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Cleavant Derricks (actor)
Encyclopedia
Cleavant Derricks, Jr. (born May 15, 1953) is an American
actor
and singer-songwriter
, who is best known for his role of Rembrandt Brown
on Sliders
.
to a pianist mother and Baptist
preacher/composer Cleavant Derricks
, Sr. His twin brother is actor and musician Clinton Derricks-Carroll
. Derricks began his career as a Nashville gospel songwriter
. With his father, he wrote the gospel album Satisfaction Guaranteed. He was the musical director and composer for the musical When Hell Freezes Over I'll Skate.
Derricks went to New York City to study acting with Vinnette Carroll at the Urban Arts Theatre. He received rave reviews for his performance in her Broadway shows, including But Never Jam Today. He also won a Tony Award and Drama Desk Award for creating the role of James "Thunder" Early in Dreamgirls. He also starred in the Broadway musical Brooklyn
as the Streetsinger.
Soon afterwards, Derricks appeared in films such as Moscow on the Hudson
, Neil Simon
's The Slugger's Wife
and recently, Wes Craven
's Carnival of Souls. He was a series regular on the television series Thea
with Thea Vidale
and Brandy
, and Good Sports with Farrah Fawcett
and Ryan O'Neal
. His role as Rembrandt Brown
(known as the Crying Man) on Sliders
with Jerry O'Connell
, Sabrina Lloyd
and John Rhys-Davies
is notable because Derricks is the only original Sliders actor to appear throughout the entire series. In addition, Derricks has had numerous guest-starring roles in series such as Roseanne
, A Different World, Miami Vice
, Spenser: For Hire
, Charmed
and many others.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
, who is best known for his role of Rembrandt Brown
Rembrandt Brown
Rembrandt Lee Brown is a fictional character played by Cleavant Derricks on the science fiction television show Sliders. In 1994, Rembrandt was living in San Francisco. Rembrandt is a musician, whose stage name is The Crying Man because of his ability to "cry real tears" on stage...
on Sliders
Sliders
Sliders is an American science fiction television series. It was broadcast for five seasons, beginning in 1995 and ending in 2000. The series follows a group of travelers as they use a wormhole to "slide" between different parallel universes. The show was created by Robert K. Weiss and Tracy Tormé...
.
Biography
Derricks was born in Knoxville, TennesseeKnoxville, Tennessee
Founded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, U.S.A., behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is the largest city in East Tennessee, and the second-largest city in the Appalachia region...
to a pianist mother and Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
preacher/composer Cleavant Derricks
Cleavant Derricks (songwriter)
Reverend Cleavant Derricks was a pastor and choir director at a number of black Baptist churches....
, Sr. His twin brother is actor and musician Clinton Derricks-Carroll
Clinton Derricks-Carroll
Clinton Derricks-Carroll is an American actor and musician. He is the twin brother of Cleavant Derricks, who is also an actor....
. Derricks began his career as a Nashville gospel songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
. With his father, he wrote the gospel album Satisfaction Guaranteed. He was the musical director and composer for the musical When Hell Freezes Over I'll Skate.
Derricks went to New York City to study acting with Vinnette Carroll at the Urban Arts Theatre. He received rave reviews for his performance in her Broadway shows, including But Never Jam Today. He also won a Tony Award and Drama Desk Award for creating the role of James "Thunder" Early in Dreamgirls. He also starred in the Broadway musical Brooklyn
Brooklyn (musical)
Brooklyn the Musical is a musical with a book, lyrics, and music by Mark Schoenfeld and Barri McPherson.-Synopsis:Using the play within a play structure, Brooklyn focuses on a group of five ragtag homeless musicians known as the City Weeds...
as the Streetsinger.
Soon afterwards, Derricks appeared in films such as Moscow on the Hudson
Moscow on the Hudson
Moscow on the Hudson is a 1984 comedy-drama film starring Robin Williams, and directed by Paul Mazursky. Williams plays a Soviet circus musician who defects from the Soviet Union while on a visit to the United States...
, Neil Simon
Neil Simon
Neil Simon is an American playwright and screenwriter. He has written numerous Broadway plays, including Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues, and The Odd Couple. He won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play Lost In Yonkers. He has written the screenplays for several of his plays that...
