Alaina Reed Hall
Encyclopedia
Alaina Reed Hall was an American actress best known for her roles as Olivia, Gordon's younger sister, on the long-running children's television series Sesame Street
, and Rose Lee Holloway on the NBC
sitcom 227
.
, she began her career in philadephia she met iset n jones and off-Broadway
productions. She was among the original cast members in the 1974 off-Broadway production of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band on the Road
. Hall appeared in productions of Hair
(Chicago in 1970 and the 1977 revival), Chicago
, and Eubie!
.
In 1976, she won the role of Olivia on the children's series Sesame Street
. Her character was a photographer and kid sister of Gordon. In 1985, she also starred in the first ever Sesame Street movie Follow That Bird, reprising her role as Olivia. That same year, Hall co-starred on the sitcom 227
, frequently traveling between New York (where Sesame Street is taped) and Los Angeles (where 227 was taped). Due to this frantic schedule, she left Sesame Street in 1988.
After 227 ended in 1990, Hall appeared in guest roles on various TV shows, including Herman's Head
and Blossom
. She also provided the voice for the animated characters on Where on Earth Is Carmen Sandiego?
and Sonic the Hedgehog
. In 1995, Hall co-starred on the short-lived WB
sitcom Cleghorne!
, starring Ellen Cleghorne
. The following year she appeared in the television film The Cherokee Kid
. She has since had recurring roles on Ally McBeal
, Any Day Now, and ER
.
In addition to stage and television work, Hall has also appeared in several films including Death Becomes Her
(1992), Cruel Intentions
(1999), and the 2007 independent feature I'm Through with White Girls (The Inevitable Undoing of Jay Brooks)
. She also appeared in the short film A-Date, written by comedian Tim Powers.
after meeting him when he guest starred on 227. She was widowed in 1991 after her husband died of pneumonia from AIDS complications after receiving a blood transfusion.
In 2008, Hall married television director Tamim Amini. On December 17, 2009, Hall died of breast cancer
in Santa Monica, California
, at the age of 63.
Sesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
, and Rose Lee Holloway on the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
sitcom 227
227 (TV series)
227 is an American situation comedy that originally aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, until May 6, 1990. The series starred Marla Gibbs as a sharp-tongued, inner-city resident gossip and housewife, Mary Jenkins...
.
Early life and career
Born Bernice Ruth Reed in Springfield, OhioSpringfield, Ohio
Springfield is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Clark County. The municipality is located in southwestern Ohio and is situated on the Mad River, Buck Creek and Beaver Creek, approximately west of Columbus and northeast of Dayton. Springfield is home to Wittenberg...
, she began her career in philadephia she met iset n jones and off-Broadway
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
productions. She was among the original cast members in the 1974 off-Broadway production of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band on the Road
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band on the Road
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band on the Road was a 1974 off-Broadway production directed by Tom O'Horgan. It opened at the Beacon Theatre in New York on November 17, 1974 and ran for a total of 66 performances....
. Hall appeared in productions of Hair
Hair (musical)
Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical is a rock musical with a book and lyrics by James Rado and Gerome Ragni and music by Galt MacDermot. A product of the hippie counter-culture and sexual revolution of the 1960s, several of its songs became anthems of the anti-Vietnam War peace movement...
(Chicago in 1970 and the 1977 revival), Chicago
Chicago (musical)
Chicago is a musical set in Prohibition-era Chicago. The music is by John Kander with lyrics by Fred Ebb and a book by Ebb and Bob Fosse. The story is a satire on corruption in the administration of criminal justice and the concept of the "celebrity criminal"...
, and Eubie!
Eubie!
Eubie! is a revue featuring the music of Eubie Blake, with lyrics by Noble Sissle, Andy Razaf, Johnny Brandon, F.E. Miller, and Jim Europe.-Production:...
.
