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Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
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For the film adaptations, see Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958 film) and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1984 film).
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
First edition cover (New Directions)
Written by
Tennessee Williams
Characters
Margaret
Brick
Big Daddy
Big Mama
Mae/"Sister Woman"
Gooper/"Brother Man"
Doctor Baugh
Reverend Tooker
Date premiered
March 24, 1955
Place premiered
Morosco Theatre
New York City, New York
Original language
English
Subject
Death, mendacity, relationships, loneliness, homosexuality, alcoholism
Genre
Drama, southern gothic
Setting
Brick and Margaret's room on the Pollitt plantation in Mississippi
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is a play by Tennessee Williams. One of Williams's more famous works and his personal favorite,[1] the play won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1955. Set in the "plantation home in the Mississippi Delta"[2] of Big Daddy Pollitt, a wealthy cotton tycoon, the play examines the relationships among members of Big Daddy's family, primarily between his son Brick and Maggie the "Cat", Brick's wife.
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof features motifs such as social mores, greed, superficiality, mendacity, decay, sexual desire, repression and death. Dialogue throughout is often rendered phonetically to represent accents of the Southern United States. The original production starred Barbara Bel Geddes, Burl Ives and Ben Gazzara. The play was adapted as a motion picture of the same name in 1958, starring Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman as Maggie and Brick, with Burl Ives and Madeleine Sherwood recreating their stage roles. Williams made substantial excisions and alterations to the play for a revival in 1974. This has been the version used for most subsequent revivals, which have been numerous.
Contents
[hide]
1 Plot
2 Themes
2.1 Falsehoods and untruths
2.2 Facing death
3 Stage productions
3.1 Original production
3.2 Revivals
4 Original Broadway cast
5 Original West End cast
6 Adaptations
7 Awards and nominations
7.1 Original Broadway production
7.2 1974 Broadway revival
7.3 1990 Broadway revival
7.4 2003 Broadway revival
7.5 2008 Broadway revival
8 See also
9 References
10 Further reading
11 External links
Plot[edit]
Barbara Bel Geddes as Maggie in the original Broadway production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1955)
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is the story of a Southern family in crisis, especially the husband Brick and wife Margaret (usually called Maggie or "Maggie the Cat"), and their interaction with Brick's family over the course of one evening's gathering at the family estate in Mississippi. The party is to celebrate the birthday of patriarch Big Daddy Pollitt, "the Delta's biggest cotton-planter",[2] and his return from the Ochsner Clinic with what he has been told is a clean bill of health. All family members (except Big Daddy and his wife Big Mama) are aware of Big Daddy's true diagnosis: He is dying of cancer. His family has lied to Big Daddy and Big Mama to spare the aging couple from pain on the patriarch's birthday but, throughout the course of the play, it becomes clear that the Pollitt family has long constructed a web of deceit for itself.
Maggie, determined and beautiful, has escaped a childhood of poverty to marry into the wealthy Pollitts, but finds herself unfulfilled. The family is aware that Brick has not slept with Maggie for a long time, which has strained their marriage. Brick, an aging football hero, infuriates her by ignoring his brother Gooper's attempts to gain control of the family fortune. Brick's indifference and his drinking have escalated with the suicide of his friend Skipper. Maggie fears that Brick's malaise will ensure that Gooper and his wife Mae inherit Big Daddy's estate.
Ben Gazzara as Brick in the original Broadway production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1955)
Through the evening, Brick, Big Daddy and Maggie—and the entire family—separately must face the issues which they have bottled up inside. Big Daddy attempts a reconciliation with the alcoholic Brick. Both Big Daddy and Maggie separately confront Brick about the true nature of his relationship with his pro football buddy Skipper, which appears to be the source of Brick's sorrow and the cause of his alcoholism.
Brick explains to Big Daddy that Maggie was jealous of the close friendship between Brick and Skipper because she believed it had a romantic undercurrent. He states that Skipper took Maggie to bed to prove her wrong. Brick believes that when Skipper couldn't complete the act, his self-questioning about his sexuality and his friendship with Brick made him "snap". Brick also reveals that, shortly before he committed suicide, Skipper confessed his feelings to Brick, but Brick rejected him.
