Helen Martin
Encyclopedia
Helen Dorothy Martin was an American
actress of stage
and television
who is perhaps most well known for her role in the sitcom 227
(1985-1990) as Marla Gibbs
' neighbor Pearl.
, the daughter of Amanda Frankie (née
Fox) and William Martin, a minister. She attended public schools, which at the time were segregated.
character actress
for many decades, debuting in Orson Welles
' production of Native Son
in 1941. She appeared in at least a dozen Broadway shows, including Jean Genet
's The Blacks
, the musical Raisin
from 1973 to 1975, Ossie Davis
' Purlie Victorious (and later the musical version, which was called Purlie
), The Amen Corner
and Tennessee Williams
' Period of Adjustment
. She was an original member of the American Negro Theater
.
Martin became widely known later in life due to her roles in popular television series, which brought her a large audience. She had a guest role as Wanda on the television series Good Times
, and later as the wisecracking neighbor Pearl Shay on the television sitcom 227
, which lasted from 1985-1990. She also played on the short-run sitcoms Baby, I'm Back
(as mother in-law, Luzelle) and That's My Mama
.
She played a variety of grandmothers in films: Hollywood Shuffle
(1987), Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood
(1996), and Mama Doll in Bulworth
(1998).
Helen Martin died of a heart attack
on March 25, 2000.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actress of stage
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
who is perhaps most well known for her role in 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...
(1985-1990) as Marla Gibbs
Marla Gibbs
Marla Gibbs is an American television and film actress and singer. She is best remembered for playing Louise and George Jefferson's sarcastic maid, Florence Johnston, on The Jeffersons and spinoff Checking In...
' neighbor Pearl.
Early life and education
Martin was born in St. Louis, MissouriSt. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
, the daughter of Amanda Frankie (née
Married and maiden names
A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
Fox) and William Martin, a minister. She attended public schools, which at the time were segregated.
Career
Martin moved to New York to pursue a career in acting. She was chiefly a BroadwayBroadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
character actress
Character actor
A character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...
for many decades, debuting in Orson Welles
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio...
' production of Native Son
Native Son
Native Son is a novel by American author Richard Wright. The novel tells the story of 20-year-old Bigger Thomas, an African American living in utter poverty. Bigger lived in Chicago's South Side ghetto in the 1930s...
in 1941. She appeared in at least a dozen Broadway shows, including Jean Genet
Jean Genet
Jean Genet was a prominent and controversial French novelist, playwright, poet, essayist, and political activist. Early in his life he was a vagabond and petty criminal, but later took to writing...
's The Blacks
The Blacks (play)
The Blacks: A Clown Show is a play by the French dramatist Jean Genet. Published in 1958, it was first performed in a production directed by Roger Blin at the Théatre de Lutèce in Paris, which opened on 28 October 1959....
, the musical Raisin
Raisin (musical)
Raisin is a musical theatre adaptation of the Lorraine Hansberry play A Raisin in the Sun, with songs by Judd Woldin and Robert Brittan, and a book by Robert Nemiroff and Charlotte Zaltzberg....
from 1973 to 1975, Ossie Davis
Ossie Davis
Ossie Davis was an American film actor, director, poet, playwright, writer, and social activist.-Early years:...
' Purlie Victorious (and later the musical version, which was called Purlie
Purlie
Purlie is a musical with a book by Ossie Davis, Philip Rose, and Peter Udell, lyrics by Udell, and music by Gary Geld. It is based on Davis' 1961 play Purlie Victorious, which was later made into the 1963 film Gone Are the Days! and which included all of the original Broadway cast, including Ruby...
), The Amen Corner
The Amen Corner
The Amen Corner is a three-act play by James Baldwin. It was Baldwin's first attempt at theater following Go Tell It on the Mountain. It was first published in 1954, and inspired a short-lived 1983 Broadway musical adaptation with the slightly truncated title, Amen Corner.-Plot introduction:The...
and Tennessee Williams
Tennessee Williams
Thomas Lanier "Tennessee" Williams III was an American writer who worked principally as a playwright in the American theater. He also wrote short stories, novels, poetry, essays, screenplays and a volume of memoirs...
