Gloria Elizabeth Reuben (born June 9, 1964) is a Canadian-American actress, producer, and singer. She is well-known for her role as Jeanie Boulet on the medical drama ER (1995–1999, 2008), for which she was twice nominated for an Emmy Award, and for portraying Elizabeth Keckley in the 2012 Steven Spielberg–directed film Lincoln.
Gloria Reuben | |
|---|---|
 Reuben at the 35th International Emmy Awards Gala in 2007 | |
| Born | Gloria Elizabeth Reuben June 9, 1964 Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Occupation(s) | Actress, singer, producer |
| Years active | 1985–present |
She has featured in films such as Timecop (1994), Nick of Time (1995), Admission (2013), and Reasonable Doubt (2014). She played Krista Gordon on Mr. Robot (2015–2019), as well as a recurring character on City on a Hill (2019-2021). She also played Adina Johnson on Cloak & Dagger from 2018 to 2019.
Early life and education
editGloria Elizabeth Reuben was born on June 9, 1964 in Toronto, Ontario, to Pearl Avis (Mills), a classical singer, and Cyril George Reuben, a civil engineer. Her parents are both Jamaican-born.[1] Her father was mostly Jewish (with Ashkenazi and Sephardi roots), though he also had some African ancestry; her mother is of mostly African descent.[2][3] Her father, an elderly widower with five adult children when he married her mother,[1] died when she was young.[4][5][6][7] Her parents had split up before his death. Reuben was the subject of a segment of Henry Louis Gates Jr.'s television genealogy series Finding Your Roots.[1]
Gloria was one of six children.[8] Her older half-brother, Denis Simpson, was an actor and children's television host and died in 2010.[5] Her younger brother David died in 1988.[9] Reuben details her relationship and experience with the deaths of her brothers in her 2019 memoir My Brothers' Keeper.[10]
Reuben began learning piano as a child and later studied music technique and theory, ballet, and jazz at the Royal Conservatory of Music.[6]
Career
editScreen acting
editReuben began her career as an actress after having a few jobs as a model and in television advertisements.
Reuben came to prominence on the American television series ER as Jeanie Boulet, an HIV-positive physician assistant on the hospital's staff. She was a guest star throughout the first season and was promoted to full-time cast member at the beginning of the second. She continued that role until early in the sixth season. In 2008, Reuben returned to ER for one episode during its 14th season. She has stated that this role led to her HIV/AIDS activism.[11] In 1996, she was chosen by People magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World.[12]
Reuben again held a major role in a television series when she starred as FBI agent Brooke Haslett in 1-800-Missing (2003–2004). She later starred as Rosalind Whitman in the TNT series Raising the Bar.
Reuben guest-starred in the season two finale of Drop Dead Diva as Professor Kathy Miller.[13] Reuben guest-starred in season 12 of NBC's Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, reprising her role as U.S. Attorney Christine Danielson.[14] In 2012, she appeared in the CBS TV movie Jesse Stone: Benefit of the Doubt. In 2012, Reuben played Elizabeth Keckley in the historical drama film Lincoln and her portrayal of the character received critical praise.[15] In 2013, she guest starred on the sci-fi drama series Falling Skies.
In October 2014, it was announced that Reuben had joined the cast of the USA Network series Mr. Robot.[16] Reuben plays Dr. Krista Gordon, the psychiatrist of the show's unstable main character, Elliott.[17] The show premiered on in June 2015. She acted in all four seasons of the show. At first a recurring role,[16] Reuben's character was upgraded to a season regular for the fourth and final season.
In 2017, Reuben was cast as Adina Johnson, mother of Tyrone Johnson, in the series Cloak & Dagger.