Disgusted with the family's "mendacity", Brick tells Big Daddy that the report from the clinic about his condition was falsified for his sake. Big Daddy storms out of the room, leading the party gathered out on the gallery to drift inside. Maggie, Brick, Mae, Gooper, and Doc Baugh (the family's physician) decide to tell Big Mama the truth about his illness, and she is devastated by the news. Gooper and Mae start to discuss the division of the Pollitt estate. Big Mama defends her husband from Gooper and Mae's proposals.
Big Daddy reappears and makes known his plans to die peacefully. Attempting to secure Brick's inheritance, Maggie tells him she is pregnant. Gooper and Mae know this is a lie, but Big Mama and Big Daddy believe that Maggie "has life". When they are alone again, Maggie locks away the liquor and promises Brick that she will "make the lie true".
Themes[edit]
Falsehoods and untruths[edit]
Mendacity is a recurring theme throughout the play. Brick uses the word to express his disgust with the "lies and liars" he sees around him, and with complicated rules of social conduct in Southern society and culture. Big Daddy states that Brick's disgust with mendacity is really disgust with himself for rejecting Skipper before his suicide. With the exception of Brick, the entire family lies to Big Daddy and Big Mama about his terminal cancer. Furthermore, Big Daddy lies to his wife, and Gooper and Mae exhibit avaricious motives in their attempt to secure Big Daddy's estate.
In some cases, characters refuse to believe certain statements, leading them to believe they are lies. A recurring phrase is the line, "Wouldn't it be funny if that was true?", said by both Big Daddy and Brick after Big Mama and Maggie (respectively) claim their love. The characters' statements of feeling are no longer clear-cut truths or lies; instead they become subject more to certainty or uncertainty. This phrase is the last line of the play as originally written by Williams and again in the 1974 version.[3]
Facing death[edit]
The ways in which humans deal with death are also at the focus of this play, as are the futility and nihilism some encounter when confronted with imminent mortality. Similar ideas are found in Dylan Thomas's "Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night", which Williams excerpted and added as an epigraph to his 1974 version.[4] These lines are appropriate, as Thomas wrote the poem to his own dying father.[5]
Additionally, in one of his many drafts,[6] in a footnote on Big Daddy's action in the third act, Williams deems Cat on a Hot Tin Roof a "play which says only one affirmative thing about 'Man's Fate': that he has it still in his power not to squeal like a pig but to keep a tight mouth about it."[6]
Stage productions[edit]
There are many versions of the play script, one of which was influenced by director Elia Kazan, who directed the play on Broadway,[7] and another which was performed for the first time in London.[citation needed]
Original production[edit]
The original Broadway production, which opened at the Morosco Theater on March 24, 1955, was directed by Elia Kazan and starred Barbara Bel Geddes as Maggie, Ben Gazzara as Brick, Burl Ives as Big Daddy, Mildred Dunnock as Big Mama, Pat Hingle as Gooper, and Madeleine Sherwood as Mae.[8] Bel Geddes was the only cast member nominated for a Tony Award, and Kazan was nominated for Best Director of a Play.[9] Both Ives and Sherwood would reprise their roles in the 1958 film version. The cast also featured the southern blues duo Brownie McGhee and Sonny Terry and had as Gazzara's understudy the young Cliff Robertson. When Gazzara left the play, Jack Lord replaced him.[10] Others from the original Broadway production included R.G. Armstrong as Doctor Baugh, Fred Stewart as Reverend Tooker, Janice Dunn as Trixie, Seth Edwards as Sonny, Maxwell Glanville as Lacey, Pauline Hahn as Dixie, Darryl Richard as Buster, Eva Vaughn Smith as Daisy, and Musa Williams as Sookey.[8]
In London, the play was directed by Peter Hall and opened at the Comedy Theatre on January 30, 1958. Kim Stanley starred as Maggie, with Paul Massie as Brick and Leo McKern as Big Daddy.[11]
Revivals[edit]
A 1974 revival by the American Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford, Connecticut, featured Elizabeth Ashley, Keir Dullea, Fred Gwynne, Kate Reid, and Charles Siebert. Ashley was nominated for a Tony Award. For this production, Williams restored much of the text which he had removed from the original one at the insistence of Elia Kazan. He included a revised third act and made substantial revisions elsewhere.[12] According to Ashley, Williams allowed the actors to examine his original notes and various drafts of the script, and to make additions to the dialogue. When this production moved from Connecticut to Broadway, the part of Lacey was omitted and the number of Mae and Gooper's children reduced to three.[13] In that same decade, John Carradine and Mercedes McCambridge toured in a road company production as Big Daddy and Big Mama.
