Meshach Taylor
Encyclopedia
Meshach Taylor is an American
actor
.
He is perhaps best known for his role as Anthony Bouvier on the sitcom Designing Women
. He also had a major role on the sitcom Dave's World
, playing Sheldon Baylor, and appeared in Buffalo Bill
.
, Massachusetts
, the son of a college professor and a sociology professor. He graduated from Florida A&M University
in 1993. He married Bianca Ferguson
in 1983 and has four children and four grandchildren.
In May 1981, the ninth season of M*A*S*H, Taylor was seen on the silver screen as a corpsman in the final episode, "The Life You Save." In 1998, Taylor made his Broadway
debut as Lumiere in Beauty and the Beast
where he starred alongside Toni Braxton
.
Taylor appeared as a panelist on the 2000 revival of the television game show
To Tell the Truth
. He had a recurring role as Alastair Wright, the history teacher turned school principal, on Nickelodeon
's sitcom, Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide
. He was on the first episode of The Golden Girls
, playing a police officer. Taylor appeared in episodes of Hannah Montana
, as a fashion designer, and All of Us
as Neesee's father. He co-hosted Living Live! with Florence Henderson
on Retirement Living TV
; in 2008, the program was revamped as The Florence Henderson Show.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
.
He is perhaps best known for his role as Anthony Bouvier on the sitcom Designing Women
Designing Women
Designing Women is an American television sitcom that centered on the working and personal lives of four Southern women and one man in an interior design firm in Atlanta, Georgia. It aired on the CBS television network from September 29, 1986 until May 24, 1993. The show was created by head writer...
. He also had a major role on the sitcom Dave's World
Dave's World
Dave's World is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from 1993 to 1997. The series was based on the writing of Miami Herald columnist Dave Barry.-Plot:...
, playing Sheldon Baylor, and appeared in Buffalo Bill
Buffalo Bill (TV series)
Buffalo Bill is an American television situation comedy that featured the misadventures of an egotistical talk show host and his staff at WBFL-TV, a small TV station in Buffalo, New York. It premiered May 31, 1983 on NBC and ran for only part of two seasons...
.
Personal life
Taylor was born in BostonBoston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, the son of a college professor and a sociology professor. He graduated from Florida A&M University
Florida A&M University
Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, commonly known as Florida A&M or FAMU, is a historically black university located in Tallahassee, Florida, United States, the state capital, and is one of eleven member institutions of the State University System of Florida...
in 1993. He married Bianca Ferguson
Bianca Ferguson
Bianca Ferguson is an American actress from Gary, Indiana.Ferguson is best known for playing Claudia Johnston Phillips in the soap opera General Hospital from 1978 to 1987. She is also married to former Designing Women actor, Meshach Taylor.-External links:...
in 1983 and has four children and four grandchildren.
Career
Movies he has appeared in include:- Damien: Omen IIDamien: Omen IIDamien: Omen II, is a 1978 American horror film directed by Don Taylor, starring William Holden, Lee Grant, and Jonathan Scott-Taylor. The film was the second installment in The Omen series, set seven years after the first film, and was followed by a third installment, Omen III: The Final Conflict,...
- ComaComa (film)Coma is a 1978 suspense film based on the novel of the same name by Robin Cook. The film rights were acquired by director Michael Crichton, and the movie was produced by Martin Erlichmann for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer...
- One More Saturday Night
- The HaircutThe HaircutThe Haircut is a 1982 American short drama film directed by Tamar Simon Hoffs. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1983 Cannes Film Festival.-Cast:* John Cassavetes - Music Industry Executive* Joyce Bulifant - Dell...
- MannequinMannequin (1987 film)Mannequin is a 1987 romantic comedy film, starring Andrew McCarthy, Kim Cattrall, Meshach Taylor, James Spader, G. W. Bailey, and Estelle Getty...
- Mannequin 2: On the Move
- The HowlingThe Howling (film)The Howling is a 1981 werewolf-themed horror film directed by Joe Dante. Based on the novel of the same name by Gary Brandner, the screenplay is written by John Sayles and Terence H. Winkless...
- Double, Double, Toil and TroubleDouble, Double, Toil and TroubleDouble, Double, Toil and Trouble is a 1993 Halloween children's TV movie. It stars Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen as two adventurous little girls who discover that their Great Aunt Sophia has been trapped and cursed by her evil twin sister Agatha. On the 7th year of her imprisonment, Sophia will be...