's The Slugger's Wife
The Slugger's Wife
The Slugger's Wife is a 1985 romantic comedy about a baseball star who falls for a singer. Written by Neil Simon, directed by Hal Ashby and produced by Ray Stark, the film stars Michael O'Keefe, Rebecca De Mornay and Randy Quaid. It was distributed by Columbia Pictures and released on March 29,...
and recently, Wes Craven
Wes Craven
Wesley Earl "Wes" Craven is an American actor, film director, writer, producer, perhaps best known as the director of many horror films, particularly slasher films, including the famed A Nightmare on Elm Street and Wes Craven's New Nightmare, featuring the iconic Freddy Krueger character, the...
's Carnival of Souls. He was a series regular on the television series Thea
Thea (TV series)
Thea is an American sitcom that premiered September 3, 1993 on ABC, and last aired on February 14, 1994, for a total of 19 episodes. Starring comedienne Thea Vidale, the series marked the first time an African American female comedienne was the star of a series named after her.-Synopsis:Thea Vidale...
with Thea Vidale
Thea Vidale
Thea Vidale , is an American stand-up comedian and actress.She began her career doing stand-up comedy in comic clubs in Washington, D.C., New York City, and Los Angeles...
and Brandy
Brandy Norwood
Brandy Rayana Norwood , known professionally as Brandy, is an American singer-songwriter, producer, actress, and dancer. In 2009, she introduced her rap alter-ego Bran'Nu....
, and Good Sports with Farrah Fawcett
Farrah Fawcett
Farrah Fawcett was an American actress and artist. A multiple Golden Globe and Emmy Award nominee, Fawcett rose to international fame when she first appeared as private investigator Jill Munroe in the first season of the television series Charlie's Angels, in 1976...
and Ryan O'Neal
Ryan O'Neal
Charles Patrick Ryan O'Neal , better known as Ryan O'Neal, is an American actor best known for his appearances in the ABC nighttime soap opera Peyton Place and for his roles in such films as Paper Moon , Stanley Kubrick's Barry Lyndon , A Bridge Too Far , and Love Story , for which he received...
. His role as Rembrandt Brown
Rembrandt Brown
Rembrandt Lee Brown is a fictional character played by Cleavant Derricks on the science fiction television show Sliders. In 1994, Rembrandt was living in San Francisco. Rembrandt is a musician, whose stage name is The Crying Man because of his ability to "cry real tears" on stage...
(known as the Crying Man) on Sliders
Sliders
Sliders is an American science fiction television series. It was broadcast for five seasons, beginning in 1995 and ending in 2000. The series follows a group of travelers as they use a wormhole to "slide" between different parallel universes. The show was created by Robert K. Weiss and Tracy Tormé...
with Jerry O'Connell
Jerry O'Connell
Jeremiah "Jerry" O'Connell is an American actor, best known for his roles in the TV series Sliders, Andrew Clements in My Secret Identity, Vern Tessio in the film Stand by Me, Charlie Carbone in Kangaroo Jack, and Detective Woody Hoyt on the drama Crossing Jordan...
, Sabrina Lloyd
Sabrina Lloyd
Sabrina Lloyd is an American film and television actress.She has played the roles of Wade Welles in the science fiction series Sliders, and Natalie Hurley in the ABC sitcom Sports Night.-Early life:...
and John Rhys-Davies
John Rhys-Davies
John Rhys-Davies is a Welsh actor and voice actor. He is perhaps best known for playing the charismatic Arab excavator Sallah in the Indiana Jones films and the dwarf Gimli in The Lord of the Rings trilogy...
is notable because Derricks is the only original Sliders actor to appear throughout the entire series. In addition, Derricks has had numerous guest-starring roles in series such as Roseanne
Roseanne (TV series)
Roseanne is an American sitcom broadcast on ABC from October 18, 1988 to May 20, 1997. Starring Roseanne Barr, the show revolved around the Conners, an Illinois working class family...
, A Different World, Miami Vice
Miami Vice
Miami Vice is an American television series produced by Michael Mann for NBC. The series starred Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas as two Metro-Dade Police Department detectives working undercover in Miami. It ran for five seasons on NBC from 1984–1989...
, Spenser: For Hire
Spenser: For Hire
Spenser: For Hire is a mystery television series based on Robert B. Parker's Spenser novels. The series, developed for TV by John Wilder, differs from the novels, mostly in its lesser degree of detail....