The 1988 London National Theatre production, directed by Howard Davies, starred Ian Charleson, Lindsay Duncan, Barbara Leigh-Hunt, and Eric Porter.
A revival in 1990 featured Kathleen Turner, who was nominated for a Tony for her performance as Maggie, though New York magazine called her "hopelessly lost ... in this limp production." Charles Durning, as Big Daddy, received a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play. Daniel Hugh Kelly was Brick, and Polly Holliday was Big Mama. Holliday also was nominated for a Tony.
A 2003 revival received lukewarm reviews despite the presence of film stars Ashley Judd and Jason Patric. Only Ned Beatty as Big Daddy and Margo Martindale as Big Mama were singled out for impressive performances. Martindale received a Tony nomination.
A 2003 revival for Belvoir St Theatre was directed by Simon Stone and starred Jacqueline McKenzie as Maggie, Ewen Leslie as Brick, and Marshall Napier as Big Daddy. This production was a box office hit, with season extended to the Theatre Royal (Sydney).[14]
A 2004 production at the Kennedy Center featured Mary Stuart Masterson as Maggie, Jeremy Davidson as Brick, George Grizzard as Big Daddy, Dana Ivey as Big Mama, and Emily Skinner as Mae. Shortly afterward, Masterson and Davidson were married.
In 2008, an all-black production directed by Debbie Allen opened on Broadway. Terrence Howard made his Broadway debut as Brick, with James Earl Jones as Big Daddy, Phylicia Rashad as Big Mama, Anika Noni Rose as Maggie and Lisa Arrindell Anderson as Mae. In November 2009, the production moved to London's West End, where Adrian Lester played Brick and Sanaa Lathan played Maggie.[15] The West End Production received the 2010 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Revival of a Play.
In 2010, a production of the play opened at Cambridge University's ADC Theatre, and in January 2011, a production to mark Williams' 100th birthday was presented at Vienna's English Theatre, Vienna, Austria. The play was performed at the Shaw Festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Canada in 2011 and in 2012 at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis.
A 2013 Broadway revival featured Ciarán Hinds as Big Daddy, Debra Monk as Big Mama, Benjamin Walker as Brick, George Porteous as Sonny, and Scarlett Johansson as Maggie.[16]
A 2014 production played at Royal & Derngate, Royal Exchange Theatre and Northern Stage, with original music by White Lies. It featured Mariah Gale, Charles Aitken, Daragh O'Malley and Kim Criswell and was directed by James Dacre. In this production, O'Malley was singled out for his performance and won an MTA Award and Stage Nomination for his portrayal of Big Daddy.
