Editing Garrett Morris (section)

==Career==

=== Theater ===

He performed in a number of [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] [[musical theater|musicals]], including ''[[Hallelujah, Baby!]]'' and ''[[Ain't Supposed to Die a Natural Death]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ain't Supposed to Die a Natural Death (Broadway, Ethel Barrymore Theatre, 1971) |url=https://playbill.com/production/aint-supposed-to-die-a-natural-death-ethel-barrymore-theatre-vault-0000004340 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20241106080619/https://playbill.com/production/aint-supposed-to-die-a-natural-death-ethel-barrymore-theatre-vault-0000004340 |archive-date=2024-11-06 |access-date=2025-02-04 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref> In 1965, he worked alongside [[Amiri Baraka]], [[Sun Ra]], [[Albert Ayler]] and [[Sonia Sanchez]] at the [[Black Arts Movement|Black Arts Repertory Theatre/School]] in [[Harlem]]; during this period, the theater was frequently raided and surveilled by the [[New York City Police Department]] and the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Patches |first=Matt |date=August 21, 2014 |title=My 'SNL': Testimonials From Cast Members Who Lived It |url=https://grantland.com/hollywood-prospectus/my-snl-testimonials-from-cast-members-who-lived-it/ |access-date=January 17, 2018 |publisher=Grantland.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Black Arts Repertory Theatre/School · F.B. Eyes Digital Archive: FBI Files on African American Authors and Literary Institutions Obtained Through the U.S. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) |url=http://omeka.wustl.edu/omeka/exhibits/show/fbeyes/theatreschool |access-date=January 17, 2018 |publisher=WUSTL Digital Gateway Image Collections & Exhibitions}}</ref> 

=== Television ===

In 1971, he had a small role as a police sergeant in ''[[The Anderson Tapes]]''<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Anderson Tapes |url=https://brattlefilm.org/movies/the-anderson-tapes/ |access-date=2025-02-04 |website=The Brattle |language=en-US}}</ref> and was a cast member in the short-lived CBS sitcom, ''[[Roll Out]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Berman |first=Marc |title=Garrett Morris Turns 88: Celebrating A Career Spanning Seven Decades |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/marcberman1/2025/02/01/garrett-morris-turns-88-celebrating-a-career-spanning-seven-decades/ |access-date=2025-02-04 |website=Forbes |language=en}}</ref> He also appeared as a high school teacher in the 1975 film ''[[Cooley High]]''.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Malooley |first=Jake |title=So Hard to Say Goodbye: The Oral History of Cooley High |url=https://www.chicagomag.com/arts-culture/so-hard-to-say-goodbye-the-oral-history-of-cooley-high/ |access-date=2025-02-06 |website=Chicago Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref> In 1976, Morris appeared in the film ''[[Car Wash (film)|Car Wash]]'', playing the role of Slide the bookmaker. In 1983 and 1984, Morris appeared in five episodes of ''[[The Jeffersons]]'', playing a character named Jimmy. He starred in the 1984 film ''[[The Census Taker]]'', a 1984 [[black comedy]] directed by Bruce R. Cook.<ref name="nyt">{{cite news|url=https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/86893/The-Census-Taker/details|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111207041833/http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/86893/The-Census-Taker/details|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 7, 2011|department=Movies & TV Dept.|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=2011|title=The Census Taker (1984)|access-date=May 24, 2010}}</ref><ref name="pbp1">{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=N_QiAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Fs0FAAAAIBAJ&pg=1339,1505753|title=Things Are Beginning To Look 'Berry Good' For Garrett Morris|first=Bob|last=Michals|newspaper=[[The Palm Beach Post]]|date=January 3, 1985|access-date=May 24, 2010|archive-date=May 17, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200517174014/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=N_QiAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Fs0FAAAAIBAJ&pg=1339,1505753|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In 1985, he guested on ''[[Murder, She Wrote]]'' as Lafayette Duquesne.<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.philo.com/player/show/U2hvdzo2MDg1NDg4OTk2NDg0NzIzMzQ?episode=RXBpc29kZTo2MDg1NDg4OTk2NDkwMzgxODk |title=Murder, She Wrote: Murder to a Jazz Beat |last=Philo |language=en |access-date=2025-02-06 |via=www.philo.com}}</ref> In 1986, Morris began playing Arnold "Sporty" James, on the NBC cop drama ''[[Hunter (1984 American TV series)|Hunter]]'', starring [[Fred Dryer]] and [[Stepfanie Kramer]] through 1989.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hunter Season 3, Episode 8 |url=https://tubitv.com/tv-shows/485101/s03-e08-love-hate-and-sporty-james |access-date=2025-02-06 |website=tubitv.com}}</ref> Morris appeared in ''[[Married... with Children]]'' as Russ, one of Al's poker buddies, in "The Poker Game", in a 1987 season 1 episode and again in the season 3 episode "Requiem for a Dead Barber".<ref>Levant, B. (Director). (1987). ''The Poker Game'' (season 1, episode 8). Embassy Communications. <nowiki>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANraTbHcD1k</nowiki></ref> He also appeared in the 1992 horror comedy ''[[Severed Ties (film)|Severed Ties]]'' starring [[Oliver Reed]].<ref>Santostefano, D. (Director). (1992). ''Severed Ties''. Fangoria.</ref>

