Ja'Net DuBois
Jeannette Theresa Dubois (August 5[note 1] – February 17, 2020[9][10]), known professionally as Ja'Net DuBois,[11] Ja'net DuBois,[7] and Ja'Net Du Bois[4][12][n 1] (/dʒɑːˈneɪ duːˈbwɑː/), was an American actress and singer. She was best known for her portrayal of Willona Woods, the neighborhood gossip maven and a friend of the Evans family on the CBS sitcom Good Times, which aired from 1974 to 1979.[13] DuBois additionally cowrote and sang the theme song "Movin' on Up" for The Jeffersons, which aired from 1975 until 1985.[14] After beginning her career on the stage in the early 1960s, DuBois appeared on television shows and in films into the mid-2010s.
Ja'Net DuBois | |
---|---|
Born | Jeannette Theresa Dubois August 5 |
Died | Glendale, California, U.S. | February 17, 2020
Occupations |
|
Years active | 1960–2019 |
Known for | Willona Woods – Good Times Ma Bell – I'm Gonna Git You Sucka Ms. Avery – The PJs |
Spouse(s) | Sajit Gupta (m. 1950–?; divorced) |
Children | 4 |
Biography
Early life and career
DuBois was born Jeannette Theresa Dubois in either Brooklyn, New York City,[2] or Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.[1] She was the daughter of Lillian Gouedy (1910–1984)[15] and Gordon Adelbert Dubois (1915–1960)[16][2][14] and was raised in Amityville, New York, on Long Island.[17]
DuBois began her acting career onstage during the early 1960s, making her Broadway debut with a small role in the short-lived play The Long Dream, which ran for four days in February 1960.[18] She appeared in the drama A Raisin in the Sun with Louis Gossett Jr., though not the original Broadway production.[18][19][20] After appearing in the play The Blacks in October 1963, she became an understudy for the housekeeper role, portrayed by Gertrude Jeannette, in the comedy Nobody Loves an Albatross, which ran through June 1964.[21][22][23][24] DuBois next appeared in the Broadway musical Golden Boy with Sammy Davis Jr., Billy Daniels, Lola Falana and Johnny Brown. DuBois portrayed Anna, the sister of Davis's character, through the entire original run from October 1964 to March 1966.[18][25][26]
Career
DuBois's early television acting credits include the 1969 television film J.T. and as Loretta Allen on the soap opera Love of Life from 1970 until 1972, becoming one of the first African-American female regular cast members on a daytime series. DuBois's first film appearance was her portrayal of Vera in Diary of a Mad Housewife (1970). She landed the role of Stormy Monday in the 1973 comedy Five on the Black Hand Side[27] and appeared in Lanford Wilson's play The Hot l Baltimore that same year.
During her time in the play, television producer Norman Lear watched DuBois on stage at the Mark Taper Forum and was impressed with her performance. He cast her in his CBS sitcom Good Times as Wilona Woods, the Evanses' neighbor and best friend of family matriarch Florida Evans, portrayed by Esther Rolle.[28] DuBois appeared in the show from February 1974 until the show ended in August 1979.[12] DuBois began the show as a costar alongside Rolle and John Amos (who departed the show in 1976). In 1977, DuBois's role became more prominent during the fifth season after Rolle had left the cast. DuBois returned to her costarring role when Rolle returned in the sixth and final season in 1978.[29]
After Good Times ended in 1979, DuBois recorded the album Again, Ja'Net DuBois on her Peanuts and Caviar label in 1983.[30] She appeared in former Good Times co-star Janet Jackson's 1987 "Control" music video as her mother. In 1992, she costarred with Clifton Davis in And I Still Rise, a play written and directed by Maya Angelou.[31] DuBois co-starred in the films I'm Gonna Git You Sucka (1988) and Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle (2003), and on television in Moesha, The Steve Harvey Show, A Different World, Touched by an Angel and The Wayans Bros.