, Charmed
Charmed
Charmed is an American television series that originally aired from October 7, 1998, until May 21, 2006, on the now defunct The WB Television Network. The series was created in 1998 by writer Constance M...
and many others.
Filmography
- Cold Case (2007)
- The Wedding BellsThe Wedding BellsThe Wedding Bells is an American television comedy-drama that debuted on Fox on March 7, 2007. The series was greenlighted after the network became interested in a series centered on wedding planners. The network approached David E...
(2007) - Basilisk: the Serpent King (2006)
- The Bernie Mac ShowThe Bernie Mac ShowThe Bernie Mac Show is an American sitcom featuring comic actor Bernie Mac and his wife Wanda raising his sister's three kids: Jordan, Bryana and Vanessa. The show aired for five seasons , concluding with a half-hour series finale on Fox....
(2002) as Willie - World TravelerWorld TravelerWorld Traveler is a 2001 drama directed by Bart Freundlich. It stars Billy Crudup and Julianne Moore. It was screened at the 2001 Toronto Film Festival.-Plot:...
(2001) as Carl - The PracticeThe PracticeThe Practice is an American legal drama created by David E. Kelley centering on the partners and associates at a Boston law firm. Running for eight seasons from 1997 to 2004, the show won the Emmy in 1998 and 1999 for Best Drama Series, and spawned the successful and lighter spin-off series Boston...
(2001) as Mr. Lees - 18 Wheels of Justice (2000) as Harold Baines
- CharmedCharmedCharmed is an American television series that originally aired from October 7, 1998, until May 21, 2006, on the now defunct The WB Television Network. The series was created in 1998 by writer Constance M...
(2000) as Cleavant Wilson - Touched by an AngelTouched by an AngelTouched by an Angel is an American drama series that premiered on CBS on September 21, 1994 and ran for 211 episodes and nine seasons until its conclusion on April 27, 2003. Created by John Masius and produced by Martha Williamson, the series stars Roma Downey, as an angel named Monica, and Della...
(1999) as Robert - Wes CravenWes CravenWesley Earl "Wes" Craven is an American actor, film director, writer, producer, perhaps best known as the director of many horror films, particularly slasher films, including the famed A Nightmare on Elm Street and Wes Craven's New Nightmare, featuring the iconic Freddy Krueger character, the...
's Carnival of SoulsCarnival of Souls (1998 film)Carnival of Souls, also billed in full as Wes Craven Presents 'Carnival of Souls', is a 1998 horror film. The film is a remake of Herk Harvey's 1962 horror film Carnival of Souls. The remake was directed by Adam Grossman, and stars Bobbie Phillips and comedian Larry Miller...
(1998) as Sid - SlidersSlidersSliders is an American science fiction television series. It was broadcast for five seasons, beginning in 1995 and ending in 2000. The series follows a group of travelers as they use a wormhole to "slide" between different parallel universes. The show was created by Robert K. Weiss and Tracy Tormé...
(1995–2000) as Rembrandt 'Cryin' Man' BrownRembrandt BrownRembrandt Lee Brown is a fictional character played by Cleavant Derricks on the science fiction television show Sliders. In 1994, Rembrandt was living in San Francisco. Rembrandt is a musician, whose stage name is The Crying Man because of his ability to "cry real tears" on stage... - Something WilderSomething WilderSomething Wilder is an American sitcom starring Gene Wilder that lasted only one season on NBC, running from October 1, 1994 until June 13, 1995...
(1994–1995) as Caleb - TheaThea (TV series)Thea is an American sitcom that premiered September 3, 1993 on ABC, and last aired on February 14, 1994, for a total of 19 episodes. Starring comedienne Thea Vidale, the series marked the first time an African American female comedienne was the star of a series named after her.-Synopsis:Thea Vidale...
(1993–1994) as Charles - Woops!Woops!Woops! is an American post-apocalyptic sitcom that aired on the Fox network from September 27 to December 6, 1992.-Synopsis:The series centered around the six survivors of a world nuclear holocaust. The six of them live together in an abandoned farm house while trying to survive and re-establish...
