Chip Fields is an American singer, actress, television director, and producer who has appeared in popular films, television series, and Broadway theatre. She is best known for portraying Linella Gordon, the abusive birth mother of Penny Gordon Woods (played by Janet Jackson), in a four–episode story arc (1977) of the 1970s sitcom Good Times. In real life, she is the mother of actress Kim Fields, of The Facts of Life television series.
Chip Fields | |
|---|---|
| Born | New York, U.S. |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1974–present |
| Known for | Linella Gordon – Good Times Laverne Hunter – Living Single Rita Conway – The Amazing Spider-Man (TV series) |
Early life and career
editFields was born in New York to Patsy, her Jamaican mother and an African American father.[citation needed]
Fields began her career as a singer. She joined Ronnie Spector as a Ronette in 1973 and recorded two singles for Buddah Records.[1]
Fields began her acting career as an extra in the 1974 film Claudine. She has had numerous supporting roles and guest appearances on television. She played an unwed mother opposite Patty Weaver in the NBC television soap opera, Days of Our Lives. Also during the 1970s, she played the abusive birth mother of Millicent "Penny" Gordon Woods (Janet Jackson) on the sitcom Good Times.
From 1978 to 1979, she played Rita Conway in the short-lived The Amazing Spider-Man TV series. Rita Conway was J. Jonah Jameson's secretary, the same function as the black Glory Grant from the 1970s comics. She also appeared in What's Happening!!, Hill Street Blues, T. J. Hooker, Roc, Kirk (a short-lived sitcom starring Kirk Cameron), The Wayans Bros., and The Parkers. She played the role of "Laverne", mother to the character "Regine" (played by her real-life daughter Kim Fields) on Living Single.
Fields was a consultant for The Parkers, Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century, Living Single, and was a dialogue coach for the film, Menace II Society. She also directed episodes of the popular UPN sitcoms, One on One, All of Us, Girlfriends, The Parkers, as well as episodes of Romeo!, Just Jordan, Hannah Montana, Tyler Perry's House of Payne and Meet the Browns.[2]
Discography
edit- 1973 (as Ronnie and the Ronettes) – "Go Out and Get It" b/w "Lover, Lover" (Buddha 384)
- 1974 (as Ronnie Spector and the Ronettes) – "I Wish I Never Saw the Sunshine" b/w "I Wonder What He's Doing" (Buddha 408)
Filmography
editActing
editFilm
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Claudine | Rioter on Hallway Stairs |
|
[3] |
| 1975 | The Happy Hooker | Red Hat | Biographical-comedy film directed by Nicholas Sgarro | [4] |
| 1978 | Blue Collar | Caroline Brown | Crime drama film directed by Paul Schrader | [5] |
| 1979 | The Lady in Red | Satin | Action-drama/romantic film directed by Lewis Teague | [6] |
| 2004 | Woman Thou Art Loosed | Woman in Church | Drama film directed by Michael Schultz | [7] |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Change at 125th Street | Harriet Morse | Made-for-TV movie directed by Bob LaHendro and Michael Schultz | [8] |
| 1975 | Police Story | Girl in Bar | Episode: "Face for a Shadow" (S 3:Ep 6) | |
| 1976 | Good Times | Rochelle | Episode: "J.J.'s New Career, part 2" (S 4:Ep 8) | |
| 1977 | Rhoda | Nurse Franklin | Episode: "A Night in the Emergency Room" (S 3:Ep 16) | |
| Days of Our Lives | Toni Johnson | Episode: "Episode #1.2962" (S 12:Ep 962) | ||
| What's Happening!! | Norma | Episode: "From Here to Maternity" (S 1:Ep 21) | ||
| Good Times | Lynetta Gordon | Season 5, episodes 1–3 "The Evans Get Involved" | ||
| What's Happening!! | Donna | Episode: "Give Me Odds" (S 2:Ep 8) | ||
| Freeman | Osa Lee | Made-for-TV movie directed by Lloyd Richards. | ||
| 1978 | Barnaby Jones | Kelly Johnson | Episode: "A Ransom in Diamonds" (S 6:Ep 16) | |
| Battered | Ginny Sinclair | Made-for-TV-Movie directed by Peter Werner. | [9] | |
| 1978–79 | The Amazing Spider-Man | Rita Conway | Recurring | |
| 1979 | What's Happening!! | Donna | Episode: "Food Poisoning" (S 3:Ep 16) | |
| Good Times | Linella Gordon | Episode: "A Matter of Mothers" (S 6:Ep 21) | ||
| 1980 | The Night the City Screamed | Yvonne Clements | Made-for-TV-Movie directed by Harry Falk. | [10] |
| 1982 | Hill Street Blues | Mrs. Halloran | Episode: "The Shooter" (S 2:Ep 17) | |
| The Facts of Life Goes to Paris | Louise | Made-for-TV movie directed by Asaad Kelada. | [11] | |