' Period of Adjustment
Period of Adjustment
Period of Adjustment is a 1960 play by Tennessee Williams that was adapted for the screen in 1962.Both the stage and film versions are set on Christmas Eve and tell the gentle, light-hearted story of two couples, one newlywed and the other married for five years, both experiencing pains and...
. She was an original member of the American Negro Theater
American Negro Theater
The American Negro Theater was formed in Harlem on June 5, 1940 by writer Abram Hill and actor Frederick O'Neal. It produced 19 plays before closing in 1949. Designed as a community theater group, performances were held in Harlem's Schomburg Library. In 1942, ANT began its Studio Theatre training...
.
Martin became widely known later in life due to her roles in popular television series, which brought her a large audience. She had a guest role as Wanda on the television series Good Times
Good Times
Good Times is an American sitcom that originally aired from February 8, 1974, until August 1, 1979, on the CBS television network. It was created by Eric Monte and Michael Evans, and developed by Norman Lear, the series' primary executive producer...
, and later as the wisecracking neighbor Pearl Shay on the television 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...
, which lasted from 1985-1990. She also played on the short-run sitcoms 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...
(as mother in-law, Luzelle) and That's My Mama
That's My Mama
That's My Mama is an American television sitcom that was originally broadcast on the ABC network from September 1974 until December 1975. There are 39 episodes of this series.-Synopsis:...
.
She played a variety of grandmothers in films: Hollywood Shuffle
Hollywood Shuffle
Hollywood Shuffle is a 1987 comedy film that satirizes the racial stereotypes of African Americans in film and television. The film tracks the attempts of Bobby Taylor to become a successful actor and the mental and external roadblocks he encounters, represented through a series of interspersed...
(1987), Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood
Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood
Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood is a 1996 parody film by Shawn and Marlon Wayans. Similarly to I'm Gonna Git You Sucka, the film spoofs a number of black, coming-of-age, 'hood films' such as Juice, Jungle Fever, South Central, Higher Learning, Do the Right...
(1996), and Mama Doll in Bulworth
Bulworth
Bulworth is a 1998 American film co-written, co-produced and directed by the film's star, Warren Beatty. It was loosely based on the life of Beatty's friend, Tennessee political figure John Jay Hooker. It co-stars Halle Berry, Oliver Platt, Don Cheadle, Paul Sorvino, Jack Warden, and Isaiah...
(1998).
Helen Martin died of a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
on March 25, 2000.
Actress
- 2000: Something to Sing AboutSomething to Sing About (2000 film)Something to Sing About is a 2000 American Christian Drama film directed by Charlie Jordan and stars Irma P. Hall, Darius McCrary, Tamera Mowry, Rashaan Nall, and Kirk Franklin. It was produced by John Shepherd of World Wide Pictures...
(TV) .... Elderly Woman - 1999: At Face Value .... Miss Ella
- 1998: I Got the Hook UpI Got the Hook UpI Got the Hook-Up is a 1998 crime comedy film, starring A.J. Johnson and Master P, and directed by Michael Martin. This was No Limit Records first theatrical release.-Plot:...
.... Grandmother ... aka I Got the Hook-Up (USA: review title) - 1998: BulworthBulworthBulworth is a 1998 American film co-written, co-produced and directed by the film's star, Warren Beatty. It was loosely based on the life of Beatty's friend, Tennessee political figure John Jay Hooker. It co-stars Halle Berry, Oliver Platt, Don Cheadle, Paul Sorvino, Jack Warden, and Isaiah...
.... Momma Doll - 1998: Since You've Been GoneSince You've Been Gone (film)Since You've Been Gone is a 1998 U.S. made-for-TV movie directed by David Schwimmer about a 10th anniversary class reunion. Apart from Schwimmer himself, the film starred Philip Rayburn Smith, Joy E. Gregory, Joey Slotnick, Teri Hatcher, Jon Stewart, Rachel Griffiths and Lara Flynn Boyle. Love...