Other ventures and accolades
During the 1980s, DuBois operated the Ja'net DuBois Academy of Theater Arts and Sciences, a performing arts school for teenagers on Long Island, New York.[32] In 1992, DuBois, Danny Glover and Ayuko Babu cofounded the Pan African Film & Arts Festival in Los Angeles.[33][34] In 1995, DuBois won a CableACE award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the Lifetime film Other Women's Children.[35] DuBois won Emmy Awards for her voiceover work on the animated program The PJs in 1999 and 2001. DuBois, along with the other cast members of Good Times, received the Impact Icon Award at the 2006 TV Land Awards.[36] In 2000, DuBois served as grand marshal for the North Amityville Community Parade and Festival Day in Amityville, New York.[37] DuBois was an honorary member of the Zeta Phi Beta sorority.[38]
Personal life
DuBois married Sajit Gupta in 1950.[39] According to her Brazilian consular document, DuBois was divorced from Gupta by April 1959,[2][40] but another source states that she was still married in 1964.[24] Together, DuBois and Gupta had four children: Provat Gupta, Rani Gupta, Kesha Gupta-Fields[10] and Raj Kristo Gupta, who died of cancer in 1987 at age 36.[32] Provat is a basketball coach based in California.[41] In 1959, DuBois was romantically involved with actor Brock Peters.[42]
Death
DuBois died on February 17, 2020, of cardiac arrest at her residence in Glendale, California.[10][9][43]
Discography
- Movin' On Up (theme from The Jeffersons, 1975)
- Queen of the Highway (Som Livre, 1980)
- Again, Ja'Net DuBois (Peanuts & Caviar Internationale, 1983)
- Hidden Treasures (Peanuts & Caviar Internationale, 2007)
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1966 | A Man Called Adam | Martha | |
1969 | J.T. | Rodeen Gamble | |
1973 | Five on the Black Hand Side | Stormy Monday | |
1977 | A Piece of the Action | Nellie Bond | |
1983 | The Tom Swift and Linda Craig Mystery Hour | Mrs. Gorman | Television film |
1986 | Stranded | Bettina | Television film |
1987 | Kids Like These | Mrs. Page | Television film |
1988 | I'm Gonna Git You Sucka | Ma Bell | |
1990 | Heart Condition | Mrs. Stone | |
1990 | Hammer, Slammer, & Slade | Joanne Wilson | Television film |
1990 | Penny Ante: The Motion Picture | Aunt | |
1993 | Harlan & Merleen | Maxine | Television film |
1995 | Magic Island | Lucretia | |
1996 | Sophie & the Moonhanger | Agnes | Television film |
1996 | Don't Look Back | Mrs. Lawson | Television film |
1998 | Best Friends for Life | Katie Pegues | Television film |
1998 | Hard Time | Lefty | Television film |
1999 | Hard Time: Hostage Hotel | Lefty, Logan's Assistant | Television film |
2000 | Waterproof | Viola Battle | |
2003 | Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle | Momma Bosley | |
2016 | She's Got a Plan | Betty Angelo |
Television
Year(s) | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1970–72 | Love of Life | Loretta Allen | unknown episodes |
1972 | Sanford and Son | Juanita Grismore | 1 episode |
1973 | Shaft | Diana Richie | 1 episode |
1973 | The Blue Knight | Celia Louise | |
1974–79 | Good Times | Willona Woods | 133 episodes |
1974 | Kojak | Paula Thomas | 1 episode |
1975 | Caribe | Melinda Jameson | 1 episode |
1979 | Roots: The Next Generations | Sally Harvey | 1 episode |
1980 | The Love Boat | Evelyn Hopkins | 1 episode |
1981 | Hellinger's Law | Dottie Singer | |
1981 | The Facts of Life | Ethel (Tootie's grandmother) | 1 episode |
1981 | The Sophisticated Gents | Onetha Wiggins | TV miniseries |
1989 | Nearly Departed | Clerk | 1 episode |
1990 | New Attitude | Irma | 1 episode |
1990 | Doctor Doctor | Ella Wilkes | 1 episode |
1991 | A Different World | Brenda Hanes | 1 episode |
1991 | True Colors | May Freeman | 1 episode |
1991 | Dream On | June | 1 episode |
1992 | Beverly Hills, 90210 | Arlene | 1 episode |
1992–93 | The Golden Palace | Louise Wilson | 2 episodes |
1994 | Sister, Sister | Mom O'Danielle | 1 episode |
1994 | Hangin' with Mr. Cooper | Dorothy Cooper | 1 episode |
1995 | Martin | Herself | 1 episode |
1991/1995 | Home Improvement | Carol | 2 episodes |
1995 | ER | Macy Chamberlain | 1 episode |
1997 | Moesha | Mrs. Moss | 1 episode |
1997 | Touched by an Angel | Esther Hamilton | 1 episode |
1996–1998 | The Wayans Bros. | Grandma Ellington | 10 episodes |
1999 | Clueless | Aunt Liddy | 1 episode |
1999–2001 | The PJs | Mrs. Florence Avery | Voice, 43 episodes |
2000 | The Steve Harvey Show | Delores | 1 episode |
2000 | Everybody Loves Raymond | Dottie | 1 episode |
2000/2002 | As Told by Ginger | Mrs. Patterson | Voice, 2 episodes |
2003 | Boomtown | Denise Smith | 1 episode |
2003 | One on One | Queen Esther | 1 episode |
2006 | Crossing Jordan | Mrs. Jones | 1 episode |
2007 | Random! Cartoons | Mom | Voice, episode: "Samsquatch" |
2007 | Cold Case | Edna Johnson | 1 episode |
2011 | G.I. Joe: Renegades | Grams Hinton | Voice |
2019 | Live in Front of a Studio Audience: Good Times | Herself |
Awards and nominations
Year | Award | Category | Series | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
1998 | NAACP Image Award | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series | Touched by an Angel | Nominated |
1999 | Primetime Emmy | Outstanding Voice-Over Performance | The PJs | Won[44] |
2001 | Primetime Emmy | Outstanding Voice-Over Performance | The PJs: Let's Get Ready to Rumba | Won[45] |
2006 | TV Land | Image Award | Good Times | Won[46] |
Notes
- Capitalization of "n" in first name is uncertain in Good Times title card, which credits her in capital letters "JA'NET du BOIS". Last name is given as two words, with "du" lowercase.
