Pam Grier
Biography
Pamela Suzette Grier (born May 26, 1949) is an American actress. Described by director Quentin Tarantino as cinema's first female action star, she achieved fame for her starring roles in a string of 1970s action, blaxploitation, and women in prison films for American International Pictures and New World Pictures. Her accolades include nominations for an Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, a Satellite Award, and a Saturn Award.
Grier came to prominence with her titular roles in the films Coffy (1973) and Foxy Brown (1974); her other major films during this period included The Big Doll House (1971), Women in Cages (1971), The Big Bird Cage (1972), Black Mama, White Mama (1973), Scream Blacula Scream (1973), The Arena (1974), Sheba, Baby (1975), Bucktown (1975), and Friday Foster (1975). She portrayed the title character in Quentin Tarantino's crime film Jackie Brown (1997), and also appeared in Escape from L.A. (1996), Jawbreaker (1999), Holy Smoke!, (1999), Bones (2001), Just Wright (2010), Larry Crowne (2011), and Poms (2019).
On television, Grier portrayed Eleanor Winthrop in the Showtime comedy-drama series Linc's (1998–2000), Kate "Kit" Porter on the Showtime drama series The L Word (2004–2009), and Constance Terry in the ABC sitcom Bless This Mess (2019–2020). She received praise for her work in the animated series Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child (1999).
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Full filmography
- Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999) as Assistant US Attorney Claudia Williams
- Smallville (2001) as Amanda Waller
- Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen (2009) as Self - Guest
- The Daily Show (1996) as Self - Guest
- The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962) as Self
- The Love Boat (1977) as Cynthia Wilbur
- The Kelly Clarkson Show (2019) as Self
- Bob's Burgers (2011) as Evelyn (voice)
- The Jennifer Hudson Show (2022) as Self
- Miami Vice (1984)
- Miami Vice (1984) as Valerie Gordon
- The View (1997) as Self
- This Is Us (2016) as Grandma
- The Cosby Show (1984) as Samantha
- Knots Landing (1979) as Lieutenant Guthrie
- Hollywood Squares (1998) as Self - Panelist
- Sherri (2022) as Self - Guest
- Night Court (1984) as Benet Collins
- The L Word (2004) as Kit Porter
- Late Night with Conan O'Brien (1993) as Self - Guest
- Mars Attacks! (1996) as Louise Williams
- The Wild Thornberrys (1998) as Mother Springbok (voice)
- Martin (1992) as Pam Grier
- The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990) as Janice