Marla Gibbs (born Margaret Theresa Bradley on June 14, 1931 in Chicago, Illinois) is an American actress, singer, comedienne, writer, producer and activist.
Among her most famous roles are as sassy maid Florence Johnston on The Jeffersons and as Mary Jenkins on 227, with the former role earning her several Primetime Emmy Awards nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. She has also won numerous NAACP Image Awards for her efforts.
Her older sister was late actress Susie Garrett, best known for portraying Cherie Johnson's grandmother Betty on Punky Brewster.
Selected Filmography:
- The Jeffersons
- Barney Miller (episode "Vigilante")
- Checking In
- The Love Boat
- 227
- A Different World
- In the Heat of the Night
- The Meteor Man
- Martin
- The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
- The Hughleys
- Touched by an Angel
- Cold Case
- Passions
- The First Family
- Madea's Witness Protection
- Scandal
- This Is Us
- Blackish
Related Tropes:
- Breakout Character: As Florence on The Jeffersons, a role that she reprised on some of the above mentioned series.
- Cool Old Lady: She was in her forties when she first arrived in Hollywood and over 40 years later shows no signs of slowing down.
