Vanessa Bell Calloway is an American actress who has appeared in a number of films, including Biker Boyz

Biker Boyz

Biker Boyz is a 2003 film about a group of underground motorcycle drag racers. It stars Laurence Fishburne, Djimon Hounsou, Derek Luke, Meagan Good, and Larenz Tate and is written and directed by Reggie Rock Bythewood...

, Love Don't Cost a Thing

Love Don't Cost a Thing (film)

Love Don't Cost a Thing, stylized as Love Don't Co$t a Thing, is a 2003 teen comedy film written and directed by Troy Beyer and starring Nick Cannon and Christina Milian It also stars Steve Harvey, Kenan Thompson and Kal Penn...

, What's Love Got to Do with It, Coming to America

Coming to America

Coming to America is a 1988 comedy film directed by John Landis. The screenplay was written by David Sheffield and Barry W. Blaustein, from a story by Eddie Murphy, who also stars in the film. Murphy plays an African prince, who heads to the United States in hopes of finding a woman he can marry...

, and Cheaper by the Dozen

Cheaper by the Dozen (2003 film)

Cheaper by the Dozen is a 2003 American comedy film about a family with 12 children . The film takes its title from the 1948 biography of the same name of Frank Bunker Gilbreth and Lillian Moller Gilbreth and their 12 children, but other than the title and the concept of a family with 12 children,...

.

Early life and career

Born Vanessa Bell in Cleveland, Ohio

Cleveland, Ohio

Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...

, she received a Bachelor's of Fine Arts Degree

Bachelor's degree

A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...

 from Ohio University

Ohio University

Ohio University is a public university located in the Midwestern United States in Athens, Ohio, situated on an campus...

 where she was a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha

Alpha Kappa Alpha

Alpha Kappa Alpha is the first Greek-lettered sorority established and incorporated by African American college women. The sorority was founded on January 15, 1908, at Howard University in Washington, D.C., by a group of nine students, led by Ethel Hedgeman Lyle...

 sorority. Calloway also studied dance with Alvin Ailey

Alvin Ailey

Alvin Ailey, Jr. was an American choreographer and activist who founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York. Ailey is credited with popularizing modern dance and revolutionizing African-American participation in 20th century concert dance...

, George Faison

George Faison

George Faison is an African-American dancer and choreographer.-Biography:Faison was born in Washington, D.C. where he studied dance with the Jones-Haywood Capitol Ballet and Carolyn Tate of Howard University while attending Dunbar High School, and appeared with The American Light Opera Company in...

, and Otis Sallid. Calloway began her career as a dancer in Michael Bennett

Michael Bennett

Michael Bennett was an American musical theater director, writer, choreographer, and dancer. He won seven Tony Awards for his choreography and direction of Broadway shows and was nominated for an additional eleven....

's original Broadway

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...

 production of Dreamgirls. She also was in the ensemble of the short-lived musical Bring Back Birdie

Bring Back Birdie

Bring Back Birdie is a musical with a book by Michael Stewart, lyrics by Lee Adams, and music by Charles Strouse.A sequel to Bye Bye Birdie, it focuses on a scheme for rock 'n' roller Conrad Birdie, who disappeared after being discharged from the U. S. Army twenty years ago, to make a comeback on a...

.

It was during this time period that Calloway directed the music video Angel Man for soul singer Rhetta Hughes

Rhetta Hughes

Rhetta Hughes is a R&B singer and actress. She starred in the Broadway musicals Dreamgirls, Don't Play Us Cheap, and Amen Corner, for which she was nominated for a Tony Award in the category Best Actress in a Musical in 1984...

.

Calloway first began acting in the long-running soap opera

Soap opera

A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...

 All My Children

All My Children

All My Children is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970 to September 23, 2011. Created by Agnes Nixon, All My Children is set in Pine Valley, Pennsylvania, a fictitious suburb of Philadelphia. The show features Susan Lucci as Erica Kane, one of daytime's most...

in 1982. She has appeared in various guest roles in television including Falcon Crest

Falcon Crest

Falcon Crest is an American primetime television soap opera which aired on the CBS network for nine seasons, from December 4, 1981 to May 17, 1990. A total of 227 episodes were produced....

