Isabel Sanford (Louise)

Isabel Sanford

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Isabel Sanford
with Sherman Hemsley on The Jeffersons, 1975
Born	Eloise Gwendolyn Sanford August 29, 1917 New York City, New York, United States
Died	July 9, 2004 (aged 86) Los Angeles, California, United States
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1967—2004
Spouse	William Edward (Sonny) Richmond (?-1960) (his death) 3 children

Isabel Sanford (August 29, 1917 – July 9, 2004) was an American actress best known for her role as Louise "Weezy" Jefferson on the CBS television sitcoms All in the Family (1971–1975) and The Jeffersons (1975–1985).

Contents [hide] 1 Biography 1.1 Career 1.2 Death 2 Filmography 3 Awards and nominations 4 References 5 External links

[edit] Biography

[edit] Career

Born Eloise Gwendolyn Sanford in New York City, New York, to parents James Edward Sanford and the former Josephine Perry. Sanford was the first African-American actress to win a Lead Actress Emmy Award (for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 1981), and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. She was a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, and received an honorary doctorate degree from Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts.
During the 1960s, Sanford worked in the theatre industry, and in 1967 she made her film debut in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, playing the critically acclaimed role of the maid Tillie Binks. She caught the attention of major Hollywood players, including Norman Lear, who cast Sanford in the role of Louise Jefferson in All in the Family. She almost turned down the role after receiving a bucket of fried chicken in her dressing room, which in those days was a racist stereotype as a favorite food of African-Americans. Norman Lear assured her that it was a genuine gift, and she eventually agreed to play the part. Sanford and her TV husband, Sherman Hemsley, were so popular that The Jeffersons was spun off into its own series.
After production of The Jeffersons ended in 1985, Sanford realized that she and Hemsley were typecast by their Jeffersons' roles. Sanford was mostly limited to guest TV appearances and cameo appearances in movies, appearing in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Dream On, Roseanne, Living Single, Hangin' with Mr. Cooper, In the House and The Steve Harvey Show, as well as the extremely short-lived 1992 CBS Hearts Are Wild (similar to Love Boat). She also did voice acting for The Simpsons in her final television appearance before her death.
She has also done several voices on three other cartoon shows including Wait Till Your Father Gets Home, A Pup Named Scooby-Doo and Pepper Ann.
Sanford also appeared with Sherman Hemsley in a series of advertisements for Denny's and Old Navy. Such was their compatibility and credibility as a married couple that no one seemed to notice or care that Sanford was twenty years older than Hemsley. She and Hemsley also made a cameo appearances in films such as Sprung and Mafia!

[edit] Death

Sanford died on July 9, 2004, of cardiac arrest and heart disease at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California. She was a month and a half away from her 87th birthday and was interred at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills in Los Angeles.
For her contribution to the television industry, Isabel Sanford has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7080 Hollywood Boulevard.

