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Early life
Kotto was born in New
York City, the son of Gladys Marie, a nurse and army officer, and Avraham
Kotto (originally named Njoki Manga Bell), a businessman from Cameroon. In
his autobiography titled Royalty, Kotto writes that his father was
"the crown prince of Cameroon." Kotto stated that he found out
that his family was royal in adult life while studying his family's lineage,
and also stated that he is a descendant of Queen
Victoria. Kotto's father, who emigrated to the U.S. in the 1920s, was,
according to Kotto, an observant Jew who spoke Hebrew,
and Kotto's mother reportedly converted to Judaism before
marrying his father. Kotto also stated that his great-grandfather King
Alexander Bell ruled the Douala region of Cameroon in
the late-19th century and was also a practicing Jew. Kotto has said that
his paternal family originated from Israel and
migrated to Egypt and
then Cameroon, and have been African
Jews for many generations. His claim of being a descendent of
Queen Victoria has been denied by the Buckingham
Palace press office.
Being black and Jewish gave other children (both whites and blacks) even more reason, he has said, to pick on him growing up in New York City. "It was rough coming up," Kotto said. "And then going to shul, putting a yarmulke on, having to face people who were primarily Baptists in the Bronx meant that on Fridays, I was in some heavy fistfights."
Career
By the age of 16, he was studying acting at the Actor's
Mobile Theater Studio, and at 19, he made his professional acting debut
in Othello.
He also was a member of the Actors
Studio in New York. Kotto got his start in acting on Broadway,
where he appeared in The Great White Hope, among other
productions.
His film debut was in 1963 in an uncredited role in 4 For Texas. He
performed in Michael Roemer's Nothing
But a Man in 1964 and played a supporting role in the 1968 caper film The Thomas Crown Affair.
He played John Auston, a confused Marine Lance Corporal, in the 1968 episode
"King Of The Hill" on the first season of Hawaii
Five-O. In 1973 he landed the role of the James Bond villain Mr. Big in Live and Let Die, as well as roles
in Across 110th Street and Truck
Turner. Kotto portrayed Idi Amin in the 1977 television film Raid on Entebbe. He also starred as an auto
worker in the 1978 film Blue Collar.
The following year he played Parker in the sci-fi–horror film Alien.
He followed with a supporting role in the 1980 prison drama Brubaker. In
1983, he guest-starred as mobster "Charlie" in the A-Team episode
"The Out-of-Towners". In 1987, he appeared in the futuristic sci-fi
movie The Running Man and in the 1988
action-comedy Midnight Run, in which he portrayed Alonzo Mosely, an
FBI agent.
A memo from Paramount shows that Kotto was among those being considered for Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation, a role which eventually went to Patrick Stewart.
He has written two books: Royalty, and The Second
Coming of Christ, and also wrote scripts for Homicide: Life on the Street.
Personal life
Filmography
4 for Texas (1963)
Nothing But a Man (1964) Jocko
5 Card Stud (1968) — Little George (Mama's
bartender)
The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)
— Carl
The Liberation of L.B. Jones (1970)
— Sonny Boy Mosby
Across 110th Street (1972) — Lt. Pope
Bone (1972) — Bone
Live and Let Die (1973) — Kananga/Mr.
Big
Truck Turner (1974) — Harvard Blue
Report to the Commissioner (1975) —
Richard 'Crunch' Blackstone
Sharks' Treasure (1975) — Ben Flynn
Friday Foster (1975) — Colt Hawkins
Drum (1976) — Blaise
Monkey Hustle (1976) — C.C. Foxx
Roots (1977) TV miniseries
Raid on Entebbe (1977) (TV) — President
Idi Amin Dada
Blue Collar (1978) — Smokey James
Alien (1979) — Parker
Brubaker (1980) — Richard 'Dickie' Coombes
The Star Chamber (1983) — Det. Harry Lowes
Terror in the Aisles (1984) documentary —
archival footage
Warning Sign (1985)
Eye of the Tiger (1986) — J. B.