The Berkshire Theatre Festival produced the play in June, 2016, under the direction of David Auburn, with Michael Raymond-James as Brick, Rebecca Brooksher as Maggie, Linda Gehringer as Big Mama, and Jim Beaver as Big Daddy.[17]
Original Broadway cast[edit]
Barbara Bel Geddes as Margaret[18]
Ben Gazzara as Brick
Jack Lord as Brick (replaced Ben Gazzara)
Burl Ives as Big Daddy
Mildred Dunnock as Big Mama
Pat Hingle as Gooper, sometimes called Brother Man[18]
Madeleine Sherwood as Mae, sometimes called Sister Woman[18]
R.G. Armstrong as Doctor Baugh, pronounced "Baw"[13]
Fred Stewart as Reverend Tooker
Janice Dunn as Trixie
Seth Edwards as Sonny
Maxwell Glanville as Lacey
Pauline Hahn as Dixie
Brownie McGhee as Brightie
Darryl Richard as Buster
Eva Vaughn Smith as Daisy
Sonny Terry as Small
Musa Williams as Sookey
Original West End cast[edit]
Kim Stanley as Margaret
Paul Massie as Brick
Leo McKern as Big Daddy
Bee Duffell as Big Mama
Alan Tilvern as Gooper
Daphne Anderson as Mae
Launce Maraschal as Doctor Baugh
Roger Winton as Reverend Tooker
Vanessa Petty as Trixie
Don Johnson as Lacey
Lorna Henderson as Dixie
Sylvia Sutch as Buster
Mark Heath as Small
Sonate as Sookey
Adaptations[edit]
Main article: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958 film)
The big-screen adaptation of the play was made in 1958 by MGM, and starred Elizabeth Taylor, Paul Newman, Judith Anderson, and Jack Carson, with Burl Ives and Madeleine Sherwood reprising their stage roles. The Hays Code limited Brick's portrayal of sexual desire for Skipper, and diminished the original play's critique of homophobia and sexism. Williams reportedly was unhappy with the screenplay, which removed almost all of the homosexual themes and revised the third act section to include a lengthy scene of reconciliation between Brick and Big Daddy. Paul Newman, the film's star, also had stated his disappointment with the adaptation. Despite this, the film was highly acclaimed and was nominated for several Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman both received Oscar nominations for their performances.
In 1976, a television version of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof was produced, starring the then husband-and-wife team of Natalie Wood and Robert Wagner, and featuring Laurence Olivier as Big Daddy and Maureen Stapleton as Big Mama.
In 1984 a television version was produced by American Playhouse, starring Jessica Lange, Tommy Lee Jones, Rip Torn, Kim Stanley, David Dukes, and Penny Fuller. This adaptation, directed by Jack Hofsiss, revived the sexual innuendos which had been muted in the 1958 film. Both Stanley and Fuller were nominated for the Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Special, and Stanley won.
The recent Bollywood movie Kapoor and Sons also drew its inspiration from the play.
Awards and nominations[edit]
Original Broadway production[edit]
Year
Award ceremony
Category
Nominee
Result
1955 New York Drama Critics' Circle Best American Play Tennessee Williams Won
Pulitzer Prize Drama Won
1956 Tony Award Best Play Nominated
Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play Barbara Bel Geddes Nominated
Best Director Elia Kazan Nominated
Best Scenic Design Jo Mielziner Nominated
1974 Broadway revival[edit]
Year
Award ceremony
Category
Nominee
Result
1975 Tony Award Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play Elizabeth Ashley Nominated
Drama Desk Award Outstanding Actress in a Play Nominated
Outstanding Set Design John Conklin Nominated
1990 Broadway revival[edit]
Year
Award ceremony
Category
Nominee
Result
1990 Tony Award Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play Kathleen Turner Nominated
Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play Charles Durning Won
Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play Polly Holliday Nominated
Drama Desk Award Outstanding Revival Nominated
Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play Charles Durning Won
Outer Critics Circle Award Outstanding Revival of a Play Won
Outstanding Actor in a Play Charles Durning Nominated
Outstanding Actress in a Play Kathleen Turner Nominated
2003 Broadway revival[edit]
Year
Award ceremony
Category
Nominee
Result
2004 Tony Award Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play Margo Martindale Nominated
Drama Desk Award Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play Ned Beatty Won
Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play Margo Martindale Nominated
Outer Critics Circle Award Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play Ned Beatty Won
Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play Margo Martindale Nominated
Drama League Award Distinguished Revival of a Play Nominated
2008 Broadway revival[edit]
Year
Award ceremony
Category
Nominee
Result
2008 Outer Critics Circle Award Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play James Earl Jones Won
See also[edit]
Theatre portal
1950s portal
United States portal
LGBT portal
References[edit]
Jump up ^ Parker, Brian: "Swinging a Cat", as published within Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, p. 175. New York: New Directions Publishing Corporation, 2004.
^ Jump up to: a b Williams, Tennessee: "Notes for the Designer", Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, p. 15. New Directions Publishing Corporation, 2004.
Jump up ^ Williams, Tennessee: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, p. 173. New Directions Publishing Corporation, 2004.