, 1st & Ten, L.A. Law

L.A. Law

L.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,...

, A Different World, Doctor Doctor, Dream On

Dream On (TV series)

Dream On is an American adult-themed situation comedy about single New Yorker, Martin Tupper. The show used a gimmick where old black and white clips were used to punctuate the main character's feelings or thoughts...

, Diagnosis: Murder

Diagnosis: Murder

Diagnosis: Murder is a mystery/medical/crime drama television series starring Dick Van Dyke as Dr. Mark Sloan, a medical doctor who solves crimes with the help of his son, a homicide detective played by his real-life son Barry Van Dyke. The series began as a spin-off of Jake and the Fatman...

, The Closer

The Closer

The Closer is an American crime drama, starring Kyra Sedgwick as Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson, a Georgia police detective who often closes her cases using sometimes-questionable methods...

. In 1995, she co-starred 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...

 and Joe Morton

Joe Morton

Joseph Thomas "Joe" Morton, Jr. is an American stage, television, and film actor.-Early life:Morton was born in The Bronx, a borough of New York City, New York. He is the son of Evelyn, a secretary, and Joseph Thomas Morton, Sr., a U.S. army intelligence officer. Because of his father's...

 in the short-lived CBS

CBS

CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...

 drama Under One Roof. For her role on the series, Calloway was nominated for the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series

NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series

The NAACP Image Award winners for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series:*Most Wins**Della Reese has won this category 7 times....

. She has also received two Image Award nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series

NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series

The NAACP Image Award winners for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series:*Most Wins**Loretta Devine & S. Epatha Merkerson- has three wins*Most Nominations**1. S. Epatha Merkerson- 6 nominations**2. Pam Grier- 5 nominations...

 for her work on Boston Public

Boston Public

Boston Public is an American drama television series created by David E. Kelley and broadcast on Fox. It centered on Winslow High School, a fictional public high school located in Boston, Massachusetts. The show was named for the real public school district in which it takes place...

and The District

The District

The District is a television police drama which aired on CBS from October 7, 2000 to May 1, 2004. The show followed the work and personal life of the chief of Washington, D.C.'s Police Department .-Premise:...

.

In addition to television and stage work, Calloway has also appeared in several films. She made her film debut in the comedy Coming to America

Coming to America

Coming to America is a 1988 comedy film directed by John Landis. The screenplay was written by David Sheffield and Barry W. Blaustein, from a story by Eddie Murphy, who also stars in the film. Murphy plays an African prince, who heads to the United States in hopes of finding a woman he can marry...

as Eddie Murphy

Eddie Murphy

Edward Regan "Eddie" Murphy is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, singer, director, and musician....

's subservient bride-to-be. Calloway later appeared in What's Love Got to Do with It (1993) opposite Angela Bassett

Angela Bassett

Angela Evelyn Bassett is an American actress. She has become well known for her biographical film roles portraying real life women in African American culture, including singer Tina Turner in the motion picture What's Love Got to Do with It, as well as Betty Shabazz in the films Malcolm X and...

, Crimson Tide

Crimson Tide (film)

The film has uncredited additional writing by Quentin Tarantino, much of it being the pop-culture reference-laden dialogue.The U.S. Navy objected to many of the elements in the script — particularly the aspect of mutiny on board a U.S. naval vessel — and as such, the film was produced...

(1995) starring Denzel Washington

Denzel Washington

Denzel Hayes Washington Jr. is an American actor, screenwriter, director, and film producer. He first rose to prominence when he joined the cast of the medical drama, St. Elsewhere, playing Dr...

 and Gene Hackman

Gene Hackman

Eugene Allen "Gene" Hackman is an American actor and novelist.Nominated for five Academy Awards, winning two, Hackman has also won three Golden Globes and two BAFTAs in a career that spanned five decades. He first came to fame in 1967 with his performance as Buck Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde...