Morris also had regular roles on ''[[Diff'rent Strokes]]'', ''[[The Jeffersons]]'', ''[[Hill Street Blues]]'', ''[[227 (TV series)|227]]'', and ''[[Roc (TV series)|Roc]]''.<ref name=":2" /> He also appeared in an episode of ''[[Who's the Boss]]'', "Sam's Car" (1989), playing the role of Officer Audette.<ref>Kelada, A. (Director). (1988, October 18). ''Sam’s Car'' (season 5, episode 1). Hunter-Cohan Productions.</ref> He was a regular cast member on ''[[The Jamie Foxx Show]]'', playing Jamie's uncle, Junior King.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_lR4L5Asck |title=Garrett Morris on Playing 'Uncle Junior' on "The Jamie Foxx Show" (Part 10) |date=2023-10-22 |last=djvlad |access-date=2025-02-06 |via=YouTube}}</ref>

In 1998, Morris appeared as himself in the fourth episode of the fifth season of the TV series, ''[[Space Ghost Coast to Coast]]''. In 2002, Morris made a cameo appearance on an episode of ''Saturday Night Live'' hosted by [[Brittany Murphy]]. In 2006, Morris reprised his role as "Headmaster of the New York School for the Hard of Hearing" in a cameo on the TV series ''[[Family Guy]]'', in the episode "[[Barely Legal (Family Guy)|Barely Legal."]]<ref>''Barely Legal'' (season 5, episode 8). (2006, December 17). <nowiki>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYwB38Vsh7A</nowiki></ref>

In August 2008, Morris played the role of Reverend Pratt in the family comedy drama film, ''[[The Longshots]]'', starring [[Ice Cube]] and [[Keke Palmer]].

In 2011, Morris had a cameo role as a Catholic priest on the episode "Three Boys" on the Showtime series ''[[Shameless (American TV series)|Shameless]]''. He was cast as Earl in the [[CBS]] comedy ''[[2 Broke Girls]]'',<ref>{{cite web |last=Andreeva |first=Nellie |date=March 16, 2011 |title=Scott Porter To Star in CW's 'Hart Of Dixie', More Actors Board Pilots |url=https://deadline.com/2011/03/scott-porter-to-star-in-cws-hart-of-dixie-114548/ |access-date=July 1, 2011 |publisher=Deadline Hollywood}}</ref> which premiered on September 19, 2011. During the second season he faced a lawsuit from the Global Agency accusing him of not paying 10% of his income from the show as agreed. However, a rep from the show stated that he had not actually failed to do so.<ref name="cbspremieres">{{cite web |last=Seidman |first=Robert |date=June 29, 2011 |title=CBS Announces Fall 2011 Premiere Dates |url=http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2011/06/29/cbs-announces-fall-2011-premiere-dates/96883/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110701095954/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2011/06/29/cbs-announces-fall-2011-premiere-dates/96883/ |archive-date=July 1, 2011 |access-date=July 1, 2011 |work=TV By the Numbers}}</ref> 

In 2018, Morris appeared in the NBC show ''[[This Is Us]]''.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2024-03-16 |title=Garrett Morris: From Snl To Iconic Actor |url=https://www.baltimoreexaminer.com/garrett-morris/ |access-date=2025-02-06 |website=Baltimore Examiner |language=en-US}}</ref> In 2019, Morris appeared in the fifth episode of ''[[A Black Lady Sketch Show]]'', titled "Why Are Her Pies Wet, Lord?"<ref name=":0" />

=== Mugging ===

In 1994, he was shot by a would-be robber, whom he attempted to fight off, but recovered as he discussed on the January 14, 2016, episode of [[Marc Maron]]'s podcast [[WTF with Marc Maron|''WTF'']].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Maron |first=Marc |title=Episode 672 - Garrett Morris by WTF with Marc Maron Podcast |url=https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/wtf-with-marc-maron-podcast-3254/episodes/episode-672-garrett-morris-146116674 |access-date=2025-02-06 |website=WTF Podcast |language=en}}</ref> On Howard Stern's radio show on July 20, 1995, Morris said the culprit was imprisoned not for the shooting, but for parole violations for other crimes. In another radio interview, he mentioned that the robber who shot him was eventually convicted and incarcerated. In prison, inmates who happened to be fans of Morris teamed up and beat up the robber in revenge.<ref>{{cite web |date=February 25, 1994 |title=Comedian Garrett Morris shot in Los Angeles holdup attempt |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/1994/02/25/comedian-garrett-morris-shot-in-los-angeles-holdup-attempt/ |access-date=January 17, 2018 |website=The Baltimore Sun}}</ref>

