Roscoe Orman

Acting

Roscoe Orman

Born 1944-06-11 · Bronx - New York - USA

While a student at New York's High School of Art and Design, Orman made his theatrical debut in the 1962 topical revue "If We Grow Up." He was an early member of the Free Southern Theater for two years in the mid-1960s and a founding member of Harlem, New York's New Lafayette Theatre, where he acted in and directed numerous plays. His many other stage appearances have included roles in "Julius Caesar" and "Coriolanus" at Joseph Papp's Public Theater, the Broadway production of August Wilson's Pulitzer Prize-winning play "Fences", and Matt Robison's one-man play "The Confessions of Stepin Fetchit" at the American Place Theatre. Orman is the recipient of an Audelco Theatre Award and a five-time nominee. He made his feature film debut in the title role of Universal Studios' 1974 drama, Willie Dynamite and has also appeared in such films as F/X, Striking Distance, New Jersey Drive, Follow That Bird, Twilight's Last Gleaming,The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland, and "Jeremy Fink And The Meaning of Life". His television credits include work on such shows as All My Children, Kojak, Sanford and Son, Cosby, Sex and the City, The Wire, andLaw & Order. He most recently appeared on episode 5 of the Garry Trudeau/Amazon streaming production Alpha House. In June 2006, Orman's memoir Sesame Street Dad: Evolution of An Actor was released. In September 2007, his children's book Ricky and Mobo was released. On October 8, 2008, he became the Chief Storyteller of AudibleKids.com (a service of Audible.com), a website for parents, teachers, and children to connect with one another and download and listen to audiobooks oniPods, MP3 players, and computers. In his role as Chief Storyteller, Orman narrates audiobooks and communicates with children, parents and teachers online and at community, literacy and library events, lectures and conferences, and via other media to encourage the use of audiobooks to help build an interest in reading and develop literacy skills. He commented on being Chief Storyteller on October 8, 2008: “When Sesame Streetbegan, television was a new and even controversial medium. But we showed how that technology, if used correctly, could become a powerful learning tool...I see the same kind of opportunity emerging today as parents and educators increasingly view iPods with skepticism. With AudibleKids.com, I believe we can help turn these players into magnificent storytellers, tools for learning, and a way to promote a lifelong love of stories and language.” His new role was announced at a community event at The Educational Alliance Boys & Girls Club in New York City, where Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s office commended Orman’s life work and willingness to embrace new technology to help encourage children to read books, by naming October 8, 2008 AudibleKids Day in New York City. Orman is a resident of New Jersey. He has four children, Rasheda, Solana, Miles, and Cheyenne. His son, Miles Orman, was on Sesame Street playing Gordon and Susan's adopted son Miles Robinson from the mid-1980s into the early 1990s.

Acting credits

Striking Distance poster
5.9

Demoted Pittsburgh cop Tom Hardy works river patrol while a serial killer targets women from his past, forcing him to conduct an unauthorized investigation to prove his innocence and expose a dirty cop.

Striking Distance

1993

Jim Henson Idea Man poster
7.8

Featuring unprecedented access to Jim Henson's personal archives, filmmaker Ron Howard brings us a fascinating and insightful look at a complex man whose boundless imagination inspired the world.

Jim Henson Idea Man

2024

F/X poster
6.6

A movies special effects man is hired by a government agency to help stage the assassination of a well known gangster. When the agency double cross him, he uses his special effects to trap the gangster and the corrupt agents.

F/X

1986

Original Sound poster
NR

A down on his luck aspiring musician gets his big break at the big time when an up and coming singer agrees to collaborate with him after she is caught stealing his song.

Original Sound

2026

Sesame Street | All-Star 25th Birthday: Stars and Street Forever! poster
7.0

Sesame Street All-Star 25th Birthday: Stars and Street Forever! was a 1994 TV special that aired on ABC to celebrate Sesame Street's 25th anniversary. It was originally broadcast on May 18, 1994. The show featured Joe Pesci (as Ronald Grump), Corbin Bernsen (as real estate attorney, Arnie), Danny DeVito and Rhea Perlman (as a Worm TV hosts), John Goodman (as Tough Guy Helpline operator), Charles Grodin (as Chaz), Julia Louis-Dreyfus (as reporter Kathie Lee Kathie), Rosie O'Donnell (as the Good Hope Fairy), Susan Sarandon (as Bitsy), Barbara Walters (reporting for 25/25), and Regis Philbin and Kathie Lee Gifford (as themselves).

Sesame Street | All-Star 25th Birthday: Stars and Street Forever!

1994

Sesame Street: P is for Princess poster
6.0

Once upon a time on Sesame Street there lived a fairy in training named Abby Cadabby, and she loved going on all kinds of adventures. She loved playing princess with friends like Rosita, but what happens when a misguided Prince (played by actor Paul Rudd) tries to rescue them? Pretending and the Letter P are the focus of two more stories in this enchanting title that also features fun with Natalie Portman and Elmo in "The Princess and The Elephant."

Sesame Street: P is for Princess

2010

The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland poster
6.2

Elmo loves his fuzzy, well-worn blue blanket more than anything in the whole world. However, when Elmo's blanket gets sucked through a colorful, swirling tunnel into Grouchland, the yuckiest place on earth, Elmo goes on an adventure to Grouchland to retrieve his prized possession.

The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland

1999

Follow That Bird poster
6.4

Big Bird is sent to live far from Sesame Street by a pesky social worker, who thinks it would be better for him to live with other birds. Unhappy, Big Bird runs away from his foster home, prompting the rest of the Sesame Street gang to go on a cross-country journey to find him.