Jump up ^ Williams, Tennessee: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, p. 14. New Directions Publishing Corporation, 2004.
Jump up ^ Parker, Brian: "Swinging a Cat", published within Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, p. 177. New Directions Publishing Corporation, 2004.
^ Jump up to: a b Parker, Brian: "Swinging a Cat", published within Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, p. 181. New Directions Publishing Corporation, 2004.
Jump up ^ Williams, Tennessee (1983). Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. New York: Signet. pp. 134–135. ISBN 0-451-17112-8.
^ Jump up to: a b Williams, Tennessee (1983). Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. New York: Signet. p. 4. ISBN 0-451-17112-8.
Jump up ^ "Tony Awards".
Jump up ^ Cat on a Hot Tin Roof: The Playbill for the Morosco Theatre. Playbill Incorporated. 1955. pp. 25, 27, 36, 38.
Jump up ^ Theatre World Annual (London) number nine [editor: Frances Stephens], London 1958
Jump up ^ Albee, Edward: "Introduction" for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, p. 8. New Directions Publishing Corporation, 2004.
^ Jump up to: a b Williams, Tennessee: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, p. 13. New Directions Publishing Corporation, 2004.
Jump up ^ "Belvoir news".
Jump up ^ "Cat West End". CatWestEnd.com. Retrieved 2011-06-21.
Jump up ^ "Benjamin Walker, Debra Monk and Ciarán Hinds Will Join Scarlett Johansson in Broadway's Cat on a Hot Tin Roof". Playbill. 2012-09-20. Archived from the original on 2013-01-03. Retrieved 2012-12-28.
Jump up ^ Gray, John. Beaver on a Hot Tin Roof, Troy Record, June 22, 2016 http://www.troyrecord.com/opinion/20160622/john-grays-fade-to-gray-column-beaver-on-a-hot-tin-roof
^ Jump up to: a b c Williams, Tennessee: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, p. 12. New Directions Publishing Corporation, 2004.
Further reading[edit]
Bloom, Harold (ed.). Tennessee Williams, Modern Critical Views, 80. New York: Chelsea House, 1987.
Cañadas, Ivan. "The Naming of Straw and Ochello in Tennessee Williams's Cat On a Hot Tin Roof", English Language Notes 42.4 (June 2005): 57–62.
Clum, John M. "'Something Cloudy, Something Clear': Homophobic Discourse in Tennessee Williams", South Atlantic Quarterly 88.1 (Winter 1989): 161–79.
The National, indie rock band. "City Middle" from the record Alligator: "I think I'm like Tennessee Williams, I wait for the click; I wait, but it doesn't kick in."
Plooster, Nancy. "Silent Partners: Lost Lovers in American Drama". 1995 Queer Frontiers: Proceedings of the Fifth Annual National Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Graduate Student Conference. University of Southern California. March 23–26, 1995, Ed. John Waiblinger. University of Southern California Library. USC.edu
Shackelford, Dean. "The Truth That Must Be Told: Gay Subjectivity, Homophobia, and Social History in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof". Tennessee Williams Annual Review 1 (1998): 103–118.
Spoto, Donald (1985). The Kindness of Strangers: The Life of Tennessee Williams. Boston: Little Brown. ISBN 0-306-80805-6.
Stanton, Stephen S. (Ed.). Tennessee Williams: A Collection of Critical Essays. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1977.
Winchell, Mark Royden. "Come Back to the Locker Room Ag'in, Brick Honey!". Mississippi Quarterly: The Journal of Southern Culture. 48:4 (Fall 1995): 701–12.