Stage acting
editIn 1999, Reuben acted in an off-Broadway production of The Vagina Monologues. In 2006, she starred as Condoleezza Rice in the play Stuff Happens at the Public Theater. The following year, she won the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Lead Actress, the preeminent honour for off-Broadway productions, for her portrayal. In 2008, she returned to the Public Theater for Conversations in Tusculum.[18]
Music
editIn 2000, Reuben sang backup vocals for Tina Turner on her Twenty Four Seven Tour.[18]
Reuben is a regularly performing jazz singer and pianist. She released her first record, Just for You, in December 2007.[19] Her second album, Perchance to Dream, was released in April 2015;[20] it was her first jazz record. Her latest album, For All We Know, was released on February 14, 2020, on the MCG Jazz recording label, where she is accompanied by guitarist and Grammy winning producer Marty Ashby.[21][22] She performed all around New York City in the fourth quarter of 2019 to promote her upcoming record.[21][23][24]
Author
editOn November 19, 2019, Reuben released a memoir, My Brothers' Keeper, detailing her journey and an exploration of the life she shared with her two brothers, as well as her emotions and experiences after their sudden deaths.[10]
Personal life
editReuben lives in Brooklyn, New York.[18]
Activism
editReuben is a committed social activist. In large part due to her role as an HIV-positive character in ER, she continues to raise awareness about the HIV/AIDS pandemic, lobbying for increased advocacy and speaking at several major fundraising events.[25] She also takes great interest in global issues, predominantly climate change, nature, and human rights.[26] Gloria Reuben is the president of Waterkeeper Alliance, an organization that strengthens and grows a global network of grassroots leaders protecting everyone’s right to clean water.[27] She is also a special adviser on climate change for The Climate Reality Project, former United States vice president Al Gore's environmental organization. She was formerly on the board for the National Wildlife Federation.[28] Reuben is also on the Leadership Council for the RFK Center for Justice and Human Rights.[8]
Filmography
edit| † | Denotes works that have not yet been released |
Films
editTelevision
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Polka Dot Door | Host | |
| 1990–1991 | The Flash | Sabrina | 5 episodes |
| 1995 | Homicide: Life on the Street | Det. Theresa Walker | 3 episodes |
| 1995–1999, 2008 | ER | Jeanie Boulet | Series regular; 102 episodes Won: Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (1996, 1997, 1998, 1999) Viewers for Quality Television for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (1997, 1998) Nominated: Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film (1998) Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (1997, 1998) Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (2000) NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series (1996, 1997, 1998, 1999) |
| 2001–2002 | The Agency | Lisa Fabrizzi | Regular: episodes 1–13, 21–22 |
| 2002, 2007–2011 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Violet Tremain (2002) / Christine Danielson (2007–2011) | 4 episodes |
| 2002 | Little John | Natalie Britain | TV film; Nominated – NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Television Film |
| 2003–2004 | 1-800-Missing | Brooke Haslett | Series regular; season 1: 18 episodes |
| 2005 | Numb3rs | Erica Quimby | Episode: "Noisy Edge" |
| 2008–2009 | Raising the Bar | Rosalind Whitman | Series regular; 25 episodes |
| 2010 | Drop Dead Diva | Professor Kathy Miller | Episode: "Freeze the Day" |
| 2011 | Jesse Stone: Innocents Lost | Thelma Gleffey | TV movie |
| 2012 | Jesse Stone: Benefit of the Doubt | Thelma Gleffey | TV movie |
| 2013 | Betty & Coretta | Myrlie Evers-Williams | Television film |
| 2013 | Falling Skies | Marina Peralta | 10 episodes |
| 2014 | Happy Face Killer | FBI Agent Melinda Gand | TV movie |
| 2015 | The Music in Me | Gloria | TV movie |
| 2015–2017 | The Blacklist | Dr. Selma Orchard | 2 episodes |
| 2015–2019 | Mr. Robot | Dr. Krista Gordon | Recurring role |
| 2015 | Jesse Stone: Lost in Paradise | Thelma Gleffey | TV movie |
| 2016–2017 | Saints & Sinners | Mayor Pamela Clayborne | Series regular |
| 2017 | The Breaks | Mattie Taylor | 4 episodes |
| 2017 | The Librarians | Jade Wells | Episode: "And the Silver Screen" |
| 2018 | Blindspot | Kira Evans | 6 episodes |
| 2018–2019 | Cloak & Dagger | Adina Johnson | Series regular |
| 2019–2021 | City on a Hill | Eloise Hastings | Recurring role[29] |
| 2021 | Blue Bloods | ATF Agent Rachel Weber | 2 episodes |
| 2022 | The First Lady | Valerie Jarrett | 3 episodes |
| 2022–2023 | The Equalizer | Trish | 2 episodes |
| 2023 | NCIS: Hawaiʻi | Col. Tannon McCarthy | Episode: "Cabin Fever" |
| 2024 | Elsbeth | Claudia Payne | Recurring role |
References
edit- ^ a b c Reel Beach: Journey through Gloria Reuben’s family history intriguing and fascinating
- ^ Stated on Finding Your Roots, PBS, September 23, 2014
- ^ Gates, Henry Louis Jr. (January 28, 2016). Finding Your Roots, Season 2: The Official Companion to the PBS Series. UNC Press Books. ISBN 9781469626192.