(TV) .... Old Lady - 1998: The Jamie Foxx ShowThe Jamie Foxx ShowThe Jamie Foxx Show is an American television sitcom that aired on the WB Network from August 28, 1996 to January 14, 2001. The series starred Jamie Foxx, Garcelle Beauvais, Christopher B. Duncan, Ellia English, and Garrett Morris.-Synopsis:...
.... Mother Superior (1 episode, 1998) - 1997: Kiss the GirlsKiss the Girls (film)Kiss the Girls is a 1997 American thriller film directed by Gary Fleder and starring Morgan Freeman, Cary Elwes and Ashley Judd. The screenplay by David Klass is based on the best-selling novel Kiss the Girls by James Patterson.-Plot:Washington, D.C...
.... Nana Cross - 1997: I'm Bout ItI'm Bout ItI'm Bout It is a 1997 film by rapper Master P. The plot details his life in a New Orleans uptown ghetto. Master P wrote, directed and acted in the film....
(V) .... Mrs. Alberta - 1996: Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the HoodDon't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the HoodDon't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood is a 1996 parody film by Shawn and Marlon Wayans. Similarly to I'm Gonna Git You Sucka, the film spoofs a number of black, coming-of-age, 'hood films' such as Juice, Jungle Fever, South Central, Higher Learning, Do the Right...
.... Loc Dog's Grandma - 1995: The Wayans Bros.The Wayans Bros.The Wayans Bros. is a situation comedy that aired from 1995 to 1999 on The WB. The series starred real-life brothers Shawn Wayans and Marlon Wayans. Both brothers were already well-known from the sketch comedy show In Living Color...
.... Mother Evans (1 episode, 1995) - 1995: The Parent 'HoodThe Parent 'HoodThe Parent 'Hood is an American sitcom that aired on The WB airing from January 18, 1995 to July 25, 1999. The series starred Robert Townsend and Suzzanne Douglas....
.... Ms. Morris (1 episode, 1995) - 1994: Beverly Hills Cop IIIBeverly Hills Cop IIIBeverly Hills Cop III is a 1994 action-comedy film starring Eddie Murphy and directed by John Landis, who had previously worked with Murphy on Trading Places and Coming to America...
.... Grandma - 1993: The Pitch .... Old Woman
- 1991: House Party 2House Party 2House Party 2, the sequel to the 1990 film House Party, was released in 1991 by New Line Cinema. The sequel returns most of the cast of the first movie along with new cast members such as Queen Latifah and Iman. The second installment includes more guest appearances from other famous entertainers...
.... Mrs. Deevers - 1991: Doc HollywoodDoc HollywoodDoc Hollywood is a 1991 American romantic comedy film based on the book, What? Dead...Again?, by Neil B. Shulman, M.D. The film stars Michael J. Fox, Julie Warner, Woody Harrelson and Bridget Fonda. It was directed by Michael Caton-Jones. The filming took place in Micanopy, Florida.-Plot:Dr....
.... Maddie, Welcoming Committee - 1991: A Rage in Harlem .... Mrs. Canfield
- 1990: The FlashThe Flash (TV series)The Flash is a 1990 American television series that starred John Wesley Shipp as the superhero, the Flash , and co-starred Amanda Pays. The series was developed from the DC Comics characters by the writing team of Danny Bilson and Paul De Meo, and produced by their company, Pet Fly Productions, in...
.... Sadie Grosso (1 episode, 1990) - 1990: Night Angel .... Sadie
- 1990: 227227 (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...
.... Pearl Shay (116 episodes, 1985–1990) - 1989: JackéeJackée (227 episode)"Jackée" is the 23rd episode from the fourth season of the sitcom 227. Originally broadcast on Thursday, May 11, 1989 on NBC, the episode was a proposed spin-off for the Sandra Clark character portrayed by Jackée Harry...
(TV) .... Pearl Shay - 1989: Full HouseFull HouseFull House is an American sitcom television series. Set in San Francisco, the show chronicles widowed father Danny Tanner, who, after the death of his wife, enlists his best friend Joey Gladstone and his brother-in-law Jesse Katsopolis to help raise his three daughters, D.J., Stephanie, and...
