Anna Maria Horsford facts for kids

Anna Maria Horsford is an American actress who has appeared in many popular TV shows and movies. She is especially famous for her roles in comedy shows.

Many people know Horsford for playing Thelma Frye on the NBC sitcom Amen from 1986 to 1991. She also starred as Dee Baxter on the sitcom The Wayans Bros. from 1995 to 1999. Besides comedy, she has also taken on serious roles. She played a lawyer on the crime drama The Shield and Vivienne Avant on the soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful. Her work on The Bold and the Beautiful earned her two nominations for a Daytime Emmy Award.

Horsford has also acted in many movies. She is well-known for playing Betty Jones, the mother of Craig Jones, in the comedy movie Friday and its sequel, Friday After Next. Some of her other movies include Set It Off (1996), Along Came a Spider (2001), and A Madea Christmas (2013).

Growing Up in New York

Anna Maria Horsford was born in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City. Her father, Victor Horsford, worked with real estate. Her mother, Lillian Agatha Horsford, came to the United States from the island nation of Antigua and Barbuda in the 1940s.

Horsford attended the famous High School of Performing Arts in New York. After graduating, she began her acting career with a program called Harlem Youth for Change. Her first professional acting job was in a play at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park.

A DNA test showed that some of her ancestors on her mother's side were from the Limba people of Sierra Leone in Africa.

Career on Screen

Horsford's first big job in television was as a producer for the PBS show Soul!. The show, which celebrated Black American culture, music, and politics, was on the air from 1968 to 1973.

Famous TV Roles

Throughout her career, Horsford has been a guest star on many popular TV shows. These include The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Moesha, The Bernie Mac Show, and Everybody Hates Chris.

Her two most famous roles were on sitcoms. She played the daughter of a church deacon, Thelma Frye, in Amen. Later, she became known as the security guard and mother figure, Dee Baxter, on The Wayans Bros.

More recently, she has had recurring roles on several shows. She played Vivienne Avant on the daytime drama The Bold and the Beautiful. She also appeared as Tray's mother on the comedy The Last O.G. and had a role in the sitcom B Positive.

Movie Appearances

Horsford is famous for playing funny and caring mothers in movies. Her role as Betty Jones in the 1995 movie Friday is one of her most remembered. She returned to play the character in the 2002 sequel, Friday After Next.

Some of her other movie roles include:

• Presumed Innocent (1990)
• Set It Off (1996)
• Along Came a Spider (2001)
• Our Family Wedding (2010)
• A Madea Christmas (2013)

Personal Life

In 2011, Anna Maria Horsford was given the honorary title of Ambassador of Tourism for the country of Antigua. She is also a member of the Sigma Gamma Rho sorority, a service organization.

Awards and Nominations