Rappin' Granny
Rappin' Granny | |
---|---|
Birth name | Vivian Lee Smallwood |
Born | June 18, 1933 |
Origin | Actress |
Instrument(s) | Guitar |
Years active | 1989–2017 |
Vivian Smallwood (June 18, 1933 – July 22, 2017
Outside of being known for portraying "Nano" Williams in
Career
Rapping
Smallwood was employed as a postal worker and began rapping in the mid-1980s. She took first place in a rap contest at a South-Central Los Angeles
Acting
Smallwood had been a working Hollywood actress since the mid-1990s. She has appeared in numerous television shows with small parts and a few feature films. Some of her credits are, Everybody Hates Chris, Malcolm in the Middle, The Shield, and The Ladykillers.[6] In Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood (1996) she is credited as Vivian 'Rappin Granny' Smallwood.[7] She also played Roland Williams' grandmother "Nano" in Big Bad Beetleborgs, a show on the former Fox Kids network.
In 2012, she appeared on the How I Met Your Mother episode "The Magician's Code: Part 1".
Smallwood was featured in the Apollo Theater's Apollo Circus of Soul in 2007.[8]
America's Got Talent
Smallwood was a contestant on the
Personal life
Smallwood had 15
Death
Vivian Smallwood died from natural causes at the age of 84 on July 22, 2017.
Filmography
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1996 | Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood | Sister Williams | |
1996-1998 | Big Bad Beetleborgs | "Nano" Williams | 46 episodes |
2004 | The Ladykillers | Tea Lady | |
2004 | Gas | Beatrice | |
2005 | Halfway Decent | Tom's Mom | |
2005-2008 | Everybody Hates Chris | Old Black Lady | 9 episodes |
2009 | A Day in the Life | Granny | |
2010 | Dirty Girl | Shellie the Neighbor | |
2012 | Seeking a Friend for the End of the World | Speck's Mother | Uncredited, (final film role) |
References
- ^ "SAG-AFTRA-Spring Edition 2019, In Memoriam". SAG-AFTRA.
- ^ a b c Lacey, Marc (April 12, 1992). "'Rappin' Granny' Sends Message With a Youthful Beat". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ a b "Granny raps to fight problems of youth". Star-News. June 26, 1988.
- ^ [1] Archived March 12, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Gertjegerdes, Carol (August 29, 1995). "Radio Personality Turns Hip Hop Pop Entrepreneur". Columbus Times. Archived from the original on October 25, 2012.
- ISBN 978-1-55783-668-7.
- ISBN 978-1-55783-320-4.
- ^ Collins, Glenn (November 24, 2007). "The Circus Is in Town. All Over It, in Fact, in Six Troupes". The New York Times.
- ^ Slezak, Michael (July 27, 2006). "'America's Got Talent': The return of Rappin' Granny". Entertainment Weekly.
- ISBN 978-1-55783-684-7.
Vivian Smallwood.
- ^ a b Hope, Clover (2006). "Rapping Grandmother". XXL. 10 (10). Harris Publications.