Celebrate Lynn Whitfield’s 70th Birthday With These TV Shows And Films
Happy Birthday Lynn Whitfield! The Primetime Emmy award-winning actress is celebrating her 70th birthday today, Wednesday, Feb. 15, and we have to take a look back at her successful Hollywood career in both television and film.
Hailing from her native Louisiana, Whitfield received her BFA graduate from Howard University. Before entering into Hollywood, the actress appeared off-Broadway in such shows as The Great Macdaddy and Showdown before earning acclaim in the 1977 production the land Black play For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide...When the Rainbow Is Enuf co-starring Alfre Woodard.
Whitfield received monumental success in the HBO biopic The Josephine Baker Story (1991) where she earned her first Primetime Emmy for “Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Special.” She was also nominated for a Golden Globe for “Best Performance by an Actress in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television” for her role in the film.
She is also known for her movie roles in A Thin Line Between Love and Hate and raved reviews for roles in Eve’s Bayou, Madea’s Family Reunion, All Things Fall Apart, Espionage Tonight and The Cheetah Girls.
With several appearances in television series throughout the years, Whitfiled received praise from her role as Lady Mae Greenleaf in the Southern Baptist, mega-church family drama series Greenleaf.
To honor the actress on her milestone birthday, BET.com has put together five films and TV shows to watch today!
Greenleaf
Playing Lady Mae Greenleaf in the Oprah Winfrey Network original scripted drama series, Whitfield stars as the power and money hungry first lady of a Southern megachurch alongside her husband in the show Bishop James Greenleaf (played by Keith David).
Also stars Merle Dandridge, Kim Hawthorne, Desiree Ross, Lanman Rucker, Love Simone, Deborah Joy Winans, Rick Fox and others.
Eve’s Bayou
Whitfield plays Roz Batiste, the mother of Eve Batiste (played by Journee Smollett) and when her daughter discovers that her family’s affluent existence is not what it seems to be, things take a turn.
Also stars Samuel L. Jackon, Meagan Good and Debbi Morgan.
The Josephine Baker Story
Based on the life of Josephine Baker, Lynn’s portrayal of the entertainer and humanitarian follows her journey of career while traveling to Europe as a result of racial prejudice that faced.
Also stars Rubén Blades, David Dukes, Louis Gossett Jr., Craig T. Nelson, Kene Holiday, and Vivian Bonnell.
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The Cheetah Girls and The Cheetah Girls 2
Playing Dorothea Garibaldi, the mother to Raven-Symoné’s Galleria Garibaldi, who is lead teen singer in the girl group The Cheetah Girls.
Also stars Kiely Williams, Adrienne Houghton, Sabrina Bryan, Sandra Caldwell and others.
A Thin Line Between Love and Hate
Caught in a love triangle, Whitfield plays Brandi, who is interested in ladies man Darnell Wright (played by Martin Lawrence), who is ready to say “I Do” to his girlfriend Mia (played by Regina King). But when Lawrence’s Wright tries to cut things off with Brandi, she is not willing to let things go that easily.
Also stars Bobby Brown, Della Reese, Malinda Williams, Wendy Raquel Robinson and others.
