Leland Gantt Explained

Leland Gantt
Birth Place:McKeesport, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Education:Point Park College (BA)
Occupation:Actor, writer

Leland Gantt is an American actor and writer known for his roles in various television series and films. Gantt is also a theatre actor, and has appeared in a one-man show, Rhapsody in Black.[1] [2] [3]

Early life and education

Gantt was born and raised in McKeesport, Pennsylvania.[4] After graduating from McKeesport Area High School, he attended the Indiana University of Pennsylvania before earning a Bachelor of Arts degree from Point Park College.[5] After struggling with drug and alcohol addiction, Gantt was inspired to pursue acting by a theatre teacher and moved to New York City in 1983.[6]

Career

After moving to New York, Gantt appeared in Broadway productions of Ma Rainey's Black Bottom,[7] Fences, Richard III, Crumbs from the Table of Joy, Gem of the Ocean, Judas Iscariot,[8] and The Fall of Heaven.[9] [10] In 1991, Gantt was nominated for the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play for his performance in Let Me Live, losing to Kevin Spacey.[11] [12]

Gantt has also appeared in episodes of Law & Order and JAG. He portrayed Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1987 miniseries Hoover vs. The Kennedys.[13] He also starred in The Affair.[14]

Filmography

Film

!Year!Title!Role!Notes
1985Rockin' Road TripCurtis Smith
1990Presumed InnocentLeon Wells
1991The SuperMale Tenant
1992Malcolm XWilbur Kinley
1998Pants on FireAllen
1998Out of the PastBayard RustinDocumentary; voice
2000Requiem for a DreamWard Attendant Penn
2008Miracle at St. AnnaLivingston
2020Another Year TogetherKeith

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
1987Hoover vs. The KennedysMartin Luther King Jr.2 episodes
1993, 2001Law & OrderFBI Agent Jeff Washington / Jonas 'Skate' Stark
1995New York UndercoverJerome WillardEpisode: "All in the Family"
1995The AffairBarrettTelevision film
1995JAGBriefing OfficerEpisode: "Scimitar"
2003Stew MatosEpisode: "Fallacy"
2018TitansThurmanEpisode: "Atlas Shrugged"
2019The Good FightPartner ThomasEpisode: "The One with the Celebrity Divorce"

References

  1. Web site: BWW News Desk. LeLand Gantt Stars in RHAPSODY IN BLACK Presented by The Cincinnati Arts Association. 2021-05-08. BroadwayWorld.com. en.
  2. Web site: Benson. John. Playhouse Square making it easy to experience LeLand Gantt's one-man show 'Rhapsody in Black'. 2021-05-08. The News-Herald. en.
  3. Web site: Star. Lincoln Journal. One-man show tackles racism in America. 2021-05-08. JournalStar.com. December 2016 . en.
  4. Web site: Rhapsody in Black. 2021-05-08. Red Shell Management. en-US.
  5. Web site: Theater roundup: PICT's 'Woman in Black'; LeLand Gantt's 'Rhapsody in Black'. 2021-05-08. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. en.
  6. Web site: 2019-11-13. McKeesport's own LeLand Gantt to perform at August Wilson Center, Nov. 15. 2021-05-08. New Pittsburgh Courier. en-US.
  7. Web site: Inside the Playbill: Leland Gantt. 2021-05-08. Playbill. en.
  8. News: Collins-Hughes. Laura. 2017-03-14. Review: For 'Judas Iscariot,' a Courtroom Drama of Epic Proportions. en-US. The New York Times. 2021-05-08. 0362-4331.
  9. Web site: The Week in Culture Pictures, Jan. 29 - The New York Times > Arts > Slide Show > Slide 10 of 19. 2021-05-08. archive.nytimes.com.
  10. Web site: Leland Gantt theatre profile. 2021-05-08. www.abouttheartists.com.
  11. Web site: Leland Gantt. 2021-05-09. Playbill. en.
  12. News: Gussow. Mel. 1991-01-17. REVIEW/THEATER; Black Leftist's Jail Ordeal In the South in the 1930's. en-US. The New York Times. 2021-05-09. 0362-4331.
  13. News: Corry. John. 1987-11-18. TV REVIEWS; 'HOOVER VS. THE KENNEDYS,' MINI-SERIES ON CHANNEL 11. en-US. The New York Times. 2021-05-09. 0362-4331.
  14. Book: New York Magazine. 1995-10-16. New York Media, LLC. en.