, and Lakeview Terrace

Lakeview Terrace

Lakeview Terrace is a 2008 American thriller film directed by Neil LaBute, co-produced by Will Smith, written by David Loughery and Howard Korder, and starring Samuel L. Jackson, Patrick Wilson and Kerry Washington. Jackson plays a racist LAPD sergeant who terrorizes his new next-door neighbors...

(2008) starring Samuel L. Jackson

Samuel L. Jackson

Samuel Leroy Jackson is an American film and television actor and film producer. After becoming involved with the Civil Rights Movement, he moved on to acting in theater at Morehouse College, and then films. He had several small roles such as in the film Goodfellas before meeting his mentor,...

 and Michael Jackson.

Personal life

She has been married to anesthesiologist Dr. Anthony Calloway since 1988. The couple have two daughters, Ashley and Ally. Ashley is one of the stars of the BET

Black Entertainment Television

Black Entertainment Television is an American, Viacom-owned cable network based in Washington, D.C.. Currently viewed in more than 90 million homes worldwide, it is the most prominent television network targeting young Black-American audiences. The network was launched on January 25, 1980, by its...

 series Baldwin Hills

Baldwin Hills (TV series)

Baldwin Hills is an American reality television series featuring African-American teenagers from the Baldwin Hills district in Los Angeles, California. The series aired on BET from July 2007 to March 2009.- Overview :...

.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1988	Coming to America Coming to America Coming to America is a 1988 comedy film directed by John Landis. The screenplay was written by David Sheffield and Barry W. Blaustein, from a story by Eddie Murphy, who also stars in the film. Murphy plays an African prince, who heads to the United States in hopes of finding a woman he can marry...	Imani Izzi
1992	Bébé's Kids Bebe's Kids Bébé's Kids is a 1992 animated comedy film produced by the Reginald Hudlin and Hyperion Pictures, directed by Bruce W...	Jamika	Voice
1993	What's Love Got to Do with It	Jackie
1994		Francis Phillips	Alternative title: No Ordinary Summer
1995	Crimson Tide Crimson Tide (film) The film has uncredited additional writing by Quentin Tarantino, much of it being the pop-culture reference-laden dialogue.The U.S. Navy objected to many of the elements in the script — particularly the aspect of mutiny on board a U.S. naval vessel — and as such, the film was produced...	Julia Hunter
1996	Daylight Daylight (film) Daylight is a 1996 disaster film, starring Sylvester Stallone, Amy Brenneman, Viggo Mortensen, Dan Hedaya, and Danielle Harris. It was directed by Rob Cohen and released in theaters on December 6, 1996.-Plot:...	Grace Calloway
2001		Dr. Thelma Woolridge
2002	Dawg Dawg (film) Dawg is 2002 dramedy film directed by Victoria Hochberg. It stars Denis Leary and Elizabeth Hurley, in their second film together. Steffani Brass was nominated for Young Artist Award with his role in this film...	Christine Hodges	Alternative title: Bad Boy
2003	Biker Boyz Biker Boyz Biker Boyz is a 2003 film about a group of underground motorcycle drag racers. It stars Laurence Fishburne, Djimon Hounsou, Derek Luke, Meagan Good, and Larenz Tate and is written and directed by Reggie Rock Bythewood...	Anita
2003	Love Don't Cost a Thing Love Don't Cost a Thing (film) Love Don't Cost a Thing, stylized as Love Don't Co$t a Thing, is a 2003 teen comedy film written and directed by Troy Beyer and starring Nick Cannon and Christina Milian It also stars Steve Harvey, Kenan Thompson and Kal Penn...	Vivian Johnson
2003	Cheaper by the Dozen Cheaper by the Dozen (2003 film) Cheaper by the Dozen is a 2003 American comedy film about a family with 12 children . The film takes its title from the 1948 biography of the same name of Frank Bunker Gilbreth and Lillian Moller Gilbreth and their 12 children, but other than the title and the concept of a family with 12 children,...	Diana Philips
2008	Lakeview Terrace Lakeview Terrace Lakeview Terrace is a 2008 American thriller film directed by Neil LaBute, co-produced by Will Smith, written by David Loughery and Howard Korder, and starring Samuel L. Jackson, Patrick Wilson and Kerry Washington. Jackson plays a racist LAPD sergeant who terrorizes his new next-door neighbors...	Aunt Dorrie
2009	Killing of Wendy	Wendy
2010		Molly Thomas