| 1984 | T. J. Hooker | Carolyn Webster | Episode: "Anatomy of a Killing" (S 4:Ep 5) | |
| The Facts of Life | Diane Ramsey | Episode: "Mother and Daughter" (S 5:Ep 21) | ||
| 1986 | Episode: "The Graduate" (S 7:Ep 23) | |||
| 1992 | Roc | Ms. Wilson | Episode: " No Notes Is Good Notes" (S 1:Ep 16) | |
| 1993 | Where I Live | Bonita | Episode: "The Terminator" (S 1:Ep 13) | |
| Living Single | Bar Patron | Episode: "Living Kringle" (S 1:Ep 15) | ||
| 1994 | Bev | Episode: "The Hand That Robs the Cradle" (S 1:Ep 17) | ||
| Laverne Hunter | Episode: "She Ain't Heavy, She My Mother" (S 1:Ep 26) | |||
| 1995 | Episode: "To Grandmother's House We Go" (S 2:Ep 25) | |||
| Episode: "Talk Showdown" (S 2:Ep 26) | ||||
| Episode: "Come Back Little Diva" (S 3:Ep 1) | ||||
| Episode: "Rags to Riches" (S 3:Ep 5) | ||||
| 1996 | Kirk | Nurse | Episode" Operation Kirk" (S 1:Ep 20) | |
| Living Single | Laverne Hunter | Episode: "Compromising Positions" (S 3:Ep 26) | ||
| 1997 | Episode: "Mother Inferior" (S 4:Ep 13) | |||
| Episode: "Never Can Say Goodbye" (S 4:Ep 24) | ||||
| Woman | Episode: "Up the Ladder Through the Roof" (S 5:Ep 6) | |||
| Laverne Hunter | Episode: "Three Men and a Buckeye" (S 5:Ep 8) | |||
| 1998 | The Wayans Bros. | Susan Sparks | Episode: "Escorting Ain't Easy" (S 5:Ep 6) | |
| 2000 | The Parkers | Wilma McCoy | Episode: "Turkey Day Blues" (S 2:Ep 10) | |
| 2007 | Just Jordan | Gert | Episode: "Fist of Funny" (S 1:Ep 8) |
Production
editFilm
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Menace II Society | Dialogue coach | Hood drama thriller film directed by Allen and Albert Hughes | [12] |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993–94 | Hangin' with Mr. Cooper | Consultant | Television sitcom | |
| Living Single | ||||
| 1994 | Me and the Boys | Dialogue consultant | ||
| Hangin' with Mr. Cooper | Director | Episode: "Groom & Bride" (S 2:Ep 21) | ||
| 1997 | Arsenio | Consultant | Television sitcom | |
| 1999 | Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century | Disney Channel Original Movie directed by Kenneth Johnson | [13] | |
| Sister, Sister | Director | Episode: "The Road Less Traveled" (S 6:Ep 21) | ||
| 2000–03 | The Parkers | Consultant (69 episodes)/Director (4 episodes) | Television sitcom | |
| 2001 | Girlfriends | Director | Episode: "You Better Watch Out" (S 2:Ep 11) | |
| 2003–05 | Romeo! | Television sitcom (7 episodes) | ||
| 2003–06 | One on One | Television sitcom (5 episodes) | ||
| 2005 | All of Us | Episode: "If You Can't Stand the Heat" (S 3:Ep 2) | ||
| 2006 | Hannah Montana | Episode: "You're So Vain, You Probably Think This Zit Is About You" (S 1:Ep 13) | ||
| 2007 | Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide | Television sitcom (3 episodes) | ||
| Just Jordan | Television sitcom (4 episodes) | |||
| 2009 | Meet the Browns | Television sitcom (2 episodes) | ||
| 2009–12 | House of Payne | Television sitcom (12 episodes) | ||
| 2020–23 | Young Dylan | Television sitcom (46 episodes) |
References
edit- ^ Clemente, John (2013). Girl Groups: Fabulous Females Who Rocked the World. AuthorHouse. p. 408. ISBN 978-1-4772-7633-4.
- ^ "Chip Fields Filmography". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2012. Archived from the original on November 4, 2012. Retrieved June 30, 2011.
- ^ "Claudine". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved March 15, 2016.
- ^ "The Happy Hooker". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved March 15, 2016.
- ^ "Blue Collar". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved March 15, 2016.
- ^ "The Lady in Red". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved March 15, 2016.
- ^ "Woman Thou Art Loosed". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved March 15, 2016.
- ^ "Change at 125th Street". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved March 15, 2016.
- ^ "Battered". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved March 15, 2016.
- ^ "The Night the City Screamed". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved March 15, 2016.
- ^ "The Facts of Life Goes to Paris". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved March 15, 2016.
- ^ "Menace II Society". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved March 15, 2016.
- ^ "Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved March 15, 2016.
External links
edit- Chip Fields at IMDb
- Chip Fields at the Internet Broadway Database