- ExplorersExplorers (film)Explorers is a 1985 family-oriented science-fiction fantasy film written by Eric Luke and directed by Joe Dante. It was the first feature film for both Ethan Hawke and River Phoenix.It was filmed in 70mm color with 6-track sound, and runs for 109 minutes...
- Ultra WarriorUltra WarriorUltra Warrior, also known as Welcome to Oblivion, is a post-apocalyptic 1990 film directed by Augusto Tamayo San Román and Kevin Tent. Set in a post-World War III era, a nuclear holocaust creates mutants who inhabit the radioactive areas and battle with the few remaining humans. One man emerges as...
- Class ActClass ActClass Act is a 1992 comedy film, directed by Randall Miller and starring hip-hop duo Kid 'n Play. An urban retelling of Mark Twain's The Prince and the Pauper, the screenplay is by Cynthia Friedlob and John Semper from a story by Michael Swerdlick, Richard Brenne and Wayne Allan Rice...
- Jacks or Better
- HyenasHyenas (film)Hyenas is a 2010 supernatural horror film, written and directed by Eric Weston.-Cast:* Christa Campbell as Wilda* Costas Mandylor as Gannon* Joshua Alba as Marco* Rudolf Martin as Sheriff Manfred* Christina Murphy as Gina...
In May 1981, the ninth season of M*A*S*H, Taylor was seen on the silver screen as a corpsman in the final episode, "The Life You Save." In 1998, Taylor made his Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
debut as Lumiere in Beauty and the Beast
Beauty and the Beast (musical)
Beauty and the Beast is a musical with music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice and a book by Linda Woolverton, based on the 1991 Disney film of the same name. Seven new songs were written for the stage musical...
where he starred alongside Toni Braxton
Toni Braxton
Toni Michelle Braxton is an American R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. Braxton has won six Grammy Awards, seven American Music Awards, and five Billboard Music Awards and has sold over 60 million records worldwide...
.
Taylor appeared as a panelist on the 2000 revival of the television game show
Game show
A game show is a type of radio or television program in which members of the public, television personalities or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, play a game which involves answering questions or solving puzzles usually for money and/or prizes...
To Tell the Truth
To Tell the Truth
To Tell the Truth is an American television panel game show created by Bob Stewart and produced by Goodson-Todman Productions that has aired in various forms since 1956 both on networks and in syndication...
. He had a recurring role as Alastair Wright, the history teacher turned school principal, on Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (TV channel)
Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
's sitcom, Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide
Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide
Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide, commonly called Ned's Declassified for short, is an American live-action situation comedy on Nickelodeon that debuted in the channel's Sunday night TEENick scheduling block on September 12, 2004. The series' actual pilot episode aired on September 7, 2003...
. He was on the first episode of The Golden Girls
The Golden Girls
The Golden Girls is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris, which originally aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992. Starring Bea Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty, the show centers on four older women sharing a home in Miami, Florida...
, playing a police officer. Taylor appeared in episodes of Hannah Montana
Hannah Montana
Hannah Montana is an American television series, which debuted on March 24, 2006 on the Disney Channel. The series focuses on a girl who lives a double life as an average teenage school girl named Miley Stewart by day and a famous pop singer named Hannah Montana by night, concealing her real...
, as a fashion designer, and All of Us
All of Us
All of Us is an American sitcom that premiered on the now-defunct UPN network in the United States on September 16, 2003, where it aired for its first three seasons. October 1, 2006, the show moved to The CW, a new network formed by the merger of UPN and The WB All of Us is an American sitcom that...
as Neesee's father. He co-hosted Living Live! with Florence Henderson
Florence Henderson
Florence Agnes Henderson is an American actress and singer. She is perhaps best known for her role of Carol Brady on the ABC sitcom The Brady Bunch from 1969 to 1974...
on Retirement Living TV
Retirement Living TV
Retirement Living TV is an American cable television network targeted at a demographic aged 50 years and older. Its topics and programs include health care, finance, travel, lifestyle, comedy, and drama....
; in 2008, the program was revamped as The Florence Henderson Show.
External links
Chang, Lia.- Meshach Taylor talks Wigger on Wendy Williams Show, Backstage Pass with Lia Chang, New York, May 17, 2011.