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Alfonso Ribeiro

 
Black Biography: Alfonso Ribeiro

actor

Personal Information

Born in New York City, September 21, 1971; son of Michael and Joy Ribeiro.
Education: Attended University of California and Valley Professional School in Los Angeles.
Memberships: "Say No to Drugs;" "Hands Across America."

Career

Actor, dancer, singer. Lead role in The Tap Dance Kid on Broadway, 1983-84. Television series: Silver Spoons, 1984-87; The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, 1990-96; In The House, 1997-. Television appearances: Oye Willie; Mr. Foster's Field Trip; Mighty Pawns (PBS); Magnum, P.I. (CBS, 1984); Circus of the Stars; The Andy Williams Christmas Special; Star Cruise. Recordings: "Dance Baby;" "Time Bomb;" "Not Too Young (To Fall in Love);" "Sneak Away with Me" (Prism).

Life's Work

The hot-spotlight life of an actor began at the early age of eight for Alfonso Ribeiro when he landed a part in the PBS series, Oye Willie. With a few lulls between projects, he has been on the stage, on television, or in the recording studio continuously ever since, gaining nationwide fame playing the character of Carlton Banks on the hit sitcom, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. While other child actors have been derailed into drugs or outlandish behavior by the temptations that wealth gained too soon can bring, Ribeiro has managed to stay on-track.

Alfonso Ribeiro was born in New York City on September 21, 1971, to Michael and Joy Ribeiro. After Oye Willie, Ribeiro was selected by his junior high school to audition for The Tap Dance Kid, an upcoming Broadway musical, in response to a request from the show's casting agency. Ribeiro was tapped to play one of the leading roles--a child who aspires to be a dancer--even though he had never had any formal acting or dance training. In preparation for the role, he trained for one year with professional choreographers, and when the show opened, Ribeiro found his free time eaten away by performances and schoolwork, a schedule that quickly became a routine for the talented boy. Ribeiro remarked on his childhood in an Upscale interview, saying, "I missed out on a lot of things like going to high school football games or hanging out with other kids. It's a 'Catch 22.' I've been very fortunate in the things I've had in my life. But, at the same time, I wish I had the same types of memories as everyone else."

But with the hard work and sacrifice came success. The show went on to win a Tony Award and Ribeiro was singled out as a dancing dynamo, earning a nomination for an Outer Critics Circle Award for his passionate performance. One Newsweek reviewer wrote of Ribeiro that he "looks like a miniature Michael Jackson and dances like an urban whirlwind, not only tapping but disassembling his bone structure in that joyous human puppetry of the streets known as 'breakdancing.'" His performance drew the attention of Michael Jackson himself when the singer made a rare public appearance to see the young talent. Ribeiro recalled in an Upscale interview, "That was the most amazing thing ... Michael Jackson was my idol. I loved him to death. I could dance like him. I could sing like him, and it was great career-wise."

Jackson found the imitation flattering and invited the boy to Los Angeles, where Ribeiro had lunch at Jackson's compound and played video games with the superstar. The friendship led to a professional relationship as Ribeiro joined Jackson in a Pepsi commercial that featured the two of them dancing. Alongside of his acting career, Ribeiro also signed a contract with Prism Records and, between the ages of ten and 13 released several singles, including "Dance Baby," "Not Too Young (To Fall in Love)," "Time Bomb," and "Sneak Away with Me."

In 1984, Alfonso Ribeiro made his first break into sitcoms when he became a regular cast member on the hit show, Silver Spoons, starring Ricky Schroeder. For three years, he played the character Alonso Spears on the show. He also logged acting credits with appearances on Magnum, P.I., Circus of the Stars, The Andy Williams Christmas Special, and Star Cruise.

In 1990, Ribeiro began playing the role that would earn him nationwide recognition--that of Carlton Banks on the NBC sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. The show's star, character Will Smith (played by the actor of the same name) was a poor Philadelphia youth living with an affluent aunt and uncle in California. Ribeiro played the spoiled, preppy cousin of Will Smith, and the comic duo were largely responsible for the success of the show. Fresh Prince ran for six years and consistently boasted the highest ratings for a prime-time comedy series among teenage viewers, regularly breaking into the top 20 for overall ratings. For his role as Carlton, Ribeiro earned an NAACP Image Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series in 1996.

