All of your favorites. With the unwavering encouragement of her mother Elizabeth and her father Jonathan, Rolle progressed through her years as a student at Blanche Ely High School in Pompano Beach and subsequent colleges, culminating at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Bea Arthur (The Golden Girls) stars as. Jimmie Walker was a stand-up comic who had been headlining comedy clubs across the country for several years when he landed a job at CBS as the warm-up act for the short-lived James Coco sitcom Caluccis Department. Esther Rolle, a sharecropper's daughter who grew up to become a respected actress and role model for other blacks, has died. Did You Know That Florida Evans from 'Good Times' Had 2 Sisters Who Walker was the breakout star of the show, but both Carter and BernNadette Stanis (who played Thelma Evans) achieved bona fide teen idol status thanks to their exposure on Good Times, and were in steady competition with the Jackson brothers and Diana Ross in the Hollywood gossip columns. Why Esther Rolle Quit 'Good Times' - Here's Why - YouTube 'Good Times': The 1 Episode That Star Esther Rolle Wouldn't Do - But Her body was flown back to her hometown in Pompano Beach, Florida. She is buried in Westview Community Cemetery in Pompano Beach. By Cynthia Rita. Best known for the role of Florida Evans on the 1970s sitcoms, - IMDb Mini Biography By: Gary Brumburgh / gr-home@pacbell.net, Just before her death, Rolle was reunited with, When Rolle received the lead role of Florida Evans on. It was hope I saw in their eyes. But her breakthrough came in 1972 when she was cast as Florida Evans on the CBS show Maude, which was a spin-off of All in the Family, at the time one of the most popular television shows. He is set to appear in the "Coming To America" sequel. The site reports that Rolles dad insisted she not become a servant in real life; instead, she would fight for a fuller family life for her iconic television character, whom she also played in Maude. She told the wide-eyed children that she had picked beans and onions at the surrounding farms. Esther Rolle - Wikipedia One week in the winter of 1974, she bid farewell to Maude on Tuesday night and by Friday had relocated to Chicago with sitcom husband John Amos in Good Times.. (CBS) Consistency is one of the biggest paradigms in television comedy, and no show has maintained it better than the 70s sitcom 'Good Times'. She was often cast in plays produced by Robert Hooks and the Negro Ensemble Company. Many classic '70s and '80s flicks have spawned TV series - but few have found success. Amos explained that just like every young actor, he tried his hands on a couple of things, and at the time, heard the news of the audition for the drama, he went in there and gave an outstanding performance.