At the time of the shooting, Morris was starring on ''[[Martin (television)|Martin]]'' as Martin's first boss, Stan Winters. Morris' shooting rendered him temporarily unable to continue in the role; he was written out of the show by having the character become a national fugitive. The scene where he is about to undergo [[plastic surgery]] was shot on the hospital bed Morris occupied while recuperating from the 1994 assault. He made a final appearance as Stan during the show's third season, walking with a cane due to Morris' real injuries, but the reason given for Stan was that he had crashed his car during a police chase.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Television Academy Foundation Interviews |date=2012-07-30 |title=Emmy TV Legends - Garrett Morris discusses getting shot and leaving his role on Martin |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CA5KkpT0uAs |website=Television Academy}}</ref>

=== Film ===

In 1985, he appeared in [[Larry Cohen]]'s science fiction [[horror film]] ''[[The Stuff]]'', playing cookie magnate Chocolate Chip Charlie, a parody of [[Famous Amos]].<ref>Larry, C. (Director). (1985). ''The Stuff''. Larco Productions.</ref> In 2015, Morris appeared as a cameo in ''[[Ant-Man (film)|Ant-Man]]'', referencing an old ''SNL'' sketch in which he played the first live-action incarnation of the character.<ref>{{cite web |last=Burlingame |first=Russ |title=Ant-Man's Most Overlooked Cameo: Ant-Man Himself |url=https://comicbook.com/2015/07/18/ant-mans-most-overlooked-cameo-ant-man-himself/ |work=Comicbook.com}}</ref>

=== Commercials ===

In 2009, Morris appeared in two TV commercials for the [[Nintendo DS]]—one featuring ''[[Mario Kart DS]]'', and the other featuring ''[[Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day!]]''. In 2010, Morris appeared in a television commercial for Miller Lite. The national commercial, titled "PopPop", features Morris alongside actors [[Stacey Dash]] and [[Jason Weaver]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://wpgc.cbslocal.com/2010/03/31/new-miller-lite-beer-commercial-starring-garrett-morris-jason-weaver-and-stacey-dash/|title=New Miller Lite Beer Commercial Starring Garrett Morris, Jason Weaver...and Stacey Dash!|date=March 31, 2010|publisher=WPGC|access-date=January 17, 2018|archive-date=January 16, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170116084640/http://wpgc.cbslocal.com/2010/03/31/new-miller-lite-beer-commercial-starring-garrett-morris-jason-weaver-and-stacey-dash/|url-status=dead}}</ref> The commercial takes a light-hearted look at a family relationship with Morris playing the grandfather, PopPop, and Weaver as his grandson. {{as of|2010|alt=Since summer 2010}}, Morris has appeared in an ad for Orbit gum in the United States.{{citation needed|date=January 2011}}<!-- Forum is not reliable source - removed http://friendsoftom.com/forum/index.php/topic,7014.msg157073.html?PHPSESSID=la85gqfmtp7rku7vtb1oavd7p7#msg157073 --> 

He also operated and was the host of his own comedy club, The Downtown Comedy Club, in downtown Los Angeles. On February 9, 2007, Los Angeles mayor [[Antonio Villaraigosa]] honored Garrett Morris for his work and contributions to the black community. He declared February 9, 2007, Garrett Morris Day and named The Downtown Comedy Club the official club of Los Angeles.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Reed |first=Farrah |date=2024-01-29 |title=New Orleans native Garrett Morris to get star on Hollywood Walk of Fame |url=https://www.wdsu.com/article/new-orleans-native-garrett-morris-to-get-star-on-hollywood-walk-of-fame/46568990 |access-date=2025-02-07 |website=WDSU |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Staff |first=U. V. M. |date=2024-01-25 |title=Garrett Morris honored with star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame |url=https://unheardvoicesmag.com/2024/01/25/garrett-morris-to-be-honored-with-a-star-on-the-hollywood-walk-of-fame/#google_vignette |access-date=2025-02-07 |website=Unheard Voices Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref> 

=== Other career endeavors ===

On September 9, 2016, Morris and his family appeared on the ABC's game show ''[[Celebrity Family Feud]]'', playing against [[Alfonso Ribeiro]] and Ribeiro's friends.<ref>{{cite web |author=ABC |date=September 10, 2016 |title=Alfonso Ribeiro versus Garrett Morris! - Celebrity Family Feud |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VUt0_49Z7M |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/2VUt0_49Z7M |archive-date=2021-12-11 |access-date=November 4, 2019 |via=YouTube}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

In 2024, Morris was honored with his own star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Abraham |first=Mya |date=2024-01-25 |title=Garrett Morris To Kick Off Black History Month With His Own Walk Of Fame Ceremony |url=https://www.vibe.com/news/entertainment/garrett-morris-hollywood-walk-of-fame-star-1234845060/ |access-date=2025-02-07 |website=VIBE.com |language=en-US}}</ref>