Nelsan Ellis: Difference between revisions
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[[Image:Nelsan Ellis.jpg|thumb|right|Nelsan Ellis]] | [[Image:Nelsan Ellis.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Nelsan Ellis]] | ||
'''Nelsan Ellis''' (born | '''Nelsan Ellis''' (born [[November 30]], [[1977]] in Harvey, Illinois; died [[July 8]], [[2017]] in Los Angeles, California) was a playwright and actor, best known for portraying the character "Lafayette" on the HBO series ''True Blood''. | ||
Born in Illinois, Ellis and his mother moved to [[Bessemer]] after her divorce six years later. He attended [[Jess Lanier High School]] for a year, then | Born in Illinois, Ellis and his mother moved to [[Bessemer]] after her divorce six years later. He attended [[Jess Lanier High School]] for a year, then transferred to [[McAdory High School]]. He also took a job at [[Larry's Fish Pot & Barbecue]]. He left Alabama at 15 to move back to Illinois. He graduated from Thornridge High School in Dolton in [[1997]]. | ||
Ellis | After a brief stint in the U.S. Marine Corps, Ellis enrolled at Illinois State University, and from there was accepted into the prestigious Juilliard School in New York City. There the staging of his semi-autobiographical play ''Ugly'' won the Lincoln Center's Martin E. Segal Award. He played the part of "Hoffa" in a [[2002]] short film entitled ''Lost''. His first television role came in [[2005]] with a part in the telefilm ''Warm Springs'' which starred Kenneth Branagh as Franklin D. Roosevelt. | ||
He was cast as a flamboyent cross-dressing short-order cook and gigolo "Lafayette Reynolds" in ''True Blood'', a television series based on the Sookie Stackhouse books by Charlaine Harris. He won a [[2008]] International Press Academy Satellite Award as "best supporting actor in a television series" for his performance. | He was cast as a flamboyent cross-dressing short-order cook and gigolo "Lafayette Reynolds" in ''True Blood'', a television series based on the Sookie Stackhouse books by Charlaine Harris. He won a [[2008]] International Press Academy Satellite Award as "best supporting actor in a television series" for his performance. He later played the role of musician Bobby Byrd in the [[2014]] James Brown biographical feature "Get On Up." | ||
Ellis died at home from heart failure in July [[2017]]. | |||
==References== | ==References== | ||
* Sharp, Dave (August 9, 2009) "'True Blood's' Lafayette a glamorously shady character." | * Sharp, Dave (August 9, 2009) "'True Blood's' Lafayette a glamorously shady character." {{BN}} | ||
* " | * "[http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nelsan_Ellis Nelsan Ellis]" (July 9, 2017) Wikipedia - accessed July 9, 2017 | ||
==External links== | ==External links== | ||
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ellis, Nelsan}} | {{DEFAULTSORT:Ellis, Nelsan}} | ||
[[Category: | [[Category:1977 births]] | ||
[[Category: | [[Category:2017 deaths]] | ||
[[Category:USMC personnel]] | |||
[[Category:Actors]] | [[Category:Actors]] | ||
[[Category:Playwrights]] | [[Category:Playwrights]] | ||
[[Category:Heart attack victims]] |
Revision as of 17:31, 9 July 2017
Nelsan Ellis (born November 30, 1977 in Harvey, Illinois; died July 8, 2017 in Los Angeles, California) was a playwright and actor, best known for portraying the character "Lafayette" on the HBO series True Blood.
Born in Illinois, Ellis and his mother moved to Bessemer after her divorce six years later. He attended Jess Lanier High School for a year, then transferred to McAdory High School. He also took a job at Larry's Fish Pot & Barbecue. He left Alabama at 15 to move back to Illinois. He graduated from Thornridge High School in Dolton in 1997.
After a brief stint in the U.S. Marine Corps, Ellis enrolled at Illinois State University, and from there was accepted into the prestigious Juilliard School in New York City. There the staging of his semi-autobiographical play Ugly won the Lincoln Center's Martin E. Segal Award. He played the part of "Hoffa" in a 2002 short film entitled Lost. His first television role came in 2005 with a part in the telefilm Warm Springs which starred Kenneth Branagh as Franklin D. Roosevelt.
He was cast as a flamboyent cross-dressing short-order cook and gigolo "Lafayette Reynolds" in True Blood, a television series based on the Sookie Stackhouse books by Charlaine Harris. He won a 2008 International Press Academy Satellite Award as "best supporting actor in a television series" for his performance. He later played the role of musician Bobby Byrd in the 2014 James Brown biographical feature "Get On Up."
Ellis died at home from heart failure in July 2017.
References
- Sharp, Dave (August 9, 2009) "'True Blood's' Lafayette a glamorously shady character." The Birmingham News
- "Nelsan Ellis" (July 9, 2017) Wikipedia - accessed July 9, 2017
External links
- Nelsan Ellis on IMDB.com