LeVar Burton
LeVar Burton | |
|---|---|
| Born | Levardis Robert Martyn Burton Jr. Birth date -1st March 1966 |
| Occupation | Actor, television presenter, director, author |
| Years active | 1976–present |
| Spouse(s) | Stephanie Cozart Burton (m. 1992) |
| Children | 2 |
LeVar Burton (born February 16, 1957) is an American actor, television presenter, director, and author. He is best known for his roles as Kunta Kinte in the ABC miniseries Roots, Geordi La Forge in Star Trek: The Next Generation, and as the host of the long-running PBS children's series Reading Rainbow.
Early life[edit | edit source]
LeVar Burton was born Levardis Robert Martyn Burton Jr. in Landstuhl, West Germany, where his father was stationed as a photographer for the United States Army. He was raised in Sacramento, California, and attended Christian Brothers High School. Burton later studied at the University of Southern California's School of Theatre.
Career[edit | edit source]
Roots[edit | edit source]
Burton's breakthrough role came in 1977 when he was cast as Kunta Kinte in the ABC miniseries Roots. The series was a critical and commercial success, earning Burton widespread acclaim and a nomination for an Emmy Award.
Star Trek: The Next Generation[edit | edit source]
In 1987, Burton began his role as Geordi La Forge in the syndicated science fiction television series Star Trek: The Next Generation. He portrayed the character, who is blind and uses a VISOR to see, for the series' entire run until 1994, and reprised the role in subsequent Star Trek films.
Reading Rainbow[edit | edit source]
From 1983 to 2006, Burton hosted Reading Rainbow, a PBS children's series that encouraged reading among young viewers. The show won numerous awards, including multiple Daytime Emmy Awards and a Peabody Award.
Directing[edit | edit source]
In addition to his acting career, Burton has directed episodes of various television series, including Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, and Star Trek: Enterprise. He has also directed episodes of Charmed, JAG, and NCIS: New Orleans.
Writing[edit | edit source]
Burton is also an accomplished author. He has written several books, including the children's book The Rhino Who Swallowed a Storm.
Personal life[edit | edit source]
Burton married Stephanie Cozart Burton, a professional makeup artist, in 1992. They have two children together.
Awards and honors[edit | edit source]
Burton has received numerous awards and honors throughout his career, including a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
See also[edit | edit source]
References[edit | edit source]
External links[edit | edit source]
Template:Star Trek: The Next Generation
Alex Haley's Roots | |
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| Television |
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| Characters | |
| Related | |
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Credits:Most images are courtesy of Wikimedia commons, and templates Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY SA or similar.- Use mdy dates from October 2023
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- 1957 births
- Living people
- American male actors
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- American children's writers
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Contributors: Prab R. Tumpati, MD