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1985	All My Children All My Children All My Children is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970 to September 23, 2011. Created by Agnes Nixon, All My Children is set in Pine Valley, Pennsylvania, a fictitious suburb of Philadelphia. The show features Susan Lucci as Erica Kane, one of daytime's most...	Yvonne Caldwell	3 episodes
1985	Days of our Lives Days of our Lives Days of our Lives is a long running daytime soap opera broadcast on the NBC television network. It is one of the longest-running scripted television programs in the world, airing nearly every weekday in the United States since November 8, 1965. It has since been syndicated to many countries around...	Denise Preston	Unknown episodes
1986		Lowell Sherman	Episode: "The Trial"
1986	Simon & Simon Simon & Simon Simon & Simon is an American detective television series starring Gerald McRaney and Jameson Parker.-History:The original 1978 pilot called Pirate's Key was set in Florida...	Julie	Episode: "Act Five"
1987	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...	Sherry	Episode: "The Honeymoon's Over"
1989	In the Heat of the Night In the Heat of the Night (TV series) In the Heat of the Night is a television series based on the motion picture and novel of the same name. It was broadcast on NBC from 1988 until 1992, and then on CBS until 1995...	Audrey Moore	Episode: "Accused"
1989	Polly	Nancy	Television movie
1990	China Beach China Beach China Beach is an American dramatic television series set at an evacuation hospital during the Vietnam War. The title refers to My Khe beach in the city of Da Nang, Vietnam, which was nicknamed "China Beach" by unknown foreigners, most likely Americans...	Sweet Hula	Episode: "One Giant Leap"
1990	Polly: Comin' Home	Nancy Dodds	Television movie
1991	Father Dowling Mysteries Father Dowling Mysteries Father Dowling Mysteries is an American television mystery series that appeared between November 30, 1987 and May 2, 1991. For its first season, the show was on NBC; it moved to ABC network for its last two seasons...	Emily	Episode: "The Monkey Business Mystery"
1992	Stompin' at the Savoy Stompin' at the Savoy "Stompin' at the Savoy" is a 1934 jazz standard composed by Edgar Sampson. It is named after the Savoy Ballroom.Although the song is credited to Benny Goodman, Chick Webb, and Edgar Sampson, and the lyrics by Andy Razaf, in reality the music was written and arranged for Chick Webb's band by...	Dorothy	Television Movie
1993		Michelle Michaels	Episode: "The Par-tay"
1995	Touched by an Angel Touched by an Angel Touched 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...	Debra Willis	Episode: "The Driver"
1996		Abby Holsopple	Television movie
1997	Sparks Sparks (TV series) Sparks is an American sitcom that aired on UPN from August 26, 1996 to March 2, 1998. The series stars James Avery, Robin Givens, Terrence Howard, and Miguel A. Núñez, Jr.. The sitcom is set in Compton, California, and is about the every day lives of a family of lawyers running a family owned law...	Monique	Episode: "Too Hot Not to Cool Down"
1998	Prey Prey (TV series) Prey was a science-fiction television series that aired for one season in 1998 on ABC. The series starred Debra Messing, Adam Storke, Larry Drake, Frankie Faison, James Morrison, and Vincent Ventresca.-Premise:...	Grace	Episodes: "Revelations" "Infiltration"
1998	Moesha Moesha Moesha is an American sitcom series that aired on the UPN network from January 23, 1996 to May 14, 2001. The series stars R&B singer Brandy Norwood as Moesha Mitchell, a high school student living with her family in the Leimert Park neighborhood of South Central Los Angeles.-Overview:The show...	Dr. Woods	Episode: "Psyche Your Mind"
1998		Jonnie Mae Matthews	Miniseries
1999	Malcolm & Eddie Malcolm & Eddie Malcolm & Eddie is an American television sitcom that premiered August 26, 1996 on the UPN Network, and ran for four seasons. This series starred Malcolm-Jamal Warner and Eddie Griffin in the lead roles. This show was canceled after its fourth season, and aired its final episode on May 22, 2000...	Viva Jensen	Episode: "Daddio"