Deveraux
The Park is Mine (1986) — Eubanks
The Running Man (1987) — William
Laughlin
Midnight Run (1988) — FBI Agent Alonzo Mosely
Tripwire (1990) — Lee Pitt
Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare (1991)
— Doc
Homicide: Life on the Street (1993–1999)
— Lieutenant Al Giardello
The Puppet Masters (1994) — Ressler
Two If by Sea (1996) — FBI Agent O'Malley
Witless Protection (2008)
IMDB
Witless Protection
IMDB
Witless Protection
Ricardo Bodi
1993-1999
Homicide: Life on the Street (TV series)
Lt. Al Giardello
Homicide: Life on the Street (TV series)
Lt. Al Giardello
– Forgive Us Our Trespasses (1999) … Lt. Al Giardello
– The Why Chromosome (1999) … Lt. Al Giardello
– Lines of Fire (1999) … Lt. Al Giardello (credit only)
– Identity Crisis (1999) … Lt. Al Giardello
– Self Defense (1999) … Lt. Al Giardello
1993
SeaQuest 2032 (TV series)
Captain Jack Clayton
SeaQuest 2032 (TV series)
Captain Jack Clayton
– Treasures of the Tonga Trench (1993) … Captain Jack Clayton
1992
Civil Wars (TV series)
Judge Louis Decker
Civil Wars (TV series)
Judge Louis Decker
– Drone of Arc (1992)
– Pro Se Can You See (1992) … Judge Louis Decker
1991-1992
The Trials of Rosie O'Neill (TV series)
Kelly
The Trials of Rosie O'Neill (TV series)
Kelly
– Lady Luck (1992)
– A Conflict of Interest (1991) … Kelly
1990
Father Dowling Mysteries (TV series)
Lt. Fleming
Father Dowling Mysteries (TV series)
Lt. Fleming
– The Stone Killer Mystery (1990) … Lt. Fleming
1983-1984
For Love and Honor (TV series)
Platoon Sgt. James "China" Bell / Platoon Sgt. James 'China' Bell
For Love and Honor (TV series)
Platoon Sgt. James "China" Bell / Platoon Sgt. James 'China' Bell
– Bloodline (1984) … Platoon Sgt. James 'China' Bell
– The Real Thing (1984) … Platoon Sgt. James 'China' Bell
– Mixed Signals (1983) … Platoon Sgt. James "China" Bell
– Team Work (1983) … Platoon Sgt. James "China" Bell
1983
The A-Team (TV series)
Charles 'East-Side Charlie' F. Struthers
The A-Team (TV series)
Charles 'East-Side Charlie' F. Struthers
– The Out-of-Towners (1983) … Charles 'East-Side Charlie' F. Struthers
1983
Fantasy Island (TV series)
Big Gus Belly
Fantasy Island (TV series)
Big Gus Belly
– Return to the Cotton Club/No Friends Like Old Friends (1983) … Big Gus Belly
1971
Rod Serling's Night Gallery (TV series)
Buckner
Rod Serling's Night Gallery (TV series)
Buckner
– The Messiah on Mott Street/The Painted Mirror (1971) … Buckner
1968-1969
Daniel Boone (TV series)
Jonah / Luke
Daniel Boone (TV series)
Jonah / Luke
– Jonah (1969) … Jonah
– Big, Black and Out There (1968) … Luke
1969
Mannix (TV series)
Gabe Johnson / Gabriel Dillon
Mannix (TV series)
Gabe Johnson / Gabriel Dillon
– Death in a Minor Key (1969) … Gabe Johnson/Gabriel Dillon
1969
Hawaii Five-O (TV series)
Marine Lance Corporal John T. Auston
Hawaii Five-O (TV series)
Marine Lance Corporal John T. Auston
– King of the Hill (1969) … Marine Lance Corporal John T. Auston
1968
The High Chaparral (TV series)
Sgt. Major Creason
The High Chaparral (TV series)
Sgt. Major Creason
– The Buffalo Soldiers (1968) … Sgt. Major Creason
1966-1967
The Big Valley (TV series)
Damien / Lobo Brown
The Big Valley (TV series)
Damien / Lobo Brown
– The Buffalo Man (1967) … Damien
– The Iron Box (1966) … Lobo Brown
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Personal Details
Other Works:
Appears unbilled as one of the shirtless simitar guards in "The Avengers" episode titled "Honey For The Prince". The episode appea
References
- ^ http://www.allbusiness.com/middle-east/israel/395997-1.html
- ^ Yaphet Kotto Biography (1944-)
- ^ a b c Lt. Giardello Doesn't Skip His Prayers. | Society, Social Assistance & Lifestyle > Religion & Spirituality from AllBusiness.com
- ^ "Yaphet Kotto Has Jewish Marriage Ceremony". Tuscaloosa News. 1998-07-13. Retrieved 2010-08-29.
- ^ Williams, Monte (1994-08-31). "The Soul of Diversity". People. Retrieved 2010-08-29.
- ^ http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-4381151.html
- ^ People, places & things in the news, South Coast Today.
- ^ Thomas, Bob (1969-07-17). "Jewish Negro Actor Lands Broadway Role". Kentucky New Era. Retrieved 2010-08-29.
- ^ Letters of Note: STAR TREK/Casting Further reading
- ^ (Gunsmoke; The Scavengers; Episode 294)
Further Reading
- The Royalty: A Spiritual Awakening (1997), autobiography; ISBN 0-9655950-1-3
External links
- Yaphet Kotto at the Internet Movie Database
- (Book Review)Yaphet Kotto’s Alien Diary: I don’t want to hear I’m seeing things," by Yaphet Kotto, is original, gripping, alive! It succeeds in actually conveying the personality of an FBI agent behind the badge. It takes a talented government figure, somewhat vague from the mist of federal administrators, and sharpens His outline ...until the reader can see, feel and understand his compelling charm and power. Victor Roman learns he is the reincarnation of an east Indian mystic, and is knowledgeable of a spiritual technique meant to rapidly accelerate spiritual development bring about super consciousness which , he must use to battle against an assortment of dangerous creatures produced by Reptilian forces living in underground strongholds. These chapter headings hint at the contents. Every science fiction enthusiast student should read it! Bernon Goldstein.
Yaphet Kotto’s Alien Diary tells the story of Victor Roman,,
an FBI agent in New York, whose life changes after his father had an
encounter with an unidentified flying object and has
been abducted, taken.. a culture clash between two characters, Charlotte Roman,
a Creole woman of the Old South, and Victor Roman, a rising agent of the
Federal Bureau of investigation, and his urban, working
class brother.
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