Leila Danette is an American stage, film and television actress. She is noted for her stage work and for her role as Helen on the short-lived sitcom You Take the Kids

You Take the Kids

You Take the Kids is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from December 1990 to January 1991. The series stars Nell Carter who also performed the theme song "Nobody's Got It Easy".-Synopsis:...

.

Early life and career

Born in Jacksonville, Florida

Jacksonville, Florida

Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968...

, Danette attended both Morgan State University

Morgan State University

Morgan State University, formerly Centenary Biblical Institute , Morgan College and Morgan State College , is a historically black college in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Morgan is Maryland's designated public urban university and the largest HBCU in the state of Maryland...

 and Howard University

Howard University

Howard University is a federally chartered, non-profit, private, coeducational, nonsectarian, historically black university located in Washington, D.C., United States...

. Before becoming an actress, she worked as an elementary school teacher in Baltimore

Baltimore

Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...

 and taught speech to students in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

.

Danette began acting professionally on the stage at the age of 67. One of her first substantial roles was opposite James Earl Jones

James Earl Jones

James Earl Jones is an American actor. He is well-known for his distinctive bass voice and for his portrayal of characters of substance, gravitas and leadership...

 in The Great White Hope

The Great White Hope

The Great White Hope is a 1967 play written by Howard Sackler, later adapted in 1970 for a film of the same name. The play was first produced by Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. and debuted on Broadway at the Alvin Theatre on October 3, 1968 for a run of 546 performances, directed by Edwin Sherin...

. In 1982, she was noted for her performance in The Brothers. In The New York Times Theatre Reviews 1999-2000, D. J. R. Brickner wrote of her performance in Uncle Jack, noting that she was a "Broadway veteran" who imbued her role of Mary with a "touching authenticity".

In addition to stage roles, Danette has also appeared in several films including The First Deadly Sin

The First Deadly Sin

The First Deadly Sin is a 1980 American film produced by and starring Frank Sinatra, along with Faye Dunaway, David Dukes, Brenda Vaccaro, James Whitmore, Martin Gabel in his final acting role, and Bruce Willis in his film debut...

(1980) and Garbo Talks

Garbo Talks

Garbo Talks is a 1984 American comedy-drama film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Anne Bancroft, Ron Silver, Carrie Fisher, and Betty Comden as Greta Garbo.The movie was written by Larry Grusin and also stars Catherine Hicks and Steven Hill...

(1984). She has also had guest roles on A Different World, The Cosby Show

The Cosby Show

The Cosby Show is an American television situation comedy starring Bill Cosby, which aired for eight seasons on NBC from September 20, 1984 until April 30, 1992...

, Law & Order

Law & Order

Law & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...

, and Third Watch

Third Watch

Third Watch is an American television drama series which first aired on NBC from 1999 to 2005 for a total of 132 episodes, broadcast in 6 seasons of 22 episodes each....

.

Filmography

Film
Year	Film	Role	Notes
1980	The First Deadly Sin The First Deadly Sin The First Deadly Sin is a 1980 American film produced by and starring Frank Sinatra, along with Faye Dunaway, David Dukes, Brenda Vaccaro, James Whitmore, Martin Gabel in his final acting role, and Bruce Willis in his film debut...	Woman on Step #1
1982	Benny's Place	Role Unknown
1984	Death Mask	Della
	Garbo Talks Garbo Talks Garbo Talks is a 1984 American comedy-drama film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Anne Bancroft, Ron Silver, Carrie Fisher, and Betty Comden as Greta Garbo.The movie was written by Larry Grusin and also stars Catherine Hicks and Steven Hill...	Augusta
1986	Power	Poor Woman
1987	The Rosary Murders The Rosary Murders The Rosary Murders is a 1987 neo-noir mystery film starring Donald Sutherland as Father Koesler, based upon the novel by William X. Kienzle....	Mrs. Washington
1988	Running on Empty	Maid
1996	White Lies	Woman #2 in Window
2003	Pieces of April Pieces of April Pieces of April is a 2003 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Peter Hedges. The film debuted at the Sundance Film Festival.- Plot :...	Woman in Stairwell
Television
Year	Title	Role	Notes
1988	A Different World	Mrs. Pruitt	Episode: "A Stepping Stone"
1990–1991	You Take the Kids You Take the Kids You Take the Kids is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from December 1990 to January 1991. The series stars Nell Carter who also performed the theme song "Nobody's Got It Easy".-Synopsis:...	Helen	6 episodes
1992	The Cosby Show The Cosby Show The Cosby Show is an American television situation comedy starring Bill Cosby, which aired for eight seasons on NBC from September 20, 1984 until April 30, 1992...	Mrs. Whittaker	Episode: "The Price is Wrong"
1995	New York Undercover New York Undercover New York Undercover is an American police drama that aired on the FOX television network from 1994 to 1998. The series starred Malik Yoba as Detective J.C. Williams and Michael DeLorenzo as Detective Eddie Torres, two undercover detectives in New York City's 4th Precinct who were assigned to...	Mae Helen	Episode: "Private Enemy No. 1"
1994–2001	Law & Order Law & Order Law & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...	Various roles	4 episodes
2003	Third Watch Third Watch Third Watch is an American television drama series which first aired on NBC from 1999 to 2005 for a total of 132 episodes, broadcast in 6 seasons of 22 episodes each....	Lucinda	Episode: "A Ticket Grows in Brooklyn"

External links