References
- "Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Immigration Cards, 1900–1965, Jeannette Du Bois Gupta". Familysearch.org. July 3, 1959 – via Imgur.com.
- "Brazilian consular document". Familysearch.org. April 24, 1959 – via Imgur.com.
- "Jeannette Du Bois Gupta Arrival document". Familysearch.org. July 5, 1959 – via Imgur.com.
- "Ja'Net Du Bois". TV Guide. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016. Retrieved June 19, 2017.
- Windsor, Carl D. (2006). On This Day: Daily Inspiration for the History Buff, the Trivia Lover, and the Innately Curious. Howard Books. ISBN 978-1-58229-654-8.
- Berry, S. Torriano; Berry, Venise T. (2015). "DUBOIS, JA'NET (1945– )". Historical Dictionary of African American Cinema (2 ed.). Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. p. 142. ISBN 978-1-4422-4702-4.
This native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
- LoBrutto, Vincent (2018). "Good Times". TV in the USA: A History of Icons, Idols, and Ideas. Greenwood. p. 39. ISBN 978-1-4408-2972-7.
...Ja'net DuBois (1945– )...
- Powers, Retha (2013). Bartlett's Familiar Black Quotations 5,000 Years of Literature, Lyrics, Poems, Passages, Phrases, and Proverbs from Voices Around the World. Little, Brown. ISBN 9780316250689.
- "Good Times Actress Ja'Net DuBois Dies At 74". BET. February 19, 2020. Archived from the original on February 20, 2020. Retrieved February 19, 2020.
- Garcia, Sandra E. (February 19, 2020). "'Good Times' Actress Ja'Net DuBois Dies". The New York Times. Retrieved February 19, 2020.
- "Ja'Net DuBois". TV One. August 15, 2012. Archived from the original on October 27, 2015. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- McCann, Bob (December 21, 2009). "Du Bois, Ja'Net". Encyclopedia of African American Actresses in Film and Television. McFarland & Company. pp. 103–04. ISBN 978-0-7864-5804-2. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
Jeannette Dubois, better known as Ja'Net Du Bois (Ja-Nay Doo-Bwah)...
- Foxx, Redd; Norma Miller, "Ja'Net DuBois", The Redd Foxx Encyclopedia of Black Humor, W. Ritchie Press, 1977, p. 225. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
- "TV Actress Ja'Net DuBois To Appear On 'Arsenio'". Jet. Vol. 82, no. 6. Johnson Publishing Company. June 1, 1992. p. 60. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
- "Lillian Gouedy (1910–1984)". Ancestry.com. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
- "U.S. WWII Draft Cards Young Men, 1940–1947 for Gordon Adelbert Dubois". FamilySearch. 1940–1947 – via Imgur.
- Van Gelder, Lawrence (September 19, 1976). "People: Rookie Who Looks Good". The New York Times. Retrieved January 28, 2020. (abstract of page on subscription site)
- "Jeannette DuBois". Internet Broadway Database. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
- "A Raisin in the Sun". Internet Broadway Database. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
- "'Good Times' actress Ja'Net Dubois Dies". The Chicago Crusader. February 20, 2020. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
- "New York Beat". Jet. Vol. XXV, no. 17. Johnson Publishing Company. February 13, 1964. p. 63. Retrieved February 24, 2020 – via Google Books.
