Lee Chamberlin facts for kids

Lee Chamberlin was an American actress who starred in plays, movies, and TV shows. She was born Alverta LaPallo on February 14, 1938, and passed away on May 25, 2014. She was known for her many roles on stage and screen.

Early Life and Family

Lee Chamberlin was born in New York City. Her mother was Ida Roberta Small. Her father was Bernando LaPallo, a writer from Brazil. He lived a very long life, passing away at 114 years old in 2015.

Acting Career Highlights

Lee Chamberlin started her acting journey on stage in 1968. She appeared in a play called Slave Ship. She also performed in a musical called Do Your Own Thing, which was based on Shakespeare's Twelfth Night.

Stage Performances

In 1974, Lee played Cordelia in King Lear. She acted alongside the famous actor James Earl Jones. This play was part of the New York Shakespeare in the Park Festival.

Lee also wrote her own musical play called Struttin’. It was performed in 1988. For her work on Struttin’, she won six AUDELCO Awards. These awards celebrate excellence in Black Theater.

Writing and Projects

Lee Chamberlin also wrote and performed her own one-woman play. It was called Objects in the Mirror are Closer than They Seem. She performed it in Miami and Ithaca, New York.

She also started a special organization called Lee Chamberlin's Playwrights' Inn Project Inc.. This group was set up in France. Its goal was to help and support African American playwrights (people who write plays).

Television Roles

Lee Chamberlin was a regular on the popular children's TV show The Electric Company. She appeared in the first two years of the show. She also made guest appearances on many other TV series.

Some of these shows include What's Happening!!, Diff'rent Strokes, and NYPD Blue. In 1979, she played Odile Harris in the important TV series Roots: The Next Generations.

She had a regular role as Lucy Daniels in the show "All's Fair from 1976 to 1977. From 1982 to 1990, she played Pat Baxter on the soap opera All My Children. Pat Baxter was the mother of Angela Baxter Hubbard.

Film Appearances

Lee Chamberlin also acted in several movies. Her first film role was a small part in Up the Sandbox. This movie starred Barbra Streisand.

She had a notable role as Madame Zenobia in the film Uptown Saturday Night. She also appeared in its follow-up movie, Let's Do It Again. Her last film role was in a short movie called Habeaus Corpus in 2013.

Later Life and Passing

Lee Chamberlin passed away on May 25, 2014, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. She was 76 years old and died from cancer. She is remembered by her daughter, Ekayani, and her son, Matthew.

Filmography