External links[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
Wikiquote has quotations related to: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof at the Internet Broadway Database
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof at the Internet Broadway Database
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof study guide, themes, quotes, character analyses, teaching guide
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Works by Tennessee Williams
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Spring Storm (1937)
Fugitive Kind (1937)
Not About Nightingales (1938)
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The Seven Descents of Myrtle (1968)
In the Bar of a Tokyo Hotel (1969)
Will Mr. Merriweather Return from Memphis? (1969)
Out Cry (1971)
Small Craft Warnings (1972)
The Two-Character Play (1973)
The Red Devil Battery Sign (1975)
This Is (An Entertainment) (1976)
Vieux Carré (1977)
A Lovely Sunday for Creve Coeur (1979)
Clothes for a Summer Hotel (1980)
The Notebook of Trigorin (1981)
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A House Not Meant to Stand (1982)
Novels
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Moise and the World of Reason (1975)
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Three Players of a Summer Game and Other Stories (1960)
The Knightly Quest: a Novella and Four Short Stories (1966)
One Arm and Other Stories (1967)
Eight Mortal Ladies Possessed: a Book of Stories (1974)
Screenplays
The Glass Menagerie (1950)
A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)
The Rose Tattoo (1955)
Baby Doll (1956)
Suddenly, Last Summer (1959)
The Fugitive Kind (1959)
Ten Blocks on the Camino Real (1966)
Boom! (1968)
The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond (1957, filmed 2009)
Non-fiction
"The Catastrophe of Success" (1947)
"A Streetcar Named Success" (1947)
Poetry
In the Winter of Cities (1956)
Androgyne, Mon Amour (1977)
Unfinished
manuscripts
In Masks Outrageous and Austere (1983)
Related
articles
List of one-act plays by Tennessee Williams
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Howard Rollins
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Howard Rollins
Rollins in Ragtime, 1981
Born
Howard Ellsworth Rollins Jr.
(1950-10-17)October 17, 1950
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Died
December 8, 1996(1996-12-08) (aged 46)
New York City, U.S.
Resting place
Woodlawn Cemetery, Baltimore
Nationality
American
Alma mater
Towson State University
Occupation
Actor
Years active
1970–1996
Howard Ellsworth Rollins Jr. (October 17, 1950 – December 8, 1996) was an American stage, film and television actor. Howard Rollins was best known for his role as Andrew Young in 1978's King, George Haley in the 1979 miniseries Roots:The Next Generations, Coalhouse Walker Jr. in the 1981 film Ragtime, Captain Davenport in the 1984 film A Soldier's Story, and as Virgil Tibbs on the crime drama In the Heat of the Night.
Contents
[hide]
1 Early life
2 Career
3 Personal life
3.1 Legal issues
4 Death
5 Legacy
6 Filmography
7 References
8 External links
Early life[edit]
Rollins was the youngest of four children born to Ruth and Howard Ellsworth Rollins Sr. in Baltimore, Maryland. His mother was a domestic worker while his father was a steelworker. Rollins Sr. died of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in 1980. Upon his high school graduation, Rollins studied theater at Towson University.[1][2]
Career[edit]
In 1970, Rollins left college early to play the role of "Slick" in the PBS soap opera Our Street. In 1974, he moved to New York City where he went on to appear in the Broadway productions of We Interrupt This Program..., in 1975, The Mighty Gents in 1978, and G. R. Point in 1979. He also appeared in the miniseries King and Roots: The Next Generations.[1]
In 1981, Rollins made his film debut in the Dino De Laurentiis/Miloš Forman motion picture, Ragtime. His performance in the film earned him an Academy Award nomination for best supporting actor, as well as Golden Globe nominations for Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture and New Star of the Year in a Motion Picture. The following year, he was nominated for a Daytime Emmy for his role on Another World. In 1984, Rollins starred in director Norman Jewison's film, A Soldier's Story which led to his role as Virgil Tibbs on In the Heat of the Night, the television series based on Jewison's acclaimed 1967 film of the same name.
In the Heat of the Night began airing on NBC in 1988. During the show's run, Rollins struggled with an addiction to drugs and alcohol. He was arrested four times for drug and alcohol-related crimes and spent one month in jail for reckless driving and driving under the influence. Due to his ongoing personal and legal issues, Rollins was let go from the series at the end of Season 7 and replaced by Carl Weathers.[2] Rollins, however, would return for several guest appearances throughout the eighth (and final) season of the show in 1994-1995.
After being let go from In the Heat of the Night, Rollins got sober and worked on rebuilding his career and reputation.[2] In 1995, he appeared in a guest role on New York Undercover, followed by a role in the theatrical film, Drunks. In 1996, he appeared in a guest role on Remember WENN. His final acting role was in the 1996 PBS television movie Harambee!.