[edit] Filmography

Film
Year	Film	Role	Other notes
1967	Guess Who's Coming to Dinner	Tillie
1968	The Young Runaways	Sarah
1969	Pendulum	Effie
	The Comic	Woman
1970	The Red, White, and Black	Isabel Taylor
1972	The New Centurions	Wilma
	Hickey & Boggs	Nyona's Mother
	Lady Sings the Blues	The Madame
	Up the Sandbox	Maria
1974	The Photographer	Mrs. Slade
1979	Love At First Bite	Judge R. Thomas
1981	Desperate Moves	Dottie Butz
1990	Pucker Up and Bark Like a Dog	Joanna
1992	South Beach	Mama
1996	Original Gangstas	Gracie Bookman
1997	Sprung	Sista #1
1998	Jane Austen's Mafia!	Mrs. Louise Jefferson	Uncredited
2000	Click Three Times	Dorothy
Television
Year	Title	Role	Notes
1968	Bewitched	Aunt Jenny	1 episode
	The Mod Squad	Lillian	1 episode
1970	Daniel Boone	Maybelle	1 episode
1971	The Bill Cosby Show	Bertha	1 episode
	The Interns	Dr. Hearn	1 episode
1971–1972	Love, American Style		2 episodes
1971–1979	All in the Family	Louise Jefferson	26 episodes
1972	The Mary Tyler Moore Show	Mrs. Wilson	1 episode
1972	Wait Till Your Father Gets Home	Betsy (voice)	1 episode
1973	Temperatures Rising		1 episode
1974	Kojak	Grace	1 episode
1978	Vega$	Mae	1 episode
1975–1985	The Jeffersons	Louise Jefferson	251 episodes
1979	Supertrain	Reba	1 episode
1980–1983	The Love Boat	Tanya, Isaac's Aunt	2 episodes
1986	Crazy Like a Fox		1 episode
	The New Mike Hammer	Mama Vibes	1 episode
1987	Isabel's Honeymoon Hotel	Isabel Scott	Unknown episodes
1988	A Pup Named Scooby-Doo	Additional voices	Episode A Bicycle Built for Boo!
1993	Dream On	Judge Isabel Kohner	1 episode
	Living Single	Eunetta Ryan	1 episode
1994	Hangin' with Mr. Cooper	Judge	1 episode
	Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman	Ms. Duffy	1 episode
1995	Roseanne	Louise Jefferson, TV Mom #3	1 episode
	In the House	Nanna	2 episodes
1995–1996	The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air	Louise 'Weezy' Jefferson	2 episodes
1996	The Steve Harvey Show	Mother Hightower	1 episode
1997	Teen Angel	Laurie	1 episode
1998	Pepper Ann	Bernice (voice)	1 episode
2001	The Parkers	Evelyn 'Nana' Smith	1 episode
2002	The Young and the Restless	Sylvia	1 episode
2004	The Simpsons	Herself	1 episode
2004	Candid Camera	Mrs. Jefferson	1 episode

[edit] Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Result	Category	Film or series
1979	Emmy Award	Nominated	Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series	The Jeffersons
1980		Nominated	Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series	The Jeffersons
1981		Won	Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series	The Jeffersons
1982		Nominated	Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series	The Jeffersons
1983		Nominated	Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series	The Jeffersons
1984		Nominated	Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series	The Jeffersons
1985		Nominated	Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series	The Jeffersons
1977	Golden Globe Award	Nominated	Best TV Actress - Musical/Comedy	The Jeffersons
1978		Nominated	Best TV Actress - Musical/Comedy	The Jeffersons
1983		Nominated	Best Performance by an Actress in a TV-Series - Comedy/Musical	The Jeffersons
1984		Nominated	Best Performance by an Actress in a TV-Series - Comedy/Musical	The Jeffersons
1985		Nominated	Best Performance by an Actress in a TV-Series - Comedy/Musical	The Jeffersons
2004	TV Land Awards	Won	Favorite Cantankerous Couple	The Jeffersons (Shared with Sherman Hemsley)

[edit] References

Kathryn Shattuck (13 July 2004). "Isabel Sanford, 86, Actress Who Portrayed Mrs. Jefferson, Dies". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-03-19.

[edit] External links

• Isabel Sanford Official Web site <http://www.IsabelSanford.tv>
• Isabel Sanford at the Internet Movie Database
• Isabel Sanford at TV.com
• Isabel Sanford at Find a Grave

[hide]v · d · ePrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress - Comedy Series Mary Tyler Moore (1976) · Beatrice Arthur (1977) · Jean Stapleton (1978) · Ruth Gordon (1979) · Cathryn Damon (1980) · Isabel Sanford (1981) · Carol Kane (1982) · Shelley Long (1983) · Jane Curtin (1984) · Jane Curtin (1985) · Betty White (1986) · Rue McClanahan (1987) · Beatrice Arthur (1988) · Candice Bergen (1989) · Candice Bergen (1990) · Kirstie Alley (1991) · Candice Bergen (1992) · Roseanne Barr (1993) · Candice Bergen (1994) · Candice Bergen (1995) · Helen Hunt (1996) · Helen Hunt (1997) · Helen Hunt (1998) · Helen Hunt (1999) · Patricia Heaton (2000) Complete list: (1950–1975) · (1976–2000) · (2001–present)

Categories: 1917 births | 2004 deaths | Actors from New York City | African American film actors | African American television actors | American film actors | American television actors | American voice actors | Cardiovascular disease deaths in California | Emmy Award winners | Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills) | People from Manhattan