Anthony Anderson Biography

Anthony Anderson (born August 15, 1970) is an American actor and writer. He has starred in his own sitcom, All About the Andersons, as well as the Fox sitcom The Bernie Mac Show during the fifth and final season of the show. He is also known for his leading roles in television dramas such as K-Ville, The Shield and Law & Order. He has also had supporting roles in films such as Transformers, The Departed, Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London, Scream 4, and Kangaroo Jack.

Early life

Anderson was born and raised in Compton, California, a suburb of Los Angeles. His mother, Doris (ne Hancox), was a telephone operator and actress, and his stepfather, Sterling Bowman, was a native of Little Rock, Arkansas, who moved to Los Angeles to work in the steel mill industry before opening a chain of three clothing stores. According to a DNA analysis, Anderson descends from the Bubi people of Bioko Island (Equatorial Guinea), and from the Tikar, Hausa, and Fulani people of Cameroon.

Anderson has stated that his first attempt at stand up comedy was a failure. He appeared at The Comedy Act Theater billed as comedian "Tasty Tony, the One and Only, and if there's another, he's a phony." When his stage name was announced, he was booed off the stage before ever saying a word. Although this experience was a blow to his ego, he did meet his future friend and fellow comedic actor Guy Torry there, who consoled him after the show and encouraged him to keep getting up on stage. He and Guy would later act together in the Eddie Murphy film titled Life. Anderson is an alumnus of the Hollywood High School Performing Arts Magnet's Class of 1988 and Howard University. He trained with actors such as Avery Brooks, Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis.

Acting career

His television work includes a lead role in the teen series Hang Time as Teddy Broadis. He had many one-off and guest roles on major series such as NYPD Blue, Malcolm & Eddie, In the House, and Ally McBeal. Recurring roles were on several series such as 'Til Death and The Bernie Mac Show. He was the central character in the series All About the Andersons, which lasted for one season on The WB. Anderson joined the cast of the long-running NBC crime drama television series, Law & Order in 2008. He previously starred in two other crime series, Fox's K-Ville (as one of the lead characters) and Fox's cable channel FX's The Shield. Anderson is in an Atom.com Web show Matumbo Goldberg.

Film

After his film debut in Liberty Heights, Anderson has been performing as an actor, often in comedic roles, for many years. Among his more prominent feature films are: Kangaroo Jack, My Baby's Daddy, Hustle & Flow, and Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London. In June 2010, he was cast in a minor role in Scream 4.

Directorial work

In 2009, Anderson directed a one-minute short film featuring his Law & Order co-star, Jeremy Sisto. The short was made for the Responsibility Project, a joint initiative of NBC and Liberty Mutual Group. The short aired during the Law & Order episode "Reality Bites" on October 16, 2009.

Personal life

In 1995, he married his college sweetheart, Alvina. The couple have two children. They currently live in Hancock Park, Los Angeles. Anderson has diabetes, and has been active in diabetes awareness.

Arrest

On July 28, 2004, Anderson was charged with aggravated rape of a woman who police say was assaulted after being lured into a production trailer on a Memphis, Tennessee movie set. According to the Shelby County Sheriff's Office, Anderson and Wayne Witherspoon attacked the woman, who was an extra. The woman told police that Witherspoon forcibly removed her clothes once she was inside the trailer. She told investigators that Anderson, who was already in the trailer at the time, joined the assault, according to a graphic criminal complaint. The woman told the police that Anderson and Witherspoon "both assaulted her with their hands and took pictures of her while she was nude." A witness told officers that he heard the woman screaming and managed to unlock the trailer's door. At that point, the naked woman ran from the vehicle, which was parked on the grounds of the Shelby County Corrections Center, where scenes from director Craig Brewer's Hustle & Flow were being shot. However, on October 5, 2004, a judge dismissed the charge and said that testimony by the accuser was some of the most "suspicious" he has ever heard. Judge Anthony Johnson said the accuser's testimony fell short of producing the probable cause needed to support the charge. On September 16, 2004, Anderson and Warner Bros. Television were named in a $900,000 suit by a woman who claimed Anderson made suggestive comments, grabbed her genitalia and sexually assaulted her in his dressing room on the All About the Andersons set.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1999	Liberty Heights	Scribbles
	Life	Cookie
	Trippin'	Z-Boy
2000	Romeo Must Die	Maurice
	Big Momma's House	Nolan
	Me, Myself & Irene	Jamaal Baileygates
	Urban Legends: Final Cut	Stan Washington
2001	See Spot Run	Benny
	Exit Wounds	T.K. Johnson
	Kingdom Come	Junior Slocumb
	Two Can Play That Game	Tony
	3 Strikes	Guard	uncredited
2002	Barbershop	J.D.
2003	Kangaroo Jack	Louis Booker
	Cradle 2 the Grave	Tommy
	Malibu's Most Wanted	PJ
	Scary Movie 3	Mahalik
2004	My Baby's Daddy	G. Bong
	Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London	Derek Bowman
	Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle	Burger Shack Employee
2005	The Bernie Mac Show	Bryan Brown	season 5
	King's Ransom	Malcolm King
	Hustle & Flow	Key
	Hoodwinked!	Detective Bill Stork
	Alone in the Dark	Photo of missing person (cameo)
2006	Scary Movie 4	Mahalik
	The Last Stand	Jay
	Arthur & the Invisibles	Koolomassai
	The Departed	Trooper Brown
2007	Def Jam: Icon	Troy Dollar	Video game
	Transformers	Glen Whitmann
2010	The Back-Up Plan	Dad
	A Turtle's Tale: Sammy's Adventures	Ray
2011	Scream 4	Detective Perkins
	The Big Year	Bill Clemens
2012	The Power of Few	Junkshow

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1996 - 1998	Hang Time	Teddy Broadis
1998 (17 Feb)	NYPD Blue	Vondell - S05E14
2001	My Wife and Kids	Marriage Counsellor, Dr. Buchay
2003 - 2004	All About the Andersons	Anthony Anderson
2004 - 2005	The Shield	Antwon Mitchell
2006	Law & Order: Special Victims Unit	Lucius Blaine
2007	K-Ville	Marlin Boulet
2008 - 2010	Law & Order	Detective Kevin Bernard
2008	Samantha Who	Rafael Grace
2011	Shameless	Marty Fisher
2012-Present	Golf in America	Host
2012	Psych	Chef Thane Woodson
2012	The Soul Man	Sweet Brown Taylor
2012-2013	Guys with Kids	Gary	Nominated - NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series (2013)
2012-Present	Treme	Derek Watson
2013	Hollywood Game Night	Himself

Anderson has also made guest appearances on Entourage, Veronica Mars, Chappelle's Show, and Food Network Star. He had a recurring role on 'Til Death. Playing for the Alzheimer's Association, Anderson won $250,000 on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. Anderson also appears on Food Network's Iron Chef as a regular guest judge.

Web shows

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2011-Present	Matumbo Goldberg	Matumbo Goldberg