Follow That Bird

1985

30 Days poster
2.8

Two star basketball players, Donnell, a black kid from the inner city high school, and Jason, a white kid from the affluent suburbs, are sentenced to 30 days of labour in each other's communities after a brawl between their two teams. When they return to their home turf, both see their new attitudes put to the test.

30 Days

2006

Is That Black Enough for You?!? poster
6.1

A look at the Black revolution in 1970s cinema, from genre films to social realism, from the making of new superstars to the craft of rising auteurs.

Is That Black Enough for You?!?

2022

New Jersey Drive poster
6.2

Jason and Midget are two young, black teenagers living in Newark, New Jersey, the unofficial car theft capital of the world. Their favourite pastime is that of everybody in their neighbourhood: stealing cars and joyriding. The trouble starts when they steal a police car and the cops launch a violent offensive that involves beating and even shooting suspects.

New Jersey Drive

1995

Holiday Rush poster
5.6

After his sudden firing, a popular radio DJ moves in with his aunt, bringing along his four spoiled children, and a plan to return to the airwaves.

Holiday Rush

2019

Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street poster
7.4

Take a stroll down Sesame Street and witness the birth of the most influential children's show in television history. From the iconic furry characters to the classic songs you know by heart, learn how a gang of visionary creators changed the world.

Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street

2021

Sesame Street: Elmopalooza! poster
6.1

Jon Stewart hosts the Sesame Street Muppets' 30 year celebration, but Elmo steps in when things go awry.

Sesame Street: Elmopalooza!

1998

Sesame Street: What's the Name of That Song? poster
NR

Come one, come all for Sesame Street's 35th anniversary musical gathering! Is there one song the whole world can sing together? Find out when Super Grover embarks on an outrageous mission. There's musical mayhem when Oscar the Grouch gets a song stuck in Big Bird's head and our yellow-feathered friend begins his own search for someone to help him name that tune.

Sesame Street: What's the Name of That Song?

2004

Sesame Street: Play All Day with Elmo! poster
NR

Come Play with Elmo! Everyone's favorite furry red friend is joined by all kinds of kids to play Elmo Says, Red Light Green Light, Freeze Dance, Pat-a-cake and more. OK Go mix primary colors into a rainbow and Taye Diggs helps Elmo pretend in this playful special featuring singing, dancing, and learning!

Sesame Street: Play All Day with Elmo!

2015

A Sesame Street Christmas Carol poster
6.7

Oscar the Grouch is visited by three ghosts in an attempt to teach him the true meaning of Christmas.

A Sesame Street Christmas Carol

2006

A Walking Tour of Sesame Street poster
NR

Sesame Street celebrated its 10th anniversary in the spring of 1979 with a half-hour PBS special hosted by James Earl Jones titled A Walking Tour of Sesame Street. The special aired on individual PBS stations at various times between March and May 1979. (Muppet Wiki)

A Walking Tour of Sesame Street

1979

Sesame Street's 50th Anniversary Celebration poster
9.3

C is for Celebrate! Join host Joseph Gordon-Levitt and the residents of Sesame Street - human and monsters alike - to celebrate 50 years of learning, laughter, and love. Familiar felt faces like Roosevelt Franklin, Don Music, Sherlock Hemlock, and the Amazing Mumford join celebrity guests Norah Jones, Nile Rodgers, Sterling K. Brown, Meghan Trainor, Patti LaBelle, and Elvis Costello in this heartwarming special.

Sesame Street's 50th Anniversary Celebration

2019

Sesame Street: 20 Years & Still Counting! 1969-1989 poster
7.3

This one-hour special marks the 20th anniversary of Sesame Street, the ground-breaking educational children's series that has taught numbers and the alphabet, along with social and cultural concepts, to generations of preschoolers.

Sesame Street: 20 Years & Still Counting! 1969-1989

1989

Coriolanus poster
5.0

A video recording of a New York Shakespeare Festival 1979 stage production of Coriolanus with an all-black and Hispanic cast. Producer Joseph Papp intended to provide professional opportunities for actors of minority ethnic backgrounds. A banished hero of Rome allies with a sworn enemy to take his revenge on the city.

Coriolanus

1979

Willie Dynamite poster
6.4

Willie Dynamite is a pimp who operates in New York City. Willie was a big success as a pimp, but now, just as fast as he rose to the top, he has hit bottom. A former prostitute who has become a social worker tries to get Willie to clean up his life while it is still possible.

Willie Dynamite

1974

Sesame Street: Elmo and Friends: The Letter Quest and Other Magical Tales poster
NR

The Knights of Sesame Street are on a quest! Sir Elmo, Sir Abby, and Sir Telly discover a Yogurt-Eating Yodeling Yak when they go on a quest to find things that start with the letter Y. The magical adventures continue when the Shoe Fairy (Neil Patrick Harris) appears and shows Abby and Telly that there are shoes for everyone and everything. But can he find the perfect pair of shoes for Telly? Plus, join Cookie Monster as he discovers the perils of having the "cookie touch!"

Sesame Street: Elmo and Friends: The Letter Quest and Other Magical Tales

2009

Sesame Street: Elmo Saves Christmas poster
6.0

Can there be such a thing as too much Christmas? Find out... when a magical Christmas wish is granted and Elmo gets to see what the world would be like if every day were Christmas! You'll enjoy lots of songs and holiday cheer with Elmo and his new friend Lightning, the reindeer, and discover for yourself why Christmas is best kept to one day a year!

Sesame Street: Elmo Saves Christmas

1996