Throughout her childhood in a quaint Pompano Beach neighborhood and on a street that now bears her name, Esther Rolle grew up surrounded by an abundance of love and support that would shape her personality and character.
The 10th of 18 children born into a family that initially came to the United States as Caribbean immigrants, the actress best known for her roles as Florida Evans — first on the television sitcom “Maude” and later the spin-off “Good Times” during the 1970s — would have celebrated her 100th birthday in November. She will be recognized through a series of events organized by the Pompano Beach Cultural Affairs Department.
Three virtual shows honoring her life and legacy will kick off with a presentation at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 5 that includes interviews with special guests Bern Nadette Stanis (Thelma on “Good Times”) and Adella Farmar (Rolle’s fashion stylist). The next show, at 7 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 8, will spotlight a Soulful Sundays concert by The Old Skool Band, which will dedicate its musical lineup of Soul, R&B, Neo Soul, Blues, Jazz and Funk to Rolle.
Then, at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 18, there will be a Lyrics Lab poetry event and an open mic night with songs dedicated to Rolle. In 1975, she released the album “The Garden of My Mind,” which brought out common threads to her many emotions.
All can be viewed on the city of Pompano Beach and PompanoBeachArts Facebook pages as well as at pompanobeacharts.org/virtual-events.
The month-long festivities will culminate with the unveiling of the Esther Rolle Centennial Exhibition tour on Tuesday, Nov. 24. Entries submitted by artists across the country will showcase Rolle’s career through a virtually accessible gallery at the Ali Cultural Arts Center.
The exhibition features the artwork of Babette Thomas, Brittany Williams Mays, Cesar Ceballos, Chic Moore, Michael Hugue, Tola Mahoney, Tracy Wingate, Vanessa Withun and Vena Paylo.
With the unwavering encouragement of her mother Elizabeth and her father Jonathan, Rolle progressed through her years as a student at Blanche Ely High School in Pompano Beach and subsequent colleges, culminating at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut.
While working a traditional job in the garment district in New York City, Rolle rekindled her passion for theater and the arts. She followed in her mother’s footsteps as a performer in the Negro Ensemble Company.
That turned out to be the launchpad into Rolle’s on-stage success as, over the years, she had important roles in such theater plays as “The Blacks,” “Blues for Mister Charlie,” “The Amen Corner,” “A Raisin in the Sun” and “A Member of the Wedding.”
“Once Esther started (on stage), everyone knew her career was going to be a big deal,” said Sharonda Richardson, the city’s development and outreach consultant for Cultural Affairs who is spearheading the gala tribute to her life. “It was very clear from talking to her siblings that she was the one who naturally grabbed theater and the arts by the horns and created the life and legacy that we all know and love her for.”
Perhaps most significant of all Rolle’s accomplishments, back when “Maude” and “Good Times” were hit shows, was her insistence that people of color who worked with her and around her be treated with the same dignity and respect.
“It was quite remarkable because in those days there wasn’t anywhere near the level and emphasis placed on the Black Lives Movement like today, but Esther was a pioneer in that she demanded equal workspaces for Black entertainers, Black costume designers, Black hairstylists, and the like,” Richardson said. “They had to be on the same floor in hotels. She would consider them her travel companions and not some form of hired help, and she wanted them to be treated as such.”
As a consequence of her convictions and stand on racial equality, Rolle became the first woman to receive the NAACP Chairman’s Civil Rights Leadership Award.
“Her personality never changed throughout her remarkable life,” Richardson said. “She was always the type of person, even as a child, who was very unapologetic over her beliefs and what she allowed to take place around her. She always knew what she wanted for herself.”
Diagnosed with diabetes, Rolle’s health failed in the 1990s and toward the end of her life she was on kidney dialysis. The actress, who was divorced and had no children, died on Nov. 17, 1998. She is buried in Westview Community Cemetery in Pompano Beach. She was born on Nov. 8, 1920, making this year’s date of the second virtual show and concert all the more significant.
In recognition of her outstanding achievements, Rolle was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy in 1976. Three years later, she received the Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Special for the television film “Summer of My German Soldier.”
“We are delighted to honor the legacy of Esther Rolle through a variety of entertaining and inspiring programs,” said Phyllis Korab, director of the Pompano Beach Cultural Affairs Department. “Through artwork, conversation, poetry, song and dance, we will be spotlighting the incredible legacy of this outstanding talent who is beloved in Pompano Beach and all over the world.”
Visit pompanobeacharts.org.