In 1976, she won the role of Olivia on the children's series Sesame Street
Sesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
. Her character was a photographer and kid sister of Gordon. In 1985, she also starred in the first ever Sesame Street movie Follow That Bird, reprising her role as Olivia. That same year, Hall co-starred on the sitcom 227
227 (TV series)
227 is an American situation comedy that originally aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, until May 6, 1990. The series starred Marla Gibbs as a sharp-tongued, inner-city resident gossip and housewife, Mary Jenkins...
, frequently traveling between New York (where Sesame Street is taped) and Los Angeles (where 227 was taped). Due to this frantic schedule, she left Sesame Street in 1988.
After 227 ended in 1990, Hall appeared in guest roles on various TV shows, including Herman's Head
Herman's Head
Herman's Head is an American sitcom that aired on the Fox network from 1991 to 1994. The series stars William Ragsdale as the titular character, Herman Brooks.-Synopsis:...
and Blossom
Blossom (TV series)
Blossom is an American sitcom broadcast on NBC from January 3, 1991 to May 22, 1995. The series stars Mayim Bialik as Blossom Russo, a teenage girl living with her father and two brothers. It was created by Don Reo.- Synopsis :...
. She also provided the voice for the animated characters on Where on Earth Is Carmen Sandiego?
Where on Earth Is Carmen Sandiego?
Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego? is an American animated television series based on the series of computer games. It should not be confused with the PBS game show Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?. The Earth show was made by DIC/Program Exchange and originally aired Saturday mornings on FOX...
and Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic the Hedgehog (TV series)
Sonic the Hedgehog: The Animated Series is an American animated series produced by DIC Entertainment with the partnership of Sega of America and was based on the Sonic the...
. In 1995, Hall co-starred on the short-lived WB
The WB Television Network
The WB Television Network is a former television network in the United States that was launched on January 11, 1995 as a joint venture between Warner Bros. and Tribune Broadcasting. On January 24, 2006, CBS Corporation and Warner Bros...
sitcom Cleghorne!
Cleghorne!
Cleghorne! is an American sitcom starring comedienne Ellen Cleghorne that aired on The WB in 1995.-Synopsis:The series focused on the life of Ellen Carlson , a single mom who is raising her nine-year-old daughter Akeyla on Manhattan's Upper West Side...
, starring Ellen Cleghorne
Ellen Cleghorne
Ellen Cleghorne is an American actress and comedian, best known for being a cast member of Saturday Night Live from 1991 to 1995...
. The following year she appeared in the television film The Cherokee Kid
The Cherokee Kid
The Cherokee Kid is the name of a 1996 HBO television movie starring Sinbad, James Coburn, Burt Reynolds, Gregory Hines, A Martinez, Ernie Hudson, Dawnn Lewis, and Vanessa Bell Calloway....
. She has since had recurring roles on Ally McBeal
Ally McBeal
Ally McBeal is an American legal comedy-drama series which aired on the Fox network from 1997 to 2002. The series was created by David E. Kelley, who also served as the executive producer, along with Bill D'Elia...
, Any Day Now, and ER
ER (TV series)
ER is an American medical drama television series created by novelist Michael Crichton that aired on NBC from September 19, 1994 to April 2, 2009. It was produced by Constant c Productions and Amblin Entertainment, in association with Warner Bros. Television...
.
In addition to stage and television work, Hall has also appeared in several films including Death Becomes Her
Death Becomes Her
Death Becomes Her is a 1992 American dark slapstick screwball comedy fantasy film directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring Goldie Hawn, Meryl Streep, and Bruce Willis...
(1992), Cruel Intentions
Cruel Intentions
Cruel Intentions is a 1999 American drama film starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe, Reese Witherspoon, and Selma Blair. The film is an adaptation of the 18th-century French epistolary novel Les Liaisons dangereuses by Laclos and is set among wealthy teenagers living in modern New York...
