Sheryl Lee Ralph

Sheryl Lee Ralph is an American actress, voice actress, and singer best known for her portrayal of Deidra "Dee" Mitchell in the sitcom series Moesha.

Biography
Ralph was born in Waterbury, Connecticut, on December 30, 1956, to Ivy and Stanley Ralph. Ivy, an Afro-Jamaican, was a fashion designer; while Stanley, an African-American, worked as a college professor. Ralph is also of partial descent from the Tikar people of Cameroon. She was raised between Mandeville; Jamaica; and the Long Island borough of New York City, New York. Ralph attended Uniondale High School in Uniondale, New York, and graduated in 1972. During her time there, she starred in a production of the musical Oklahoma!, in which she portrayed Ado Annie. Also in 1972, she was crowned Miss Black Teen-age New York. After graduating from high school, Ralph attended Rutgers University and became the youngest woman to graduate from that school, being nineteen at the time. During her time at Rutgers, Ralph won the Irene Ryan Acting Scholarship, which was awarded during a competition by the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival; and was also named one of the top ten college women in the country by Glamour magazine. Her initial intentions were to study medicine, but after dealing with cadavers in a pre-med class and winning the Irene Ryan Acting Scholarship, Ralph switched careers.

Ralph began her career onstage. In 1982, she was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical in regards to her role as Deena Jones in Dreamgirls. Two years later, Ralph released her first and only album, titled In the Evening. The album's title track peaked at #6 on the Billboard Dance Music/Club Play Singles chart that same year. In 1988, Ralph starred in the Disney-produced animated movie Oliver & Company, in which she provided the voice of the dog Rita. Her first leading role in a film came as the wife of Denzel Washington's character in The Mighty Quinn, which was released in 1989. Three years later, she starred in the titular role in Mistress, and costarred in The Distinguished Gentleman. During the 1990s, Ralph landed roles in the feature films The Flintstones, Deterrence, and Unconditional Love. On TV, Ralph portrayed the characters of Ginger St. James on It's a Living, Etienne Toussaint-Bouvier on Designing Women, and Dee Mitchell on Moesha; her portrayal of Dee Mitchell became her best-known role. In addition, she provided the voice of Cheetah in Justice League and Justice League Unlimited. Ralph then portrayed Florence Watson in the 1993 film Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit. She also produced Divas Simply Singing, which became a significant AIDS fundraiser; and appeared on the Showtime-produced series Barbershop as the popular, post-operative transsexual Claire.

In 2002, Ralph starred in Baby of the Family, which revolves around a young child who is born with a caul over her head; this caul enables her to see ghosts and the future. Ralph was also featured with her son, Etienne Maurice, on the MTV-produced My Super Sweet 16 and the BET-produced Baldwin Hills, as well as an episode of Clean House that also featured Etienne and her daughter Ivy-Victoria. In 2009, Ralph joined the cast of the Broadway-bound musical performance The First Wives Club, in which she starred as Elyse. She was selected to replace Adriane Lenox, who previously held the role of Elyse but withdrew from the show due to health concerns. In 2011, Ralph guest-starred in an episode of Young Justice, portraying Amanda Waller. Two years later, Ralph appeared on the NBC-produced series Smash, in which she stars as Cynthia, the mother of Jennifer Hudson's character. That same year, Ralph appeared at a youth rally held at Columbus Middle School in Columbus, Mississippi. In August of the following year, she appeared on KTLA Los Angeles Morning News as a fill-in entertainment reporter. Three months later, Ralph guest-starred on Nicky, Ricky, Dicky, and Dawn as a wealthy lady who claims her dog from the titular characters. She will guest-star on an episode of the CBS-produced police procedural Criminal Minds.

On Criminal Minds
Ralph will portray Hayden Montgomery, the second ex-wife of SSA David Rossi, in the Season Eleven episode Inner Beauty.