Personal life[edit]
Legal issues[edit]
In 1988, Rollins was arrested and pled guilty to cocaine possession in Louisiana. In 1992 and 1993, he was arrested on three separate occasions for driving under the influence. In 1994, he served a month in jail for reckless driving and driving under the influence. Because of continued legal problems, Rollins was ultimately dropped from In the Heat of the Night.[3] After attending drug rehab, he returned to In the Heat of the Night as a guest star.[4]
Death[edit]
On December 8, 1996, Rollins died at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center in New York City of complications from lymphoma. He had been diagnosed with the disease approximately six weeks earlier. His funeral was held on December 13 in Baltimore.[5]
Legacy[edit]
On October 25, 2006, a wax statue of Rollins was unveiled at the Senator Theatre in Baltimore. The statue is now at Baltimore's Great Blacks in Wax Museum.[6]
Filmography[edit]
Film
Year
Title
Role
Notes
1981 Ragtime Coalhouse Walker Jr. Nominated—Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year - Actor
Nominated—New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor (4th place)
1984 A Soldier's Story Captain Davenport
1984 The House of God Chuck Johnston
1990 On the Block Clay Beasley
1995 Drunks Joseph
Television
Year
Title
Role
Notes
1978 The Trial of the Moke Television movie
1978 King Andrew Young Miniseries
Credited as Howard Rollins
1979 Roots: The Next Generations George Haley Miniseries
1979 My Old Man Doctor Television movie
1981 Thornwell Carson Television movie
1982 The Neighborhood Allen Campbell Television movie
1982 The Member of the Wedding Honey Brown Television movie
1982 Another World Ed Harding Unknown episodes
Nominated - Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
1983 For Us the Living: The Medgar Evers Story Medgar Evers Television movie
1983 Moving Right Along Unknown episodes
1984 House of Dies Drear Walter Small Television movie
1984 A Doctor's Story Dr. Zack Williams Television movie
1984 He's Fired, She's Hired Raoul Television movie
1985 Wildside Bannister Sparks 6 episodes
1986 The Boy King Martin Luther King Sr. Television movie
1986 The Children of Times Square Otis Travis Television movie
1986 Johnnie Mae Gibson: FBI T.C. Russell Television movie
1988-1995 In the Heat of the Night Chief of Detectives Virgil Tibbs 121 episodes
1992 With Murder in Mind Samuel Carver Television movie
1994 In the Heat of the Night: Who Was Geli Bendl? Virgil Tibbs Television movie
1995 New York Undercover Reverend Hundley Episode: "The Smoking Section"
1996 Remember WENN George Smith Episode: "The Emperor Smith"
1996 Harambee! Chimbuko Television movie, (final film role)
References[edit]
^ Jump up to: a b Eady, Brenda (1984-10-01). "Howard Rollins' Stalled Career Marches on with a Soldier's Story". People. Retrieved 2008-06-06.
^ Jump up to: a b c Cerio, Gregory (December 23, 1996). "Requiem for Mister Tibbs". people.com. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
Jump up ^ Blumenthal, Ralph (1996-12-10). "Howard Rollins Is Dead at 50 Star in TV's 'Heat of the Night'". New York Times. Retrieved June 6, 2008.
Jump up ^ "Actor Howard Rollins, 46, succumbs in New York". Jet. December 23, 1996. Retrieved 2008-06-06.
Jump up ^ "'Heat of the Night' actor dies". The Robesonian. December 10, 1996. p. 5A. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
Jump up ^ "Howard Rollins Unveiling at Senator Theater". National Great Blacks In Wax Museum. Retrieved October 8, 2007.
External links[edit]
The Howard E. Rollins Foundation
Howard Rollins on IMDb
91503 Howard Rollins at the Internet Broadway Database
Howard Rollins at Find a Grave
Authority control
WorldCat Identities
VIAF: 212245
LCCN: n85376605
ISNI: 0000 0000 7839 9067
GND: 173896472
BNF: cb14043053v (data)
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Howard_Rollins&oldid=831513006"
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