Paula Jai Parker

Photo of Paula Jai Parker

Biography

A spirited comedic performer with a powerful and uncompromising presence, Parker proved her skills as a regular on one season of the syndicated "Apollo Comedy Hour" before landing a featured starring role on Robert Townsend's short-lived variety series "Townsend Television" (Fox, 1993). The versatile, actress compellingly took on a more dramatic role in "Tang", an installment of the 1994 HBO anthology special "Cosmic Slop", for which she …
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Job Title

Actor

Born

August 19, 1969

Career Milestones

2006

Cast in "Idlewild," a feature about music performers in the 1930s

2005

Starred in Craig Brewer's "Hustle & Flow" opposite Terrence Dashon Howard

2004

Featured in the Spike lee film "She Hate Me"

2003

Featured in the thriller "Phone Booth"

2001

Co-starred in the Sundance-screened ensemble comedy "30 Years to Life"

1999

Starred as brazen private investigator Roberta Young in "Snoops" (ABC) David E Kelley's high-tech detective drama

1998

Acted in the biopic of 1950s hit singer Frankie Lymon "Why Do Fools Fall in Love?"

1998

Appeared in the HBO original film "Always Outnumbered"

1998

Featured in the comedy "Woo", starring Jada Pinkett

1997

Was a regular on the CBS Saturday morning children's series "The Weird Al Show", playing super sleuth Val Brentwood

1997

"Riot", a 1995 filmed fictionalized look at 1992's Los Angeles riots, featuring the actress in one of four vignettes, aired on Showtime

1997

Reteamed with Cundieff, co-starring as a gold-digging single woman in his comedy "Sprung"

1996

Appeared in Spike Lee's "Get on the Bus"

Had a recurring role on The WB's comedy "The Wayans Bros"

1995

Was featured in "Tales From the Hood", an urban supernatural horror film directed by Rusty Cundieff

1995

Appeared in F Gary Gray's comedy "Friday", starring Chris Tucker and Ice Cube

1994

Starred in "Tang", one of the three parts of the HBO's anthology special "Cosmic Slop"

1993

Was a regular on the short-lived variety series "Townsend Television" (Fox)

Featured on the syndicated series "The Apollo Comedy Hour"

Raised in Cleveland, Ohio

Awards

2006

Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture in Hustle & Flow