Ribeiro now plays Dr. Maxwell Stanton, a sports-injury doctor, on the UPN sitcom, In The House. The series, taped before a studio audience in Hollywood, California, is produced by Quincy Jones and David Salsman Entertainment in association with UPN Studios. Ribeiro has not neglected his singing career, however, and actually said in an Internet interview that singing is his "real love." He is currently working on an album, which is being produced by Grammy Award-winner Will Smith.

In addition to acting and singing Ribeiro is involved with the "Say No to Drugs" and the "Hands Across America" programs. His off- camera passions include motorcycles and car racing, and he's won the Toyota Grand Prix on two occasions. But behind all the glamor of the actor's life, Ribeiro affirmed in an Internet interview, "If you want to be an actor, you have to do it because you love acting, not because you want to be a celebrity." After 19 years in show business, Ribeiro knows whereof he speaks.

Awards

Hollywood Press Club's Rising Star Award, 1985; NAACP Image Award for Best Supporting Actor, 1996.

Further Reading

Books

  • Contemporary Theatre, Film, and Television, Vol. IV., Gale Research, Detroit, 1987.
Periodicals
  • Ebony, Jan 1996, p. 68.
  • Entertainment Weekly, April 17, 1992, p. 44.
  • Jet, Jan 13, 1997, p. 38; April 29, 1996, p. 58.
  • People Weekly, July 16, 1984, p. 121.
  • Upscale, Sept/Oct 1997, p. 48.

— Marilyn Williams and Rebecca Parks

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Wikipedia: Alfonso Ribeiro
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Alfonso Ribeiro

Alfonso Ribeiro, December 10, 2004
Born Alfonso Lincoln Ribeiro
September 21, 1971 (1971-09-21) (age 38)
New York City, New York, U.S.
Occupation Actor, Singer, Dancer, TV personality, Game show host
Years active 1980—present
Spouse(s) Robin Stapler (2002-2006) (divorced)

Alfonso Lincoln Ribeiro (born September 21, 1971) is an American actor, singer and dancer. He is best known for his roles as Carlton Banks on the television sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and Alfonso Spears on the TV series Silver Spoons. He now hosts the game show Catch 21 on GSN and co-hosted GSN Live with Heidi Bohay until he left GSN Live on August 11, 2009.

Contents

Career

Ribeiro began his career in the drama "Hit Me Again" at the age of eight. By the time he was ten, he had released such songs as: "Dance Baby", "Not Too Young", & "Sneak Away with Me." His first brush with true stardom came in 1983, when he originated the title role of the Broadway musical The Tap Dance Kid, receiving positive reviews for his performance. He also appeared in one of Michael Jackson's Pepsi television commercials as a dancer in 1984, after which he was the subject of rumors that he broke his neck during the making of one of the commercials.[1] The same year, Ribeiro was cast as Rick Schroder's best friend on the TV series Silver Spoons. He also sang in a commercial for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and promoted his own "Breakin' and Poppin'" dance instruction package on television which included the famous "breakin" board.

Ribeiro is best known for his role as spoiled rich-kid Carlton Banks in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air from 1990 to 1996, in which he played the cousin to Will Smith's lead character; Ribeiro also directed some episodes of Fresh Prince. The Carlton character frequently danced to Tom Jones's "It's Not Unusual". His most common move is his version of Eddie Murphy's "white guy" dance from Raw and one seen in Bruce Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark" video. Further demonstrations of his dancing came alongside Will Smith in several episodes of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, including a tap dance routine in the show's Soul Train episode that featured a moonwalk. It also featured the famous, Apache Dance, the song by the Sugarhill Gang, when Will and Carlton go into a dance competition in Las Vegas, after blowing all their money in the casino.

Ribeiro also starred in a small horror movie in 1993 entitled "Ticks" (also known as "Infested"), in which he turns into a giant tick.[2]

Ribeiro is also known for his appearance at Synergy in Warrington on June 13, 2008. He was seen at the Arirang Festival in Pyongyang as part of a Gumball 3000 group on August 13, 2008.

