999	Deterrence	Gayle Redford	Nominated — Black Reel Award for Best Supporting Actress
2000	Lost in the Pershing Point Hotel	Nurse
2002	Baby of the Family	Mamie
2007	Frankie D	Mama
2010	The Cost of Heaven	Paulette
2010	Blessed and Cursed	Lady Wright
2012	Christmas in Compton	Abuta
2012	He Knows My Heart	First Lady Jameson	Short film
2017	Christmas at Holly Lodge	Nadine
2017	Revival!
2017	Just Getting Started	Roberta
2018	Step Sisters	Yvonne Bishop

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1978	Good Times	Vanessa Blake	Episode: "J.J and the Plumber's Helper"
1979	Wonder Woman	Bobbie	Episode: "The Starships Are Coming"
1982	The Neighborhood	Doris Campbell	TV movie
1983–84	Search for Tomorrow	Laura McCarthy	Main role
1984	V: The Series	Glenna	Episode: "The Overload"
1985	Code Name: Foxfire	Maggie Bryan	3 episodes Canceled after a few episodes)
1985–86	Hunter	Josie Clifford	Episode: "The Return of Typhoon Thompson"
1986	Pros and Cons	Roberta	TV movie
1986–89	It's a Living	Ginger St. James	Main role
1987	Sister Margaret and the Saturday Night Ladies	Corelle	TV movie
1987	L.A. Law	Renee Quintana	Episode: "Beef Jerky"
1990	Falcon Crest	Mooshy Tucker	Two episodes
1990	New Attitude	Vicki St. James	8 episodes
1991	The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw	Miss Rosalee	TV movie
1992–93	Designing Women	Etienne Toussaint Bouvier	6 episodes
1993	George	Maggie Foster	9 episodes
1994	Witch Hunt	Hypolyta Kropotkin	TV movies
1994	Soul Train	Guest Host
1995	Street Gear	Sarah Davis	13 episodes
1996–2001	Moesha	Dee Mitchell	Main role
1998	The Wild Thornberrys	Lioness No. 2	Voice Episode: "Flood Warning"
1998	The Easter Story Keepers	Risa	Voice
1999	Sabrina, the Teenage Witch	Zsa Zsa Goowhiggie	Episode: "What Price Harvey?"
1999	The Parkers	Dee Mitchell	Episode: "Daddy's Girl"
2000	Recess	Mrs. Lasalle	Voice Episode: "Me Know No"
2000–01	The District	Lt. Dee Banks	4 episodes
2001	The Jennie Project	Dr. Pamela Prentiss	TV movie
2001	Justice League	Cheetah/Barbara Ann Minerva	Voice Episode: "Justice for All"
2002	The Proud Family	Aunt Dee/Diana	Two episodes
2002–03	Static Shock	Trina Jessup	Two episodes
2003	Whoopi	Florence	Episode: "She Ain't Heavy, She's My Partner"
2003	Las Vegas	Janet Ellis	Episode: "Luck Be a Lady"
2004	Justice League Unlimited	Cheetah/Barbara Ann Minerva/Teacher	Episode: "Kids' Stuff"
2004	Da Kink in My Hair	Novelette	TV movie
2005	BarberShop: The Series	Claire	4 episodes
2006	7th Heaven	Nurse	Episode: "And Baby Makes Three"
2006	ER	Gloria Gallant	2 episodes
2007	Exes and Ohs	Reverand Ruby	Episode: "There Must Be Rules..."
2008	Flavor of Love 3	Herself	Three episodes
2008	My Super Sweet 16	Herself	Episode: "Etienne"
2008	Hannah Montana	Clarice Johnson	Episode: "We're All on This Date Together"
2009	Baldwin Hills	Etienne's Mom	Season 3
2010	Zevo-3	Grams	Episode: "Control"
2011	Young Justice	Amanda Waller	Voice Episode: "Terrors"
2011	Tyler Perry's House of Payne	Felicia Starr	Recurring role
2013	Smash	Cynthia Moore	Episode: "The Song"
2013–14	Ray Donovan	Claudette	6 episodes
2014	2 Broke Girls	Genét Bromberg	Episode: "And the Not Broke Parents"
2014	One Love	Carolyn Winters	8 episodes
2014	RuPaul's Drag Race	Shade the Rusical	Episode 4
2014	See Dad Run	Vanessa	2 episodes
2014	Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn	Ms. Dumont	Episode: "The Sad Tail of Gary-Chip-Tiny-Elvis-Squishy-Paws"
2013–15	Instant Mom	Maggie Turner	Main role
2016	Criminal Minds	Hayden Montgomery	Episodes: "Inner Beauty" and "The Storm"
2017–19	MacGyver	Mama Colton	3 episodes
2017	One Mississippi	Felicia Hollingsworth	5 episodes
2018	Claws	Matilde Ruval	Recurring role
2019	Fam	Rose	Main role
2020	Motherland: Fort Salem	President Kelly Wade	Recurring Role

