Caryn Ward is an American actress, dancer and choreographer. She is perhaps best known for her recurring role as Erica Harrison on the sitcom The Game.

Early life and career

Born in Los Angeles

Los Ángeles

Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

, Ward's mother is a lawyer and her father is a medical doctor. She attended
Howard University

Howard University

Howard University is a federally chartered, non-profit, private, coeducational, nonsectarian, historically black university located in Washington, D.C., United States...

 where she graduated with a degree in psychology

Psychology

Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...

.
Ward also studied dance at Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater

The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is a modern dance company based in New York, New York. It was founded in 1958 by choreographer and dancer Alvin Ailey...

 in New York City. She performed various artists including Janet Jackson

Janet Jackson

Janet Damita Jo Jackson is an American recording artist and actress. Known for a series of sonically innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows, television and film roles, she has been a prominent figure in popular culture for over 25 years...

, Arsenio Hall

Arsenio Hall

Arsenio Hall is an American actor, comedian, and former talk show host. He is best known for his talk show The Arsenio Hall Show, which ran between 1989 and 1994, and his roles in the films Coming to America and Harlem Nights.Hall is also known for his appearance as Alan Thicke's sidekick on the...

, and Rosie Perez

Rosie Perez

Rosa María "Rosie" Pérez is an American actress, dancer, choreographer, director and community activist.- Early life :...

.

Ward began her career in the 1980s with appearances on Fame

Fame (1982 TV series)

Fame is an American television series originally produced between 1982 and 1987. The show was based on the 1980 motion picture of the same name. Using a mixture of drama and music, it followed the lives of the students and faculty at the New York City High School for the Performing Arts. Although...

, Webster

Webster (TV series)

Webster is an American situation comedy that premiered on ABC on September 16, 1983, and ran on that network until September 11, 1987, but continued in first-run syndication until 1989...

, and Paradise

Paradise (TV series)

Paradise is an American Western family television series, broadcast by CBS from 1988 to 1991. Created by David Jacobs and Robert Porter, the series presents the adventures of fictitious gunfighter Ethan Allen Cord, whose sister left her four children in his custody when she died.-Synopsis:Paradise...

. From 1990 to 1991, she co-starred in the short-lived CBS

CBS

CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...

 sitcom You Take the Kids, starring Nell Carter

Nell Carter

Nell Carter was an American singer, and film, stage, and television actress. She won a Tony Award for her performance in the Broadway musical Ain't Misbehavin, as well as an Emmy Award for her reprisal of the role on television...

. Ward has since guest starred on Friends

Friends

Friends is an American sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994 to May 6, 2004. The series revolves around a group of friends in Manhattan. The series was produced by Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association with Warner Bros. Television...

, The Shield

The Shield

The Shield is an American television drama series starring Michael Chiklis which premiered on March 12, 2002 on FX in the United States and concluded on November 25, 2008 after seven seasons...

, and Lincoln Heights

Lincoln Heights (TV series)

Lincoln Heights is an American drama television series about Eddie Sutton, a Mission Vista police officer who moves his family back to his old neighborhood, Lincoln Heights, to start a new life and to help out his old neighborhood...

. In addition to television roles, Ward has also had roles in several featuring films including Motives

Motives (film)

Motives is a 2004 thriller starring Vivica A. Fox, Shemar Moore, Golden Brooks, Sean Blakemore and Keshia Knight Pulliam. The sequel, Motives 2, was released in 2007 .-Synopsis:...

 (2004), opposite Vivica A. Fox

Vivica A. Fox

Vivica Anjanetta Fox is an American actress and television producer. She is best known for her roles in the films Independence Day, Set It Off, Soul Food, Why Do Fools Fall In Love,Kill Bill and Juwanna Mann....

 and Shemar Moore

Shemar Moore

Shemar Franklin Moore is an American actor and former male fashion model. His most notable roles are that of Malcolm Winters on The Young and the Restless from 1994 to 2005, Derek Morgan on CBS's Criminal Minds, and as the third permanent host of Soul Train from 1999 to 2003.-Early life:Moore was...

, Traci Townsend

Traci Townsend

Traci Townsend is a 2005 comedy film, directed by Craig Ross, Jr., which stars Jazsmin Lewis and Mari Morrow. It was written by Bobby Thompson, who was also a producer of the film.-Plot:...

