Mariann Aalda
Born (1948-05-07) May 7, 1948[1]
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
OccupationActress
Years active1978–present
Mariann Aalda shows how to stand up to ageism in TEDx talk.

Mariann Aalda is an American television, stage, film actress, performance artist, and stand-up comic.

Career

Aalda is best known for her work in television as one of the first African-American daytime soap opera heroines, playing DiDi Bannister-Stoner on ABC's The Edge of Night[1] from 1981 until the show's cancellation in 1984. For many years before that she was a writer-performer with the sketch comedy troupe Off Center Theatre in New York, and toured with the Boston-based improv group, The Proposition, along with notable animation voice actor and director, Charlie Adler.[2] Later, she appeared on the CBS show Guiding Light. She also had regular roles on the CBS sitcom The Royal Family, as the daughter of Redd Foxx and Della Reese,[3] and the HBO series 1st & Ten, as the wife of O. J. Simpson's character.

Aalda also achieved notoriety recurring on the CBS sitcom Designing Women, as Anthony's yuppie-from-hell girlfriend, Lita Ford, and on the NBC soap opera Sunset Beach as the tragically disfigured Lena Hart. She co-hosted the lifestyle show Designs for Living on the USA Network and was a reporter for the magazine show NOW! on WNBC in New York. Her numerous guest-star roles are mostly sitcoms.

Aalda has also appeared in movies, co-starring in the urban cult film Class Act as rapper Kid's clueless mom, and as Coach Harrison in Nobody's Perfect. She was a featured player in Beaches and Pretty Woman, directed by Garry Marshall and The Wiz, directed by Sidney Lumet.

She is a leader in the positive aging movement, with a TEDx Talk[4] and AARP recognition as an "Age Disruptor".[5] She is a prolific podcast guest on the topic of shameless aging. She is resident Age Anarchist for Women of Color Unite (WOCU), a 5000-plus member advocacy group for women of color working both above and below the line in the entertainment industry. She also delivers her message on positive aging as a standup comedian and with her solo "existential comedy" show, Getting Old Is a Bitch...But I'm Gonna Wrestle That Bitch to the Ground!,[6] which broke a 30-year box office record at the 2019 National Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Film and television credits

Film
Year Title Role Notes
1978 The Wiz Guest at Aunt Emma's Party
1988 Beaches Ticket Seller Alternative title: Forever Friends
1989 Nobody's Perfect Coach Harrison
1990 Pretty Woman Saleswoman
1992 Class Act Duncan's Mom
Television
Year Title Role Notes
1981–1984 The Edge of Night Didi Bannister Stoner Unknown episodes
1985 What's Happening Now!! Theresa 1 episode
1986 The Last Precinct Angela Beauchamp 1 episode
1986–1987 1st & Ten Ellen Unknown episodes
1988 Hooperman 1 episode
1989 Designing Women Lita Ford Episode: "The Girlfriend"
1990–1991 Guiding Light Grace Battles Unknown episodes
1991–1992 The Royal Family Elizabeth Royal Winston 15 episodes
1994 Models Inc. Janet Johnson 1 episode
1995 Family Matters Lois Episode: "Midterm Crisis"
The O. J. Simpson Story Eunice Simpson Television movie
1996 Grace Under Fire Student 1 episode
1998 The Wayans Bros. Casting director Episode: "Help a Brother Out"
Chicago Hope Woman Episode: "The Other Cheek"
1999 Sunset Beach Lena Hart 13 episodes
2000 Veronica's Closet Brian's Mother Episode: "Veronica Checks Out"
2003 The Parkers Hanna Foster Episode: "Join the Club"
2006 All of Us Muriel Episode: "He's Gotta Have It"

References

  1. 1 2 "71-Year Old Black Actress Who Made Soap Opera History in the 1980's Refuses to Retire". Blacknews.com. January 23, 2020. Archived from the original on December 30, 2020. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
  2. ↑ Clodfelter, Tim. "Getting old is tough. Actress uses humor to talk about the ups and downs of aging". Winston-Salem Journal. Retrieved September 3, 2019.
  3. ↑ O'Connor, John J. (April 8, 1992). "Mom Adds a Daughter, and a Show Goes On". The New York Times. p. C 24. ProQuest 108951800. Retrieved December 30, 2020 – via ProQuest.
  4. ↑ TEDx Talk
  5. ↑ Age Disruptor
  6. ↑ Getting Old Is a Bitch...But I'm Gonna Wrestle That Bitch to the Ground!
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