(1992) - Drexell's ClassDrexell's ClassDrexell's Class is an American sitcom aired by Fox as part of its 1991-92 lineup. The show was created by Andrew Nicholls and Darrell Vickers.-Synopsis:...
(1991–1992) as George Foster - Good SportsGood SportsGood Sports is an American sitcom that aired on the CBS network in 1991, starring Farrah Fawcett and Ryan O'Neal.-Synopsis:The show features the two main characters, Bobby Tannen, a once-famous former football player gone to seed and Gayle Roberts, an ex-Miss America , as mismatched anchors on an...
(1991) as Jeff Mussberger - SibsSibsSibs was an American sitcom broadcast by ABC as part of its 1991-92 prime time lineup.Sibs starred veteran actress Marsha Mason as Nora Rusico, a successful accountant and Alex Rocco as her longsuffering husband, Howie. The source of most of Howie's suffering was his wife's younger sisters , Audie...
(1991)
- L.A. LawL.A. LawL.A. Law is a US television legal drama that ran on NBC from September 15, 1986 to May 19, 1994. L.A. Law reflected the social and cultural ideologies of the 1980s and early 1990s and many of the cases featured on the show dealt with hot topic issues such as abortion, racism, gay rights,...
(1991) as Mark Wright - A Different World (1991) as Larry
- RoseanneRoseanne (TV series)Roseanne is an American sitcom broadcast on ABC from October 18, 1988 to May 20, 1997. Starring Roseanne Barr, the show revolved around the Conners, an Illinois working class family...
(1989) - MoonlightingMoonlighting (TV series)Moonlighting is an American television series that aired on ABC from March 3, 1985, to May 14, 1989. The network aired a total of 66 episodes...
(1987) as Leonard Haven - Spenser: For HireSpenser: For HireSpenser: For Hire is a mystery television series based on Robert B. Parker's Spenser novels. The series, developed for TV by John Wilder, differs from the novels, mostly in its lesser degree of detail....
(1987) as Mac Dickerson - Bluffing It (1987) as Cal
- Mickey and Nora (1987) as Marvin
- The EqualizerThe EqualizerThe Equalizer is an American television series that ran for four seasons, initially on CBS, between 1985 and 1989. It starred Edward Woodward as an aging New York vigilante with a mysterious past...
(1986) as Sonny Raines - Off BeatOff Beat (film)Off Beat is a 1986 comedy film about a young librarian who impersonates a police officer. The film was directed by Michael Dinner, and stars Judge Reinhold, Meg Tilly, and Cleavant Derricks....
(1986) as Abe Washington - Neil SimonNeil SimonNeil Simon is an American playwright and screenwriter. He has written numerous Broadway plays, including Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues, and The Odd Couple. He won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play Lost In Yonkers. He has written the screenplays for several of his plays that...
's The Slugger's WifeThe Slugger's WifeThe Slugger's Wife is a 1985 romantic comedy about a baseball star who falls for a singer. Written by Neil Simon, directed by Hal Ashby and produced by Ray Stark, the film stars Michael O'Keefe, Rebecca De Mornay and Randy Quaid. It was distributed by Columbia Pictures and released on March 29,...
(1985) as Manny Alvarado - Miami ViceMiami ViceMiami Vice is an American television series produced by Michael Mann for NBC. The series starred Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas as two Metro-Dade Police Department detectives working undercover in Miami. It ran for five seasons on NBC from 1984–1989...
(1985) as David Jones - Moscow on the HudsonMoscow on the HudsonMoscow on the Hudson is a 1984 comedy-drama film starring Robin Williams, and directed by Paul Mazursky. Williams plays a Soviet circus musician who defects from the Soviet Union while on a visit to the United States...
(1984) as Lionel Witherspoon - The Ambush Murders (1982)
- Fort Apache the Bronx (1981) as Suspect #4
- When Hell Freezes Over, I'll Skate (1979)
- Cindy (1978) as Michael Simpson
Discography
- Dreamgirls: Original Broadway Cast AlbumDreamgirls: Original Broadway Cast AlbumDreamgirls: Original Broadway Cast Album is the cast album for the original Broadway production of the musical Dreamgirls, which debuted at the Imperial Theatre on December 20, 1981. The album was issued by David Geffen, a co-financier of the musical and later producer of its 2006 film adaptation,...
(1982) - Beginnings (1999)
- Brooklyn (2004)