.... Shirley (1 episode, 1989) - 1989: A Raisin in the Sun (TV) .... Mrs. Johnson
- 1987: Hollywood ShuffleHollywood ShuffleHollywood Shuffle is a 1987 comedy film that satirizes the racial stereotypes of African Americans in film and television. The film tracks the attempts of Bobby Taylor to become a successful actor and the mental and external roadblocks he encounters, represented through a series of interspersed...
.... Bobby's Grandmother - 1985: Amos (TV) .... Mrs. McKenzie
- 1984: BensonBenson (TV series)Benson is an American television sitcom which aired from September 13, 1979, to April 19, 1986, on ABC. The series was a spin-off from the soap opera parody Soap ; however, Benson discarded the...
.... Benson's Aunt (1 episode, 1984) - 1984: Repo Man .... Mrs. Parks
- 1984: St. ElsewhereSt. ElsewhereSt. Elsewhere is an American medical drama television series that originally ran on NBC from October 26, 1982 to May 25, 1988. The series is set at fictional St. Eligius, a decaying urban teaching hospital in Boston's South End neighborhood...
.... Elderly Lady (1 episode, 1984) - 1984: The Jerk, Too (TV) .... Grandma Johnson
- 1984: Hardcastle and McCormickHardcastle and McCormickHardcastle and McCormick is a 1980s action/drama television series from Stephen J. Cannell Productions, shown on ABC from 1983–1986, starring Brian Keith as Judge Milton C. Hardcastle and Daniel Hugh Kelly as ex-con and race car driver Mark "Skid" McCormick.The show's premise involves the...
(1 episode, 1984) - 1983: Deal of the CenturyDeal of the CenturyDeal of the Century is a 1983 American comedy film directed by William Friedkin and starring Chevy Chase, Gregory Hines, and Sigourney Weaver.The film follows the adventures of several arms dealers that compete to sell weapons to a South American dictator....
.... Baptist #3 - 1983: The JeffersonsThe JeffersonsThe Jeffersons is an American sitcom that was broadcast on CBS from January 18, 1975, through June 25, 1985, lasting 11 seasons and a total of 253 episodes. The show was produced by the T.A.T. Communications Company from 1975–1982 and by Embassy Television from 1982-1985...
.... Alice (1 episode, 1983) - 1983: AliceAlice (TV series)Alice is an American sitcom television series that ran from August 31, 1976 to July 2, 1985 on CBS. The series was based on the 1974 film Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore. The show stars Linda Lavin in the title role, a widow who moves with her young son to start her life over again, and finds a job...
.... Customer (1 episode, 1983) - 1983: Hill Street BluesHill Street BluesHill Street Blues is an American serial police drama that was first aired on NBC in 1981 and ran for 146 episodes on primetime into 1987. Chronicling the lives of the staff of a single police precinct in an unnamed American city, the show received critical acclaim and its production innovations ...
.... Neighbor / ... (2 episodes, 1981–1983) - 1982: Wacko .... Harbinger's mother
- 1982: T. J. HookerT. J. HookerT.J. Hooker is an American police drama television program starring William Shatner in the title role as a 15-year veteran police sergeant. The series premiered as a mid-season replacement on March 13, 1982 on ABC and ran on the network until May 4, 1985...
.... Mrs. Sears (1 episode, 1982) - 1981: The White ShadowThe White ShadowThe White Shadow is an American drama television series that ran on the CBS network from November 27, 1978, to March 16, 1981.-Overview:...
.... Louise / ... (2 episodes, 1980–1981) - 1980: The Stockard Channing ShowThe Stockard Channing ShowThe Stockard Channing Show is an American sitcom starring Stockard Channing, Ron Silver, Sydney Goldsmith , Max Showalter and Jack Somack....
.... Maid (1 episode, 1980) - 1979: Better Late Than Never (TV)
- 1979: Good TimesGood TimesGood Times is an American sitcom that originally aired from February 8, 1974, until August 1, 1979, on the CBS television network. It was created by Eric Monte and Michael Evans, and developed by Norman Lear, the series' primary executive producer...