- ^ Profile, interfaithfamily.com; accessed November 27, 2014.
- ^ a b "Gloria!". Chatelaine. March 1999. Archived from the original on March 1, 2012. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
Unfortunately, the interracial Jamaican family – her father was white, her mother black – was a conspicuous addition to the very white, very conservative community. "The realities of being a mulatto kid in London or Scarberia weren't always easy," says Reuben's half-brother Denis Simpson...
- ^ a b Williams, Kam (August 28, 2008). "Gloria Reuben: The Raising the Bar Interview with Kam Williams". The Sly Fox Film Reviews. Retrieved September 14, 2008.
At 18, she won the Miss Black Ontario beauty pageant, although the crown did not come without controversy, as some people questioned whether she was deserving because one of her parents was white.
- ^ Bournea, Chris (April 3, 2007). "Gloria Reuben's Activism Moves from Screen to Real-Life Role". blackaids.org. ThisWeek Newspapers. Archived from the original on June 24, 2009. Retrieved September 14, 2008.
A Toronto native and daughter of a black mother and a white Canadian father...
- ^ a b "Gloria Reuben born". African American Registry. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ^ "Actress Gloria Reuben Opens Up About a Very Personal Journey in New Book". Cheddar. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ^ a b Reuben, Gloria (November 19, 2019). My Brothers' Keeper. Post Hill Press. ISBN 978-1-64293-410-6.
- ^ KTLA Morning Show interview, October 9, 2008.
- ^ Rne, Bridget (May 5, 2002). "Gloria Reuben takes time out from 'The Agency' for Hallmark's 'Little John'". nwi.com. Associated Press. Archived from the original on February 21, 2021. Retrieved February 21, 2021.
- ^ "Exclusive: Gloria Reuben to Guest-Star on Drop Dead Diva". TVGuide.com.
- ^ "Gloria Reuben Returns to SVU". TVGuide.com. Retrieved August 17, 2010.
- ^ "Oscars 2013: Keep Your Eye On..." Archived October 8, 2014, at the Wayback Machine, ew.com; accessed November 27, 2014.
- ^ a b "Karen Pittman Joins The Americans; Gloria Reuben In Mr. Robot". Deadline. October 23, 2014. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ^ "Krista Gordon played by Gloria Reuben | Characters & Cast | Mr. Robot". USA Network. August 16, 2019. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ^ a b c "Gloria Reuben". iobdb.com. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ^ "Just For You". www.amazon.com. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ^ "Perchance to Dream". www.amazon.com. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ^ a b "Gloria Reuben: From Ballads to Bossa". Feinstein's/54 Below. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ^ "For All We Know". www.amazon.com. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
- ^ "- The Triad". www.triadnyc.com. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ^ "Pizza Express Live". www.pizzaexpresslive.com. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ^ "Gloria Reuben | People | Pioneers of Television | PBS". Pioneers of Television. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ^ "Gloria Reuben to Jamie Dimon – Stop Bankrolling MTR and the Coal Industry! – The Understory". Rainforest Action Network. October 26, 2009. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ^ "Gloria Reuben". Waterkeeper. November 23, 2020. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
- ^ "The National Wildlife Federation Blog". The National Wildlife Federation Blog. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ^ Hipes, Patrick (February 26, 2019). "'City On A Hill': James Remar & Gloria Reuben To Recur On Showtime Series". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 26, 2019.
External links
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