Wolfe Perry
Encyclopedia
Wolfe Perry is an African American
actor and former college basketball player at Stanford University
.
As an actor, Perry is primarily known for his role as Teddy Rutherford, one of Coach Ken Reeves' new players in the third season of the CBS
TV series The White Shadow
.
Perry was a standout basketball player at Stanford University and graduated in 1979 with a degree in theatre arts. Perry, who stands 6'2", was a four-year letterman and starting guard for the Cardinal
. He led the Cardinal in scoring average his senior season, 1978–79, with 18.3 points per game. He scored a career-high 34 points in an upset win that season against national powerhouse UCLA. For his college career, Perry scored 1,287 points (18th all time at Stanford) with 258 assists (12th) and 112 steals (9th).
Perry was a favorite of the basketball fans at Stanford, many of whom expected him to be drafted into the NBA. He was drafted in the fifth round in 1979 by the Utah Jazz
, but was cut before the regular season. He then put his Stanford drama experience to work and landed the role of Rutherford on The White Shadow
in 1980. He wore the uniform number 21 in his role, which is the same number he wore at Stanford.
In 1980, Perry was a cast member of the short-lived PBS
series Up and Coming
, which was the first weekly American TV drama centered around an African American family. Additionally, he appeared in the controversial 1986 film Soul Man
, which starred C. Thomas Howell
as a Caucasian
student who uses medication to disguise himself as an African American
and obtain a Harvard Law School
scholarship intended for African American students.
Today, Perry coaches boys' basketball at St. Elizabeth High School
in Oakland
, California
.
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
actor and former college basketball player at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
.
As an actor, Perry is primarily known for his role as Teddy Rutherford, one of Coach Ken Reeves' new players in the third season of the 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...
TV series The White Shadow
The White Shadow
The White Shadow is an American drama television series that ran on the CBS network from November 27, 1978, to March 16, 1981.-Overview:...
.
Perry was a standout basketball player at Stanford University and graduated in 1979 with a degree in theatre arts. Perry, who stands 6'2", was a four-year letterman and starting guard for the Cardinal
Stanford Cardinal men's basketball
The Stanford Cardinal Men's Basketball team represents Stanford University, located in Stanford, California, United States. The school's team currently competes in the Pacific-12 Conference. The team has won 13 conference championships , the last in 2004, and one NCAA championship, in 1942...
. He led the Cardinal in scoring average his senior season, 1978–79, with 18.3 points per game. He scored a career-high 34 points in an upset win that season against national powerhouse UCLA. For his college career, Perry scored 1,287 points (18th all time at Stanford) with 258 assists (12th) and 112 steals (9th).
Perry was a favorite of the basketball fans at Stanford, many of whom expected him to be drafted into the NBA. He was drafted in the fifth round in 1979 by the Utah Jazz
Utah Jazz
The Utah Jazz is a professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City, Utah. They are currently a part of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
, but was cut before the regular season. He then put his Stanford drama experience to work and landed the role of Rutherford on The White Shadow
The White Shadow
The White Shadow is an American drama television series that ran on the CBS network from November 27, 1978, to March 16, 1981.-Overview:...
in 1980. He wore the uniform number 21 in his role, which is the same number he wore at Stanford.
In 1980, Perry was a cast member of the short-lived PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
series Up and Coming
Up and Coming (TV series)
Up and Coming is an American television drama series which aired on Public Broadcasting Service during the 1980-1981 season. The series depicted the Wilsons, a successful African American family from Oakland, California who moves into an integrated, middle-class neighborhood in nearby San Francisco...
, which was the first weekly American TV drama centered around an African American family. Additionally, he appeared in the controversial 1986 film Soul Man
Soul Man (film)
Soul Man is a comedy film made in 1986 about a man who undergoes racial transformation with pills to qualify for a Black only scholarship at Harvard Law School. It stars C. Thomas Howell, Rae Dawn Chong, Arye Gross, James Earl Jones, Leslie Nielsen, James B...
, which starred C. Thomas Howell
C. Thomas Howell
Christopher Thomas "Tommy" Howell , known by his stage name C. Thomas Howell, is an American actor and film director. He starred in the films The Outsiders as Ponyboy Curtis and in The Hitcher as Jim Halsey. He has appeared in The Da Vinci Treasure,Soul Man, Red Dawn, Secret Admirer, Gettysburg, H. G...
as a Caucasian
White people
White people is a term which usually refers to human beings characterized, at least in part, by the light pigmentation of their skin...
student who uses medication to disguise himself as an African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
and obtain a Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
scholarship intended for African American students.
Today, Perry coaches boys' basketball at St. Elizabeth High School
St. Elizabeth High School (Oakland, California)
St. Elizabeth High School is a private, Roman Catholic high school in Oakland, California, established in 1921 by the Franciscan Friars. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Oakland.http://www.stliz-hs.org/-Notes and references:...
in Oakland
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.