Filmography

 * Criminal Minds - Inner Beauty (2016) TV episode - Hayden Montgomery
 * Instant Mom (2013-2015) as Maggie Turner (65 episodes)
 * Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn (2014) as Ms. Dumont
 * See Dad Run (2014) as Vanessa (2 episodes)
 * Ray Donovan (2013-2014) as Claudette (6 episodes)
 * One Love (2014) as Carolyn Winters (8 episodes)
 * 2 Broke Girls (2014) as Genét
 * Smash (2013) as Cynthia Moore
 * JD Lawrence's Community Service (2013) as Carolyn (TV miniseries, 3 episodes)
 * He Knows My Heart (2012) as First Lady Jameson (short)
 * Christmas in Compton (2012) as Abuta
 * Young Justice (2011) as Amanda Waller (voice)
 * Blessed and Cursed (2010) as Lady Wright
 * The Cost of Heaven (2010) as Paulette
 * Zevo-3 (2010) as Grams (voice)
 * Pastor Jones: The Complete First Season (2010) as Mother Kelly (video)
 * BioShock 2 (2010) as Grace Holloway (video game, voice)
 * Hannah Montana (2008) as Clarice Johnson
 * Frankie D (2007) as Mama
 * Exes & Ohs (2007) as Reverand Ruby
 * Odicie (2007) as Aunt Amy
 * ER (2006) as Gloria Gallant (2 episodes)
 * 7th Heaven (2006) as Nurse
 * Barbershop (2005) as Claire (4 episodes)
 * Kink in My Hair (2004) as Novelette
 * Justice League (2002-2004) as Cheetah/Barbara Ann Minerva/Teacher (3 episodes, voice)
 * Las Vegas (2003) as Janet Ellis
 * Whoopi (2003) as Florence
 * Static Shock (2002-2003) as Trina Jessup (2 episodes, voice)
 * Baby of the Family (2002) as Mamie
 * The Proud Family (2002) as Diana/Aunt Dee (2 episodes, voice)
 * The Jennie Project (2001) as Dr. Pamela Prentiss
 * Moesha (1996-2001) as Dee Mitchell (112 episodes)
 * The District (2000-2001) as Lt. Dee Banks (4 episodes)
 * Lost in the Pershing Point Hotel (2000) as Nurse
 * Recess (2000) as Mrs. Lasalle (voice)
 * The Parkers (1999) as Dee Mitchell
 * Deterrence (1999) as Gayle Redford
 * Unconditional Love (1999) as Linda Cray
 * Personals (1999) as Chantal
 * Sabrina, the Teenage Witch (1999) as Zsa Zsa Goowhiggie
 * The Wild Thornberrys (1998) as Lioness #2 (voice)
 * The Easter Story Keepers (1998) as Risa (video, voice)
 * Jamaica Beat (1997) as Sylvia Jones
 * Bogus (1996) as Ruth Clark
 * Lover's Knot (1995) as Charlotte
 * White Man's Burden (1995) as Roberta
 * Street Gear (1995) as Sarah Davis (13 episodes)
 * Witch Hunt (1994) as Hypolyta Kropotkin
 * The Flintstones (1994) as Mrs. Pyrite
 * George (1993-1994) as Maggie Foster (9 episodes)
 * Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit (1993) as Florence Watson
 * No Child of Mine (1993) as Marjorie Duncan
 * Designing Women (1992-1993) as Etienne Toussaint Bouvier (6 episodes)
 * The Distinguished Gentleman (1992) as Miss Loretta
 * Mistress (1992) as Beverly
 * The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw (1991) as Miss Rosalee
 * Falcon Crest (1990) as Mooshy Tucker (2 episodes)
 * New Attitude (1990) as Vicki St. James (8 episodes)
 * To Sleep with Anger (1990) as Linda
 * It's a Living (1986-1989) as Ginger St. James (71 episodes)
 * Skin Deep (1989) as Receptionist
 * The Mighty Quinn (1989) as Lola Quinn
 * Oliver & Company (1988) as Rita (voice)
 * Amazing Stories (1987) as Show Singer (uncredited)
 * L.A. Law (1987) as Renee Quintana
 * Sister Margaret and the Saturday Night Ladies (1987) as Corelle
 * Pros & Cons (1986) as Roberta
 * Hunter (1986) as Josie Clifford
 * Code Name: Foxfire (1985) as Maggie Bryan (3 episodes)
 * V (1984) as Glenna
 * Search for Tomorrow (1983-1984) as Laura McCarthy
 * The Neighborhood (1982) as Doris Campbell
 * The Jeffersons (1979) as Jeanie
 * Wonder Woman (1979) as Bobbie
 * Good Times (1978) as Vanessa Blake
 * The Krofft Comedy Hour (1978) as Various Characters
 * Husbands, Wives & Lovers (1978) as Joelle
 * A.E.S. Hudson Street (1978) as Nurse
 * Black Sheep Squadron (1978) as Elizabeth (uncredited)
 * A Piece of the Action (1977) as Barbara Hanley

SOUNDTRACK

 * Move (You're Stepping On My Heart) (2008) - So You Think You Can Dance Canada - 1 episode
 * Fake Your Way to the Top (2006) - So You Think You Can Dance - 1 episode
 * The Mighty Quinn (1989)
 * (I'm) Hurting Inside
 * The Mighty Quinn
 * The 42nd Annual Tony Awards (1988)
 * Dreamgirls
 * One Night Only
 * The 36th Annual Tony Awards (1982)
 * It's All Over
 * Love Love Me Baby

PRODUCER

 * Hideous (2014) - Executive Producer (short)
 * Reel Black Love (2012) - Co-Producer (documentary)
 * Blessed and Cursed (2010) - Executive Producer
 * Secrets (1998) - Producer (short)

DIRECTOR

 * The Parkers (2001) - 1 episode
 * Race Card (2000) (short)
 * Secrets (1998) (short)

WRITER

 * Race Card (2000) (short)
 * Secrets (1998) (short)

LINKS
For an up-to-date filmography, see here.