Wendell Pierce

Pierce was born in New Orleans one of three sons of a teacher and a decorated World War II veteran who worked as a maintenance engineer.[1] His father's segregated Army unit helped Marines win the Battle of Saipan in 1944. Pierce has said of his father's experience: "When the country wasn't loving my father, my father was loving his country. It's the ultimate act of patriotism."[2]

Pierce was raised in the black middle-class community of Pontchartrain Park, the first African-American post-war suburb. His father, along with many black veterans moved into the neighborhood after returning home from the war. The neighborhood was wiped out during Hurricane Katrina in 2005, including Pierce's family home which was flooded by 14 feet of water.[3][4]

Pierce graduated in 1981[5] from both Benjamin Franklin High School[6] and the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts (most NOCCA students attend traditional secondary school in the mornings and the arts school in the afternoons). In 1981, Pierce was named a Presidential Scholar of the Arts.[7] As a young actor, he appeared in The Winter's Tale at the Tulane Shakespeare Festival. He produced and hosted Think About It, a youth-themed talk show, for the local NBC affiliate station, and also hosted a weekly jazz show on WYLD-FM Radio called Extensions from Congo Square.[8]

Next he attended the Juilliard School's Drama Division from 1981 to 1985 graduating as a member of Group 14 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts.[9]

Pierce has been in over 30 films, appeared in nearly 50 television shows, and has performed in dozens of stage productions. He worked on the HBO dramas The Wire and Treme. He appeared in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2 as "J. Jenks".[10]

For his role in Treme, Pierce learned to play the trombone, though he relied on "sound double" Stafford Agee of the Rebirth Brass Band.[3] Agee played off-camera for Pierce, syncing his trombone with Wendell's motions for authenticity.[11]

Pierce was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead for his portrayal of "Joe" in Four, playing a married and closeted gay man who steps out on his family with a young white man he met online. The film was released on September 13, 2013, around the same time that The Michael J. Fox Show debuted on NBC in which Pierce played Michael J. Fox's character's boss until the show's cancellation some five months later.[12][13]

From 2015 to 2017, Pierce starred, alongside Matthew Perry and Thomas Lennon, in a revival of the sitcom The Odd Couple on CBS playing the role of Teddy.

When Mike Henry stepped down as the voice of Cleveland Brown in Family Guy in light of the George Floyd protests, Pierce launched a campaign to become Henry's replacement.[14] He lost the role to YouTube personality Arif "Azerrz" Zahir.[15]

Pierce considers himself a "true capitalist" and a "classic entrepreneur."[3][4]

In 2013, Fast Company named Pierce one of the "100 Most Creative People in Business."[21]

Pierce describes himself as "tri-coastal", splitting his time among Los Angeles, New York City, and New Orleans.[25] He is a supporter of the New Orleans Saints, and locals have nicknamed him "Saints Wendell".[23] He is also an avid supporter of St. Patrick's Athletic FC.[26]

Pierce attended the 2012 Democratic National Convention, was one of President Barack Obama's top campaign fundraisers in 2012, and once escorted Gwen Ifill to a White House State Dinner.[4][27][28]

When first cast in The Wire, Pierce and his castmates doubted the show would be a hit: "I remember the first time we all sat around and watched the pilot. We all turned to each other and said, 'Man, I don't think this shit is going anywhere.'"[23]

• Wendell Pierce at IMDb
• Wendell Pierce at the Internet Broadway Database
• Wendell Pierce at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
• Wendell Pierce Opens Up About 'Treme', Jazz and New Orleans (interview with Wendell Pierce); accessed May 3, 2014.