He is also known for his role on LL Cool J's show In the House and as the host of Your Big Break. Ribeiro has acted and been part of the crew on many movies and TV shows. In 1997, he performed the voice of Roland Jackson in Extreme Ghostbusters. He has also appeared in Smith's "Wild Wild West" video in 1999 and in a McDonald's commercial in 2003. Ribeiro also appeared in a cameo for the Fergie music video "Glamorous".

In 2001, he appeared on a special "TV Child Stars Edition" episode of the Anne Robinson Version of The Weakest Link.

Beginning in August 2006, Ribeiro was a contestant on Fox's new reality show Celebrity Duets which teamed up entertainers not known for singing with famous singers. Ribeiro promised to do "the Carlton Dance" if he made it to the show's finale. He kept his promise when he became one of the three finalists. On September 29, 2006, Ribeiro was announced as the winner of the show. Lucy Lawless and Hal Sparks finished second and third, respectively. For his victory, Ribeiro's charity of choice, Fresh Start, which provides personal development, family law support, career, mentoring, educational, and other services to women, received $100,000.[3] Ribeiro also participated in the Mario Lemieux Celebrity Invitational to benefit cancer research.

In 2008, Ribeiro hosted Nick At Nite's "crush week" of classic television, offering romantic advice and commentary between episodes. He also was a talent scout in NBC's Last Comic Standing's Houston episode which aired May 29, 2008. Most recently Ribeiro was a featured performer aboard the Disney Cruise Line ship M/V Disney Magic during that vessel's TransAmerican Crossing through the Panama Canal.[citation needed]

Ribeiro currently lives in Los Angeles. He is a two-time winner of the Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race (in 1994 and 1995). Ribeiro directed episodes of former castmate Will Smith's brain child All of Us until cancellation in early 2007.[4]

Alfonso also appeared in the episode "Food Webs" of Bill Nye the Science Guy as a guest appearance.

He is currently hosting his first game show, GSN's Catch-21, which premiered July 21, 2008 and directing Tyler Perry's sitcom Meet the Browns.

He hosted a morning interactive TV show on GSN called GSN Live with Heidi Bohay (and on occasion with Debra Skelton when she fills in for Fred Roggin or Heidi Bohay) from September 15, 2008 to August 11, 2009 (and on occasion filling in for Fred Roggin on his day off).

Personal life

Ribeiro was born in New York City, the son of Joy and Michael Ribeiro, a manager.[5] His family is originally from Trinidad and Tobago..[6][7] Ribeiro is the grandson of the late Roaring Lion, noted as one of the greatest Calypsonians.

Ribeiro and actress Robin Stapler met in 1999. They wed in 2002. Divorce papers were filed August 9, 2006 in Los Angeles Superior Court, citing irreconcilable differences. The couple share joint custody of their daughter, Sienna.[8]

References

  1. ^ "Last Dance". Snopes. May 30, 2006. http://www.snopes.com/horrors/freakish/dancer.asp. Retrieved 2007-12-11. 
  2. ^ "Infested (1993) (V)". http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108339/. Retrieved 2009-01-17. 
  3. ^ "Alfonso Ribeiro says that he has selected Fresh Start as his charity of choice to receive $100,000." http://www.realitytvmagazine.com/blog/2006/09/celebrity_duets_9.html
  4. ^ All of Us Director: Alfonso Ribeiro http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0847917/
  5. ^ http://www.filmreference.com/film/63/Alfonso-Ribeiro.html
  6. ^ "A Chat with Alfonso Ribeiro". Bullz-Eye.com. 2008-08-21. http://www.bullz-eye.com/television/interviews/2008/alfonso_ribeiro.htm. Retrieved 2009-07-26. "I personally think that IMDB and some of those Wikipedia things are absolutely ridiculous, because I have been trying to write in to them and tell them, “I didn’t do this,” and they never change it. Like, supposedly, my parents are from the Dominican Republic. My parents are from Trinidad and Tobago!" 
  7. ^ Sidewalks TV Interview http://sidewalkstv.com/webclips/r/alfonsoribeiro.html
  8. ^ Fresh Prince Star Alfonso Ribeiro Divorcing - Divorced, Alfonso Ribeiro : People.com

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