(1999), and the 2007 independent feature I'm Through with White Girls (The Inevitable Undoing of Jay Brooks)
I'm Through with White Girls (The Inevitable Undoing of Jay Brooks)
I'm Through with White Girls is a 2007 independent romantic comedy film starring Anthony Montgomery. Directed by Jennifer Sharp, the film was shot in Los Angeles over the course of twenty-four days using hand held cameras.- Plot :The movie centers around a Jay Brooks , a black man who vows to give...
. She also appeared in the short film A-Date, written by comedian Tim Powers.
Personal life and death
Hall was married three times. Her first marriage, which produced two children, ended in divorce. In December 1988, she married actor Kevin Peter HallKevin Peter Hall
Kevin Peter Hall was an American actor known for his roles in Misfits of Science, Prophecy, Without Warning, and Harry and the Hendersons. He was also best known as the title character in the first two films in the Predator franchise.-Early life:Hall was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...
after meeting him when he guest starred on 227. She was widowed in 1991 after her husband died of pneumonia from AIDS complications after receiving a blood transfusion.
In 2008, Hall married television director Tamim Amini. On December 17, 2009, Hall died of breast cancer
Breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
in Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...
, at the age of 63.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Sesame Street Presents Follow That Bird Sesame Street presents Follow That Bird Sesame Street Presents: Follow That Bird is a 1985 American road film directed by Ken Kwapis, starring many Sesame Street characters . This was the first of two Sesame Street feature films, followed in 1999 by The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland... |
Olivia | |
| 1992 | Death Becomes Her Death Becomes Her Death Becomes Her is a 1992 American dark slapstick screwball comedy fantasy film directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring Goldie Hawn, Meryl Streep, and Bruce Willis... |
Psychologist | |
| 1993 | Me and the Kid | Sarah | |
| 1999 | Cruel Intentions Cruel Intentions Cruel Intentions is a 1999 American drama film starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe, Reese Witherspoon, and Selma Blair. The film is an adaptation of the 18th-century French epistolary novel Les Liaisons dangereuses by Laclos and is set among wealthy teenagers living in modern New York... |
Nurse | |
| 2001 | Chasing Sunsets | Mrs. Stevens | |
| 2003 | Scrambled | Gert | |
| 2006 | The Shift | Mother | |
| 2007 | I'm Through with White Girls... I'm Through with White Girls (The Inevitable Undoing of Jay Brooks) I'm Through with White Girls is a 2007 independent romantic comedy film starring Anthony Montgomery. Directed by Jennifer Sharp, the film was shot in Los Angeles over the course of twenty-four days using hand held cameras.- Plot :The movie centers around a Jay Brooks , a black man who vows to give... |
Jerri Moore | |
| 2007 | A-Date | Valerie | Short film |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1976–1988 | Sesame Street Sesame Street Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The... |
Olivia | Episodes 926–2485 |
| 1978 | Baby, I'm Back Baby, I'm Back Baby, I'm Back is an American sitcom that aired CBS from January to April 1978. The series stars former Sanford and Son star Demond Wilson , Room 222 alumna Denise Nicholas, Helen Martin, and future Facts of Life co-star Kim Fields.-Synopsis:When Raymond Ellis and Olivia Ellis separate after seven... |
Jackie | 1 episode |
| 1985–1990 | 227 227 (TV series) 227 is an American situation comedy that originally aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, until May 6, 1990. The series starred Marla Gibbs as a sharp-tongued, inner-city resident gossip and housewife, Mary Jenkins... |
Rose Lee Holloway | 115 episodes |
| 1992 | Herman's Head Herman's Head Herman's Head is an American sitcom that aired on the Fox network from 1991 to 1994. The series stars William Ragsdale as the titular character, Herman Brooks.-Synopsis:... |
Margaret Bracken | 1 episode |
| 1992 | A Different World | Claims Officer #5 | 1 episode |