2001		Dana	Episode: "The First Hit's Free, Baby"
2002	One on One One on One (TV series) One on One is an American sitcom that aired on the now-defunct UPN from its September 3, 2001 premiere until May 15, 2006. The series stars Flex Alexander as a single sportscaster, who becomes a full-time dad when his ex-wife decides to accept a job out of the country and his teenage daughter...	Michelle McCall	Episode: "The Way You Make Me Feel"
2002		Alaina	Episode: "And the Winner Is..."
2003–2004	10-8: Officers on Duty	Gina Barnes	Episodes: "Blood Sugar Sex Magik" "Late for School" "Love Don't Love Nobody"
2004	CSI: Miami CSI: Miami CSI: Miami is an American police procedural television series, which premiered on September 23, 2002 on CBS. The series is a spin-off of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation....	Tonya Washington	Episode: "Speed Kills"
2004	Strong Medicine Strong Medicine Strong Medicine is a medical drama with a focus on feminist politics, health issues and class conflict. The television series aired on the Lifetime network from 2000 to 2006. It is distributed by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. The series was created and produced in part by comedienne and...	Melanie Rhodes	Episode: "Foreign Bodies"
2005	Joan of Arcadia Joan of Arcadia Joan of Arcadia is an American television fantasy/family drama telling the story of teenager Joan Girardi , who sees and speaks with God and performs tasks she is given. The series originally aired on Fridays, 8-9 p.m...	Corey Phillips	Episode: Shadows and Light"
2006		Lynn Talmadge	Episode: "Slippin'"
2009	CSI CSI: Crime Scene Investigation CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is an American crime drama television series, which premiered on CBS on October 6, 2000. The show was created by Anthony E. Zuiker and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer...	Judge Himmel	Episode: "Miscarriage of Justice"
2009	Cold Case	Geraldine Watkins (1970)	Episode: "Soul"
2010	Dexter Dexter (TV series) Dexter is an American television drama series, which debuted on Showtime on October 1, 2006. The sixth season premiered on October 2, 2011. The series centers on Dexter Morgan , a bloodstain pattern analyst for the Miami Metro Police Department who moonlights as a serial killer...	Crisis Counselor	Episode: "Practically Perfect"
2010	Hawthorne Hawthorne (TV series) Hawthorne is an hour-long medical drama on the TNT television network starring Jada Pinkett Smith and Michael Vartan. It premiered on June 16, 2009. On Thursday, September 16, 2010 it was announced that Hawthorne has been renewed for a third season consisting of 10 episodes...	Gail Strummer	10 episodes

Award nominations

Award nominations

Year	Award	Category	Title of work	Result
1996	NAACP Image Award NAACP Image Award An NAACP Image Award is an accolade presented by the American National Association for the Advancement of Colored People to honor outstanding people of color in film, television, music, and literature....	Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series	Under One Roof	Nominated
1997	NAACP Image Award	Outstanding Lead Actress in a Television Movie or Mini-Series	America's Dream	Nominated
1998	NAACP Image Award	Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series	Orleans Orleans (TV series) Orleans is a short lived American drama series that aired on CBS from January 7, 1997 through April 10, 1997. It ran for only 8 episodes. The series was said to be inspired by the experiences of creater producer Toni Graphia, who was the daughter of a Louisiana judge.-Synopsis:The show was...	Nominated
1999	NAACP Image Award	Outstanding Lead Actress in a Television Movie or Mini-Series		Nominated
2002	NAACP Image Award	Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series	Boston Public	Nominated
2004	NAACP Image Award	Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series		Nominated

External links