 (2005), Stompin (2007), and Steppin: The Movie (2009).

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1985–1986	Fame Fame (1982 TV series) Fame is an American television series originally produced between 1982 and 1987. The show was based on the 1980 motion picture of the same name. Using a mixture of drama and music, it followed the lives of the students and faculty at the New York City High School for the Performing Arts. Although...	Tina	4 episodes
1986	Webster Webster (TV series) Webster is an American situation comedy that premiered on ABC on September 16, 1983, and ran on that network until September 11, 1987, but continued in first-run syndication until 1989...	Tony	Episode: "The Big Sleepover"
1987	The Liberators	Emily	Television movie
1988	What's Happening Now!! What's Happening Now!! What's Happening Now!! is an American television sitcom spinoff of What's Happening!!. It ran in syndication from 1985 to 1988. Like the previous series, What's Happening Now!! is loosely based on the motion picture Cooley High...	Joyce	Episode: "The Fabulous Fortunes"
1988	David	Jennifer	Television movie
1989	Paradise Paradise (TV series) Paradise is an American Western family television series, broadcast by CBS from 1988 to 1991. Created by David Jacobs and Robert Porter, the series presents the adventures of fictitious gunfighter Ethan Allen Cord, whose sister left her four children in his custody when she died.-Synopsis:Paradise...	Role unknown	Episode: "All the Pretty Little Horses"
1990	Family Matters	Susie	Episode: "Dedicated to the One I Love"
1990–1991	You Take the Kids You Take the Kids You Take the Kids is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from December 1990 to January 1991. The series stars Nell Carter who also performed the theme song "Nobody's Got It Easy".-Synopsis:...	Lorette Kirkland	6 episodes
2001	The Heart Department	Shondra Adaire	Television movie
2002	Friends Friends Friends is an American sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994 to May 6, 2004. The series revolves around a group of friends in Manhattan. The series was produced by Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association with Warner Bros. Television...	Waitress	Episode: "The One Where Joey Dates Rachel"
2004	The Bold and the Beautiful The Bold and the Beautiful The Bold and the Beautiful is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS Daytime. It premiered on March 23, 1987....	Insomnia Waitress	1 episode
2004	Strong Medicine Strong Medicine Strong Medicine is a medical drama with a focus on feminist politics, health issues and class conflict. The television series aired on the Lifetime network from 2000 to 2006. It is distributed by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. The series was created and produced in part by comedienne and...	Role Unknown	Episode: "Selective Breeding"
2004	Motives Motives (film) Motives is a 2004 thriller starring Vivica A. Fox, Shemar Moore, Golden Brooks, Sean Blakemore and Keshia Knight Pulliam. The sequel, Motives 2, was released in 2007 .-Synopsis:...	Gwendolyn
2005	The Shield The Shield The Shield is an American television drama series starring Michael Chiklis which premiered on March 12, 2002 on FX in the United States and concluded on November 25, 2008 after seven seasons...	Queenie	Episode: "String Theory"
2005	Traci Townsend Traci Townsend Traci Townsend is a 2005 comedy film, directed by Craig Ross, Jr., which stars Jazsmin Lewis and Mari Morrow. It was written by Bobby Thompson, who was also a producer of the film.-Plot:...	Lynn
2005	Boss'n Up Boss'n Up Snoop Dogg's "musical" film inspired by his preceding album R&G The Masterpiece, Boss 'n up debuted on 6 December 2005. It came out in DVD format. It was the first release of the newly founded Snoopadelic Films, run by Snoop Dogg....	Dominique
2006	Sarang Song	Nessa	Television movie
2006–2009	The Game	Erica Harrison	7 episodes
2007	Lincoln Heights Lincoln Heights (TV series) Lincoln Heights is an American drama television series about Eddie Sutton, a Mission Vista police officer who moves his family back to his old neighborhood, Lincoln Heights, to start a new life and to help out his old neighborhood...	Layla	Episodes: "House Arrest" "The 'F' Word"
2007	Tournament of Dreams	Nessa
2007	Stompin'	Camille Turner
2009	N-Secure	Kim
2009	Think Twice	Jennifer
2009	Breaking News	Kendra Davis
2009	Steppin: The Movie	Actor
2009	Sideline Confessions	Jade
2009	Blood River	Sheila
2010	Crossed the Line	Kyra	Filming

External links

• Official Website