Jeanette DuBois, who joined the cast of The Blacks last October and soon thereafter won the understudy slot to the housekeeper in the comedy hit Nobody Loves an Albatross...
- "Nobody Loves an Albatross Opening-Night Cast". Internet Broadway Database. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
- "Golden Boy Opening Night Cast". Internet Broadway Database. Archived from the original on October 14, 2019. Retrieved January 28, 2020.
- "Negros on Broadway". Ebony. Vol. XIX, no. 6. Johnson Publishing Company. April 1, 1964. p. 63. Retrieved February 26, 2020 – via Google Books.
- "Golden Boy". Internet Broadway Database. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
- "Why Can't Negro Male Star Win White Girl In End?". Jet. Vol. XXVII, no. 8. Johnson Publishing Company. November 27, 1964. p. 64. Retrieved February 24, 2020 – via Google Books.
- Weiler, A.H. (October 26, 1973). "Film: 'Black Hand Side': Stage's Brooks Family Arrives on Screen The Cast". The New York Times. Retrieved February 26, 2020.
- Campbell, Sean (December 24, 2014). "Good Times (1974–1979)". The Sitcoms of Norman Lear. McFarland & Company. p. 98. ISBN 978-1-4766-0255-4. Retrieved February 26, 2020.
- Forbes, 'Good Times' Star Ja'net DuBois Dies at 74, Feb 18, 2020.Retrieved February 26, 2020.
- "Celebrity Beat – New York to Hollywood". Jet. Vol. 64, no. 10. Johnson Publishing Company. May 16, 1983. p. 53.
- "Actor Clifton Davis Stars in Maya Angelou's New Musical". Jet. Vol. 82, no. 20. Johnson Publishing Company. September 7, 1992. p. 60. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
- "Ja'Net DuBois' Son Dies of Cancer, in New York". Jet. Vol. 73, no. 5. Johnson Publishing Company. October 26, 1987. p. 61. ISSN 0021-5996.
Raj Kristo Gupta, the son of popular TV and movie actress Ja'Net DuBois, died recently in New York following a three-year battle with cancer. He was 36. At the time of his death, Gupta was producing a training workshop with his family's organization, Ja'net DuBois Academy [of] Theater Arts and Sciences for teenagers in Long Island, N.Y.
- "2019 Highlights". Pan African Film & Arts Festival. 2019. Archived from the original on November 2, 2019.
- Kelley, Sonaiya (February 7, 2018). "The Pan African Film Festival aims to correct misconceptions about African and Caribbean countries". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 2, 2019.
- "Ja'net DuBois, Chris Rock win CableAce Awards". Jet. Vol. 87, no. 13. Johnson Publishing Company. February 6, 1995.
- Christian, Margena A. (January 28, 2008). "Where Is... The Cast of 'Good Times'?". Jet. Vol. 113, no. 3. p. 31.
- "Newsmakers". Jet. Vol. 98, no. 8. Johnson Publishing Company. July 31, 2000. p. 32.
- "Heritage: Notable Zetas > Entertainment". Zeta Phi Beta Sorority International Website. Archived from the original on July 18, 2011. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
- "Sajit Gupta". New York City Marriages, 1950–2017. Archived from the original on February 24, 2020. Retrieved February 22, 2020 – via MyHeritage.
- "Ja'Net DuBois Dead: 'Good Times' & 'Charlie's Angels' Star Dies at 74". Entertainment. Heavy. February 18, 2020. Retrieved February 19, 2020.
- Gary, Parrish (July 30, 2015). "The Ball family -- coming to a basketball court (and TV) near you". CBS Sports. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
- "New York Beat". Jet. Vol. XVII, no. 3. Johnson Publishing Company. November 12, 1959. p. 64. Retrieved February 19, 2020 – via Google Books.
- Boone (March 12, 2020). "'Good Times' Star Ja'Net DuBois's Cause Of Death Revealed". Essencefirst=Keyaira. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
- "Ja'Net DuBois And Judith Jamison Win Primetime Emmy Awards". Jet. Vol. 96, no. 16. Johnson Publishing Company. September 20, 1999. p. 34. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
- Dutka, Elaine (August 14, 2001). "Morning Report". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
- Christian, Margena A. (January 28, 2008). "The Cast of 'Good Times'?". Jet. Vol. 113, no. 3. p. 31. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
External links
- Ja'net DuBois at IMDb
- Ja'Net DuBois discography at Discogs