Arnold Wilkerson

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Arnold Wilkerson (born April 6, 1943) is an American actor and the creator and owner of the Little Pie Company in Manhattan, New York City. As an actor, he is particularly known for portraying roles in the original productions of the musicals Hair , Jimmy Shine , and Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope .

United States federal republic in North America

The United States of America (USA), commonly known as the United States or America, is a country composed of 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing territories, and various possessions. At 3.8 million square miles, the United States is the world's third or fourth largest country by total area and is slightly smaller than the entire continent of Europe's 3.9 million square miles. With a population of over 327 million people, the U.S. is the third most populous country. The capital is Washington, D.C., and the largest city by population is New York City. Forty-eight states and the capital's federal district are contiguous in North America between Canada and Mexico. The State of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east and across the Bering Strait from Russia to the west. The State of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U.S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, stretching across nine official time zones. The extremely diverse geography, climate, and wildlife of the United States make it one of the world's 17 megadiverse countries.

Actor person who acts in a dramatic or comic production and works in film, television, theatre, or radio

An actor is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is ὑποκριτής (hupokritḗs), literally "one who answers". The actor's interpretation of their role—the art of acting—pertains to the role played, whether based on a real person or fictional character. Interpretation occurs even when the actor is "playing themselves", as in some forms of experimental performance art.

Manhattan Borough in New York City and county in New York, United States

Manhattan, often referred to locally as the City, is the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City and its economic and administrative center, cultural identifier, and historical birthplace. The borough is coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state of New York. The borough consists mostly of Manhattan Island, bounded by the Hudson, East, and Harlem rivers; several small adjacent islands; and Marble Hill, a small neighborhood now on the U.S. mainland, physically connected to the Bronx and separated from the rest of Manhattan by the Harlem River. Manhattan Island is divided into three informally bounded components, each aligned with the borough's long axis: Lower, Midtown, and Upper Manhattan.

Contents

Biography

Wilkerson was born and raised in San Francisco, California. He attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London where he graduated with a diploma in acting. [1] He moved to New York City, making his Off-Broadway debut as Hud in the original production of James Rado and Gerome Ragni's Hair at Joseph Papp's Public Theater in October 1967. [2] He made his Broadway debut in 1968 as Arnold in the original production of John Sebastian's Jimmy Shine , sharing the stage with Dustin Hoffman and Rue McClanahan. In 1969 he acted in Jon Swan's Fireworks at the Village South Theatre. That same year he appeared in the original production of Ronald Ribman's The Most Beautiful Fish with Eileen Dietz which was commissioned by New York Television Theatre for broadcast on PBS. [3]

San Francisco Consolidated city-county in California, United States

San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the cultural, commercial, and financial center of Northern California. San Francisco is the 13th-most populous city in the United States, and the fourth-most populous in California, with 884,363 residents as of 2017. It covers an area of about 46.89 square miles (121.4 km2), mostly at the north end of the San Francisco Peninsula in the San Francisco Bay Area, making it the second-most densely populated large US city, and the fifth-most densely populated U.S. county, behind only four of the five New York City boroughs. San Francisco is also part of the fifth-most populous primary statistical area in the United States, the San Jose–San Francisco–Oakland, CA Combined Statistical Area.

California State of the United States of America

California is a state in the Pacific Region of the United States. With 39.6 million residents, California is the most populous U.S. state and the third-largest by area. The state capital is Sacramento. The Greater Los Angeles Area and the San Francisco Bay Area are the nation's second and fifth most populous urban regions, with 18.7 million and 8.8 million residents respectively. Los Angeles is California's most populous city, and the country's second most populous, after New York City. California also has the nation's most populous county, Los Angeles County, and its largest county by area, San Bernardino County. The City and County of San Francisco is both the country's second-most densely populated major city after New York City and the fifth-most densely populated county, behind only four of the five New York City boroughs.

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art drama school located in London, England

The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) is a drama school in London, England that provides training for film, television and theatre. It is one of the oldest and most prestigious drama schools in the United Kingdom, founded in 1904 by Herbert Beerbohm Tree.

In 1971, Wilkerson appeared in the world premiere of Micki Grant's Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope at the Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C. He continued with the production when it moved to Broadway the following year. The show was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Musical. [4]

Micki Grant American actress

Micki Grant is an American singer (soprano), actress, writer and composer. She performed in Having Our Say, Tambourines to Glory and Jericho-Jim Crow, The Gingham Dog, Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope and has received three Tony Award nominations for her writing.

<i>Dont Bother Me, I Cant Cope</i> musical

Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope is a musical revue first staged in 1971 with music, lyrics and book by Micki Grant. It was originally produced by Edward Padula.

Fords Theatre

Ford's Theatre is a theatre located in Washington, D.C., which opened in August 1863. It is famous for being the site of the assassination of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln on April 14, 1865. After being shot, the fatally wounded 56-year old president was carried across the street to the Petersen House, where he died the next morning.

In 1974, he played the role of Jimmy in The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman.

After Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope, Wilkerson's acting career went through a slump and he worked largely as a waiter. In 1983 he, along with business partner Michael Deraney, founded the Little Pie Company, a popular Manhattan bakery that specializes in pies. [2] The bakery has since expanded to two locations and has been featured on a number of occasions in The New York Times . In addition, some of Wilkerson's pie recipes have been published in the newspaper. [5]

Bakery establishment that produces and sells flour-based food baked in an oven

A bakery is an establishment that produces and sells flour-based food baked in an oven such as bread, cookies, cakes, pastries, and pies. Some retail bakeries are also cafés, serving coffee and tea to customers who wish to consume the baked goods on the premises.

<i>The New York Times</i> Daily broadsheet newspaper based in New York City

The New York Times is an American newspaper based in New York City with worldwide influence and readership. Founded in 1851, the paper has won 125 Pulitzer Prizes, more than any other newspaper. The Times is ranked 17th in the world by circulation and 2nd in the U.S.

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References

Internet Broadway Database online database of Broadway theatre productions and their personnel

The Internet Broadway Database (IBDB) is an online database of Broadway theatre productions and their personnel. It was conceived and created by Karen Hauser in 1996 and is operated by the Research Department of The Broadway League, a trade association for the North American commercial theatre community. The website also has a corresponding app for both the IOS and Android.

IMDb Online database for movies, television, and video games

IMDb is an online database of information related to films, television programs, home videos and video games, and internet streams, including cast, production crew and personnel biographies, plot summaries, trivia, and fan reviews and ratings. An additional fan feature, message boards, was abandoned in February 2017. Originally a fan-operated website, the database is owned and operated by IMDb.com, Inc., a subsidiary of Amazon.

The Lortel Archives, or the Internet Off-Broadway Database (IOBDb), is an online database that catalogues theatre productions shown Off-Broadway.