Esther Rolle Was Always Typecast In Movies - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

isiahthomas · 02-20-2004, 04:32 PM

Only movies i've seen her in is Rosewood & Driving Miss Daisy & in both of those movies she was a maid. Did she play in any other movies that weren't about slavery or racism? LOL. I get tired of seeing Cicely Tyson in those type of movies also. Cicely is always getting typecast. I was lookin at a movie about Martin Luther King a few days ago & Paul Winfield played Martin & Cicely was his wife Coretta. I said to myself i should've known she would be in this movie LOL. Cicely always plays in movies about slavery & racism. I did finally see her play a different role in Bustin Loose movie with Richard Pryor.

magellan333 · 02-20-2004, 06:57 PM

Esther Rolle was in a movie called "Down in the Delta" with Wesley Snipes. It wasn't that great. She played a lady with Alzheimers Disease. She was doing those psyhcic commercials in her later years.

vashti1999 · 02-20-2004, 10:21 PM

I recently saw The Mighty Quinn for the first time, which featured Esther in a supporting role. She also had a small part in the classic Cleopatra Jones. I don't think she was typecast.

PracTz · 02-21-2004, 09:35 PM

The good news is that one time I saw Miss Rolle actually playing a judge

The bad news is that it was on a 'Love Boat' episode in which she had the somewhat thankless task of giving Charo's character her US Citizenship Naturalization test- on board the LB itself with Charo singing and dancing her 'answers'! Somehow, I don't think this is exactly what Miss Rolle had in mind when it came to wanting to play dignified roles.

Lady T · 02-21-2004, 09:38 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by PracTz
The good news is that one time I saw Miss Rolle actually playing a judge
The bad news is that it was on a 'Love Boat' episode in which she had the somewhat thankless task of giving Charo's character her US Citizenship Naturalization test- on board the LB itself with Charo singing and dancing her 'answers'! Somehow, I don't think this is exactly what Miss Rolle had in mind when it came to wanting to play dignified roles.

Though this role was not from a movie, I saw an episode of The New Odd Couple where Eshter Rolle played an accountant...

marvin g · 02-23-2004, 09:44 PM

There just wasn't alot of roles for her to play in period. Now for Cicely Tyson, she wasn't typecast, she look for those roles to play. Her biggest role was Miss Jane Pittman in the 1970's. She's always been conscience of her blackness.

isiahthomas · 02-24-2004, 05:45 PM

I seriously doubt it if Cicely looked for those roles to play. Nobody wants to play in movies about slavery & racism all the time. Blacks should never forget those times but i wouldn't want to play in movies about that all the time cause it brings back too many bad memories.

marvin g · 02-24-2004, 09:53 PM

Back in the 70's those were break through roles because it finally told the story, true and fiction, of the black experience. Remember Roots was a epic in those days and alot of people had no idea of our experience in this country. Cicely Tyson had a small role in that t.v movie, but just about every black actor in hollywood was in Roots and Roots: the Next Generation.

vashti1999 · 02-24-2004, 10:26 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by marvin g
Back in the 70's those were break through roles because it finally told the story, true and fiction, of the black experience. Remember Roots was a epic in those days and alot of people had no idea of our experience in this country. Cicely Tyson had a small role in that t.v movie, but just about every black actor in hollywood was in Roots and Roots: the Next Generation.

Even OJ Simpson was in Roots!!! I agree Roots and Roots: the Next Generation was an event back then and attracted a lot of actors, Black and White, who wanted to be a part of it. Everyone from James Earl Jones and Ben Vereen to Sandy Duncan and Robert Reed of the Brady Bunch. And of course John Amos as the adult Kunta Kinte. I'm surprised Esther Rolle wasn't part of it though.

marvin g · 02-25-2004, 09:46 PM

Good Times was still on at the time wasn't it? I can't remember. I remember O.J said at one time that he had a hard time keeping up with LaVar Burton when he chasing him!

vashti1999 · 02-25-2004, 10:21 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by marvin g
Good Times was still on at the time wasn't it? I can't remember.

Yes, Roots was 1977 so Good Times was still on at that time.

02-20-2004, 04:32 PM	#1
isiahthomas Member Forum Fanatic Join Date: Aug 20, 2002 Location: Cleveland, Ohio Posts: 10,704	Esther Rolle Was Always Typecast In Movies Only movies i've seen her in is Rosewood & Driving Miss Daisy & in both of those movies she was a maid. Did she play in any other movies that weren't about slavery or racism? LOL. I get tired of seeing Cicely Tyson in those type of movies also. Cicely is always getting typecast. I was lookin at a movie about Martin Luther King a few days ago & Paul Winfield played Martin & Cicely was his wife Coretta. I said to myself i should've known she would be in this movie LOL. Cicely always plays in movies about slavery & racism. I did finally see her play a different role in Bustin Loose movie with Richard Pryor.

02-20-2004, 10:21 PM	#3
vashti1999 NY METS - #1 Forum Fanatic Join Date: Oct 14, 2003 Location: The world's greatest city - New York City Posts: 11,404	I recently saw The Mighty Quinn for the first time, which featured Esther in a supporting role. She also had a small part in the classic Cleopatra Jones. I don't think she was typecast.
	__________________ .

02-21-2004, 09:35 PM	#4
PracTz Member Senior Member Join Date: Jul 14, 2002 Location: United States of America [Happily Living in the 20th Century] Posts: 2,711	Not Entirely Typecast The good news is that one time I saw Miss Rolle actually playing a judge The bad news is that it was on a 'Love Boat' episode in which she had the somewhat thankless task of giving Charo's character her US Citizenship Naturalization test- on board the LB itself with Charo singing and dancing her 'answers'! Somehow, I don't think this is exactly what Miss Rolle had in mind when it came to wanting to play dignified roles.

02-20-2004, 06:57 PM	#2
magellan333 Member Forum Regular Join Date: Jun 26, 2003 Location: Chattanooga, TN Posts: 822	Esther Rolle was in a movie called "Down in the Delta" with Wesley Snipes. It wasn't that great. She played a lady with Alzheimers Disease. She was doing those psyhcic commercials in her later years.

02-23-2004, 09:44 PM	#6
marvin g Member Senior Member Join Date: Jul 30, 2003 Location: Chicago,IL Posts: 1,217	There just wasn't alot of roles for her to play in period. Now for Cicely Tyson, she wasn't typecast, she look for those roles to play. Her biggest role was Miss Jane Pittman in the 1970's. She's always been conscience of her blackness.

02-24-2004, 05:45 PM	#7
isiahthomas Member Forum Fanatic Join Date: Aug 20, 2002 Location: Cleveland, Ohio Posts: 10,704	I seriously doubt it if Cicely looked for those roles to play. Nobody wants to play in movies about slavery & racism all the time. Blacks should never forget those times but i wouldn't want to play in movies about that all the time cause it brings back too many bad memories.

02-24-2004, 09:53 PM	#8
marvin g Member Senior Member Join Date: Jul 30, 2003 Location: Chicago,IL Posts: 1,217	Back in the 70's those were break through roles because it finally told the story, true and fiction, of the black experience. Remember Roots was a epic in those days and alot of people had no idea of our experience in this country. Cicely Tyson had a small role in that t.v movie, but just about every black actor in hollywood was in Roots and Roots: the Next Generation.

02-25-2004, 09:46 PM	#10
marvin g Member Senior Member Join Date: Jul 30, 2003 Location: Chicago,IL Posts: 1,217	Good Times was still on at the time wasn't it? I can't remember. I remember O.J said at one time that he had a hard time keeping up with LaVar Burton when he chasing him!