Video games

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2010	BioShock 2	Grace Holloway	Voice Role

Stage work

• Reggae (1980)
• Swing (1980)
• Dreamgirls (1981)
• Identical Twins from Baltimore (1987)
• Thoroughly Modern Millie (2002)
• Applause (2005)
• The First Wives Club (2009)
• Wicked (2016)

Discography

Album

In the Evening (1984, The New York Music Company)

1. "You're So Romantic" (4:38)
2. "In the Evening" (3:50)
3. "Give Me Love" (3:34)
4. "Evolution" (4:02)
5. "Back to Being in Love" (3:01)
6. "Be Somebody" (3:35)
7. "I'm Your Kind of Girl" (3:55)
8. "B.A.B.Y." (3:15)
9. "Ready or Not" (3:46)
10. "I'm So Glad That We Met" (3:56)

Produced and arranged by Trevor Lawrence

Singles

• "When I First Saw You" (1983) – US R&B No. 50[15]
• "In the Evening" (1984) – US Hot Dance Music/Club Play Singles #6;[15] UK No. 64[16]
• "You're So Romantic" (1985) - US Club Play #37;[15] US R&B No. 84[15]
• "In the Evening" (remix) (1997) Australia No. 17
• "Evolution" (remix) (1998)
• "Here Comes the Rain Again" (1999) (cover of Eurythmics song) – US Club Play #37;[15] US R&B No. 44[15]

Title	Year	Peak chart positions				Album
		AUS [17]	BEL (FL)[18]	NLD [19]	UK[20]
"When I First Saw You"[21]	1983	—	—	—	—	non-album single
"In the Evening"[22]	1984	—	16	18	64	In the Evening
"You're So Romantic"[23]	1985	—	—	—	—
"In the Evening (Remix)"[24]	1997	17	–	–	—	non-album single
"Evolution (Remix)"[24]	1998	—	—	—	—	non-album single
"Here Comes the Rain Again"[24]	1999	—	—	—	—	non-album single

References

1. "Sheryl Lee Ralph Biography (1956–)". Retrieved October 27, 2016.
2. Henry, Balford (October 9, 2018). "Fashion designer Ivy Ralph dies at 90". Jamaica Observer. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
3. Blumenthal, Ralph (March 24, 1976). "Kareeba: Jamaica's 'Uniform". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
4. Actress Sheryl Lee Ralph Proud of Her Cameroon Ancestry, retrieved January 29, 2020
5. "Sheryl Lee Ralph a Passionate AIDS Activist", The Caribbean Current
6. Sheryl Lee Ralph on TCM.com
7. "Previous Winners of the Irene Ryan Acting Scholarship". KennedyCenter.org. The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Retrieved April 5, 2015.
8. Collier, Aldore, "Sheryl Lee Ralph Talks About Her New TV Series And How She Kept A String On Her Finger Until She Found The Right Man", pp 56–58, August 27, 1990, Jet magazine, retrieved via Google Books on February 10, 2010
9. League, The Broadway. "Sheryl Lee Ralph – Broadway Cast & Staff – IBDB". Retrieved October 27, 2016.
10. It's a Living, retrieved January 29, 2020
11. "Tell Us, Miss Jones: Sheryl Lee Ralph Will Be Part of First Wives Club" Archived June 19, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, playbill.com, June 16, 2009
12. "Dreamgirls Sheryl Lee Ralph to Guest Star as Jennifer Hudson's Mother in NBC's Smash Season 2!". BroadwayWorld.com. August 14, 2012. Retrieved August 14, 2012.
13. "Sheryl Lee Ralph". IMDb. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
14. "Sheryl Lee Ralph | Agency For Artists". Retrieved March 7, 2020.
15. "Artist Search for 'sheryl lee ralph'". Retrieved October 27, 2016.
16. Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 449. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
17. "Discography Sheryl Lee Ralph". Hung Medien. australian-charts.com. Retrieved July 20, 2015.
18. "Discografie Sheryl Lee Ralph". Hung Medien (in Dutch). Ultratop. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
19. "Discografie Sheryl Lee Ralph". Hung Medien (in Dutch). dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved July 20, 2015.
20. "Sheryl Lee Ralph". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 20, 2015.
21. "iTunes Music – Brontosaurus – Single by Tkay Maidza". iTunes Store (Australia). Apple Inc. Retrieved March 29, 2015.
22. "iTunes Music – U-Huh – Single by Tkay Maidza". iTunes Store (Australia). Apple Inc. Retrieved March 29, 2015.
23. "Tkay Maidza drops new track 'Switch Lanes', national tour dates". Triple J (Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC))accessdate=March 29, 2015.
24. "iTunes Music – M.O.B. – Single by Tkay Maidza". iTunes Store (Australia). Apple Inc. Retrieved March 29, 2015.

External links

• Official website
• Sheryl Lee Ralph on IMDb
• Sheryl Lee Ralph at the Internet Broadway Database