| 1993 | Blossom Blossom (TV series) Blossom is an American sitcom broadcast on NBC from January 3, 1991 to May 22, 1995. The series stars Mayim Bialik as Blossom Russo, a teenage girl living with her father and two brothers. It was created by Don Reo.- Synopsis :... |
Esther | 1 episode |
| 1994 | Sonic the Hedgehog Sonic the Hedgehog (TV series) Sonic the Hedgehog: The Animated Series is an American animated series produced by DIC Entertainment with the partnership of Sega of America and was based on the Sonic the... |
Additional voices | 13 episodes |
| 1995 | Friends Friends Friends is an American sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994 to May 6, 2004. The series revolves around a group of friends in Manhattan. The series was produced by Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association with Warner Bros. Television... |
Admissions Woman | 1 episode |
| 1995 | Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman was a live-action American television series based on the Superman comic books... |
Nurse Berkey | 1 episode |
| 1995 | Cleghorne! Cleghorne! Cleghorne! is an American sitcom starring comedienne Ellen Cleghorne that aired on The WB in 1995.-Synopsis:The series focused on the life of Ellen Carlson , a single mom who is raising her nine-year-old daughter Akeyla on Manhattan's Upper West Side... |
Lena Carlson | 15 episodes |
| 1995 | The Drew Carey Show The Drew Carey Show The Drew Carey Show is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from 1995 to 2004. The show was set in Cleveland, Ohio, and revolved around the retail office and home life of "everyman" Drew Carey, a fictionalized version of the actor.... |
Lois | 1 episode |
| 1996 | The Cherokee Kid The Cherokee Kid The Cherokee Kid is the name of a 1996 HBO television movie starring Sinbad, James Coburn, Burt Reynolds, Gregory Hines, A Martinez, Ernie Hudson, Dawnn Lewis, and Vanessa Bell Calloway.... |
Ma Holsopple | Television movie |
| 1997 | The Steve Harvey Show The Steve Harvey Show The Steve Harvey Show is an American sitcom that aired for six seasons from August 25, 1996 to February 17, 2002 on The WB Television Network. It was created by Winifred Hervey and directed by Stan Lathan.-Synopsis:... |
Corinthia Grier | 1 episode |
| 1997 | Between Brothers Between Brothers Between Brothers is an American television situation comedy centered around four middle-class African American men in their late twenties, living in Chicago. It premiered on September 11, 1997 on Fox, with the second season airing on UPN, until March 2, 1999. The lead characters were portrayed... |
Vera Ford | 1 episode |
| 1997 | NYPD Blue NYPD Blue NYPD Blue is an American television police drama set in New York City, exploring the internal and external struggles of the fictional 15th precinct of Manhattan... |
Mrs. Angela Cheevers | 1 episode |
| 1997–1998 | Ally McBeal Ally McBeal Ally McBeal is an American legal comedy-drama series which aired on the Fox network from 1997 to 2002. The series was created by David E. Kelley, who also served as the executive producer, along with Bill D'Elia... |
Judge Elizabeth Witt | 3 episodes |
| 1998 | Caroline in the City Caroline in the City Caroline in the City is an American situation comedy that ran from September 21, 1995 to April 26, 1999 on the NBC television network. It starred Lea Thompson as cartoonist Caroline Duffy. The series premiered in the two-hour Thursday night block led by Friends.-Premise:Caroline Duffy is a... |
Stanchfield | 1 episode |
| 1999 | NewsRadio NewsRadio NewsRadio is an American television situation comedy that aired on NBC from 1995 to 1999. The series was created by executive producer Paul Simms, and was filmed in front of a studio audience at CBS Studio Center and Sunset Gower Studios... |
Landlady | 1 episode |
| 1998–2000 | Any Day Now | Aunt Della Watt | 2 episodes |
| 2006 | The Suite Life of Zack & Cody | Mrs. Mayweather | 1 episode |
| 2007 | ER ER (TV series) ER is an American medical drama television series created by novelist Michael Crichton that aired on NBC from September 19, 1994 to April 2, 2009. It was produced by Constant c Productions and Amblin Entertainment, in association with Warner Bros. Television... |
Betty Dixon | 2 episodes |