News

Paula Kelly, an actress who earned Emmy nominations for roles on NBC’s 1980s sitcom Night Court and 1989 ABC miniseries The Women of Brewster Place, died February 8 in Whittier, CA, from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. She was 77.

Her death was announced by her family and Los Angeles’ Ebony Repertory Theatre.

Kelly, who was also a dancer, choreographer and singer, had her breakthrough role of Helene in Bob Fosse’s 1969 film Sweet Charity, sharing the screen with star Shirley MacLaine and Chita Rivera in such musical numbers as “There’s Gotta Be Something Better Than This” and the showstopper “Hey, Big Spender.” She’d already played the role in a West End stage production.

Other film credits include The Andromeda Strain (1971), Uptown Saturday Night (1974) and Once Upon a Time When We Were Colored (1995).

Kelly appeared in numerous TV series from the 1970s through the ’90s, including Sanford & Son, Medical Center, The Streets of San Francisco,...

Roger Robinson, the veteran character actor who won a Tony Award, starred in such films as Brother to Brother and had recurring roles on Kojak and How to Get Away With Murder, has died. He was 78.

Robinson died Wednesday in Escondido, California, of complications from a heart condition, Ebony Repertory Theatre producing artistic director Wren T. Brown announced.

In last year's HBO telefilm The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Robinson portrayed Day Lacks, the first cousin and father of Henrietta's (Renee Elise Goldsberry) children. And on ABC's How to Get Away With Murder, he played Mac Harkness, the father of Viola ...

Roger Robinson, the veteran character actor who won a Tony Award, starred in such films as Brother to Brother and had recurring roles on Kojak and How to Get Away With Murder, has died. He was 78.

Robinson died Wednesday in Escondido, California, of complications from a heart condition, Ebony Repertory Theatre producing artistic director Wren T. Brown announced.

In last year's HBO telefilm The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Robinson portrayed Day Lacks, the first cousin and father of Henrietta's (Renee Elise Goldsberry) children. And on ABC's How to Get Away With Murder, he played Mac Harkness, the father of Viola ...

Three finalists have been chosen to represent Southern California in the final rounds of the August Wilson Monologue Competition in New York in May. Pablo Lopez of Los Angeles, Rhyver White of Hawthorne, and Eliana Pipes of Altadena finished in first, second, and third, respectively. Lopez, who also received a $500 scholarship, is guaranteed a place in the final round in New York City on May 6, but White and Pipes, who took home scholarships of $250 and $100, are national semifinalists and will need to perform in a semifinal round in New York with students from six other regions for a chance to move on to the national finals. Judges for the final Los Angeles round, which was held March 4 at the Mark Taper Forum, included actors Michael Beach, Keith David, and Loretta Devine, as well as Ebony Repertory Theatre Artistic Director Wren Brown and L.A. County Arts Commission administrator Kimberleigh Aarn.