.... Wanda (7 episodes, 1974–1979) - 1979: Lawman Without a Gun (TV) .... Mrs. Cartwright
- 1979: Dummy (TV) .... Mrs. Harrod
- 1979: What's Happening!!What's Happening!!What's Happening!! is an American television sitcom that aired on ABC from August 5, 1976 to April 28, 1979. The show premiered as a summer series. With good ratings and reviews, and after the failure of several other shows on the network, What's Happening!! returned in November 1976 as a weekly...
.... Millie / ... (3 episodes, 1976–1979) - 1978: Baby, I'm BackBaby, I'm BackBaby, 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...
.... Luzelle Carter (12 episodes, 1978) - 1978: Cindy (TV) .... Flower lady
- 1978: A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a SandwichA Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich (film)A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich is a 1978 film directed by Ralph Nelson. The screenplay was written by Alice Childress, based on her novel of the same name. It was shot on location in South Central Los Angeles. It was Nelson's last film before his death.-Synopsis:A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a...
.... Mrs. Bell - 1977: Starsky and HutchStarsky and HutchStarsky and Hutch is a 1970s American cop thriller television series that consisted of a 90-minute pilot movie and 92 episodes of 60 minutes each; created by William Blinn, produced by Spelling-Goldberg Productions, and broadcast between April 30, 1975 and May 15, 1979 on the ABC...
.... Dirty Nellie / ... (2 episodes, 1977) - 1977: InsightInsight (TV series)Insight was an Emmy-winning syndicated television series produced by Paulist Productions that aired 250 episodes from 1960 to 1983. The series presented half-hour dramas illuminating the contemporary search for meaning, freedom, and love...
.... Bessie (1 episode, 1977) - 1977: Sanford and SonSanford and SonSanford and Son is an American sitcom, based on the BBC's Steptoe and Son, that ran on the NBC television network from January 14, 1972, to March 25, 1977....
.... Church Sister #1 / ... (4 episodes, 1976–1977) - 1975: That's My MamaThat's My MamaThat's My Mama is an American television sitcom that was originally broadcast on the ABC network from September 1974 until December 1975. There are 39 episodes of this series.-Synopsis:...
.... Laura (6 episodes, 1975) - 1973: MaudeMaude (TV series)Maude was an American television sitcom that was originally broadcast on the CBS network from September 12, 1972 until April 22, 1978.Maude starred Beatrice Arthur as Maude Findlay, an outspoken, middle-aged, politically liberal woman living in suburban Tuckahoe, Westchester County, New York with...
.... Stella (2 episodes, 1973–1974) - 1974: Death WishDeath Wish (film)Death Wish is a 1974 crime thriller film loosely based on the novel Death Wish by Brian Garfield. The film was directed by Michael Winner and stars Charles Bronson as Paul Kersey, a man who becomes a vigilante after his wife is murdered and his daughter is sexually assaulted by muggers.The film was...
.... Alma Lee Brown - 1973: Big Daddy (TV)
- 1971: The Anderson TapesThe Anderson TapesThe Anderson Tapes is a 1971 crime film. It was directed by Sidney Lumet and stars Sean Connery, Dyan Cannon, Martin Balsam, and comedian Alan King. The screenplay was written by Frank Pierson, based upon a best-selling 1970 novel of the same name by Lawrence Sanders...
(uncredited) .... Minor Role - 1970: Where's Poppa?Where's Poppa?Where's Poppa? is a 1970 black comedy film based on the novel by Robert Klane starring George Segal, Ron Leibman and Ruth Gordon. The plot revolves around the troubled relationship between a lawyer son played by Segal and his senile mother played by Gordon...
.... Second Job Applicant - 1970: Cotton Comes to Harlem .... Church Sister
- 1969: J.T. (TV) .... Mrs. Hill
- 1955: The Phenix City StoryThe Phenix City StoryThe Phenix City Story is a film noir directed by Phil Karlson and written by Daniel Mainwaring and Crane Wilbur. The drama features John McIntire, Richard Kiley, among others.-Plot:...
.... Helen Ward