Holly Robinson

Real Name : Holly Elizabeth Robinson Peete

Born: 18/09/1964 (58 yo)
Birth place: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (USA)

Citizenship : USA

Occupation : Actress , Singer

Summary

Holly Elizabeth Robinson Peete is an American actress and singer. She is perhaps best known for her roles as Judy Hoffs on the Fox TV police drama 21 Jump Street, Vanessa Russell on the ABC sitcom Hangin' with Mr. Cooper, and Dr. Malena Ellis on the NBC/WB sitcom For Your Love. After graduating from high school, Peete entered Sarah Lawrence College in New York. She majored in psychology and French, and can speak four languages. During her time as an undergraduate, she spent a year abroad at the Sorbonne in Paris, France. After she graduated in 1986, she considered attending graduate school and perhaps working in languages for the U.S. State Department. However, her love of acting contributed to her decision to give an acting career a chance for a few months first. Within a short time, Peete found roles on a television series and in two films, and thoughts of graduate school were left behind.

Peete served as one of the original five co-hosts of the CBS daytime talk show The Talk. She was not asked back for the show's second season for untold reasons.

Peete's children's book, My Brother Charlie, won her an NAACP Image Award for "Outstanding Literary Work" in March 2011.

Biography

Peete was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Dolores and Matt Robinson (the original Gordon on Sesame Street). Her mother was a school teacher, in public relations, and later a personal talent manager, and her father a producer/writer. She has an older brother named Matthew Thomas III. In 1974, her family moved to California. Peete graduated from Santa Monica High School in Santa Monica, California, where her classmates included Rob Lowe. Peete graduated from Sarah Lawrence College with a degree in psychology and French. Peete studied abroad for a year at the Sorbonne, and is fluent in French. While there she sang in Paris nightclubs, including a memorable performance with jazz legend Lionel Hampton at the Hotel Meridian Jazz Club.

Career

In 1969, she made her first TV appearance by playing a little girl named Sally on the very first episode of Sesame Street. At the age of 11, Holly worked for the children's show Kidsworld as a celebrity correspondent; she interviewed many actors and actresses for the program. As an actress, she has appeared on the television series 21 Jump Street (1987—1991), Hangin' with Mr. Cooper (1992—1997), For Your Love (1998—2002), and Like Family (2003—2004). In 1992 she portrayed Diana Ross in The Jacksons: An American Dream. Robinson most recently starred on the UPN comedy Love, Inc.. The show lasted just one season, and was canceled after the WB/UPN merger.

Robinson has also had a limited career as a singer and recording artist, including the introductory song to 21 Jump Street. She contributed a variety of songs to the soundtrack of the film Howard the Duck. (She appeared as a musician/singer in a minor role in the film.) She recorded the theme song "We Got Our Love" for the 1988 film Three for the Road. She and Dawnn Lewis, along with R&B quartet En Vogue, performed the theme song for Season 1 of Hangin' with Mr. Cooper.

Robinson has been a spokesperson for Colgate Total toothpaste since 2008. Robinson and her husband currently co-host a talk show on Oprah & Friends Radio. In 2009, she co-starred in the ABC comedy pilot, The Bridget Show.

In 2006, she won, along with fellow writer Daniel Paisner, the Quills Award in Sports for the book Get Your Own Damn Beer, I'm Watching the Game!: A Woman's Guide to Loving Pro Football. Peete and her daughter Ryan Elizabeth co-wrote a children's book My Brother Charlie, which was released in March 2010.

In 2010, she participated in the third season of Celebrity Apprentice, playing for her own charity, the HollyRod Foundation, which provides support for families with autism. She set an "Apprentice" record for the most money made on a single task, and finished as the runner-up to winner Bret Michaels.

Robinson began co-hosting The Talk, a CBS daytime talk show, on October 18, 2010. In this forum, Robinson was known for expressing herself through her ethnicity and being vocal on especially issues of the African American race and autism, which one of her children, Rodney, has. In April 2011, Robinson hosted a weekly series on The Talk promoting autism awareness.

After serving on The Talk for its first season, Robinson along with Leah Remini were unceremoniously released from the show. Failure to ever disclose why the two were let go brought on a great deal of audience criticism of the show, as well as protests from the stars' fans. While there was speculation that their former Talk co-host, Julie Chen, had involvement in the decision as she's married to the CBS President and CEO, Leslie Moonves, it was Sharon Osbourne, their other former Talk co-host, who explained their dismissals, stating: "Some people don't really know who they are. And you have to know who you are when you're in something like this. You can't pretend to be something you're not. You have to know your brand. You can't be all things to everyone." Additionally, Osbourne commented on the failure to let Remini and Peete know why they were let go, stating: "Why should we call them to discuss?"

Robinson hosted the 42nd NAACP Image Awards, alongside Wayne Brady, on March 4, 2011.

Personal life

On June 10, 1995, Robinson married Rodney Peete, a National Football League quarterback. He proposed by surprising Holly during an episode of Hangin' with Mr. Cooper. Together, they have four children: daughter Ryan Elizabeth and son Rodney Jr. (twins born in 1997), son Robinson (born in 2002), and son Roman (born in 2005). Rodney Jr., was diagnosed with autism at age 3. One of Holly's closest friends is Terry Ellis of the popular R&B group En Vogue.

After her father was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease, Robinson and her husband co-founded the HollyRod Foundation, which is dedicated to help find a cure for the disease and assist those living with the condition.

In September 2012, Nestle's Carnation Breakfast Essentials announced they had teamed up with Robinson, featuring her as the spokesperson for the brand. On October 4, 2012, Robinson was inducted as an honorary member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.