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actor director poet and musician Malcolm Jamal Warner was born in Jersey City New
Jersey he was raised by his divorced mother who served as his manager and
played a major role in protecting her son from some of the pitfalls other child stars
have experienced his name is derived from two prominent African-American figures Minister
and civil rights activist Malcolm X and renowned jazz pianist Ahmad Jamal
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at the age of five his family moved to Los Angeles following his parents separation as a youth he got
heavily into basketball and thought for a while that he was going to play professionally when he
grew up he wound up getting into theater acting at nine when his mother decided to put him in the
activity so we'd have something to do after school instead of just hanging out with his friends as
it turned out Malcolm not only enjoyed it he was pretty good at it too after several appearances
on a variety of television shows he landed his most successful role as Theo Huxtable on the NBC
sitcom The Cosby Show Malcolm auditioned for the role on the final day of the Nationwide search and
was chosen by Bill Cosby himself along with the role came a move to New York where the show was
going to be filmed the moment the first episode aired in 1984 it turned 14 year old Malcolm into
a superstar over the years he's spoken fondly of how grounded the experience was shooting in real
life New York as opposed to the Hollywood bubble of La he was able to have real friends instead of
a bunch of actors friends because of his parents influence he never got into drugs or alcohol but
he does have fond memories of spending time in some of the most legendary nightclubs even
though he was underage and being able to enjoy having access to certain things without completely
wilding out fun fact or maybe a more interesting fact Malcolm didn't get along with the actor
playing his character's best friend cockroach Carl Anthony Payne he told The Breakfast Club
in January 2023 that the issue was pretty much rooted in him async Carl out of the role of Theo
apparently at the end it came down to the two of them so in reality had Malcolm never audition the
role would have gone to Carl also according to Malcolm Carl had a huge ego as far as the often
asked question of why cockroach disappeared off the show that's another story for another time
since his mother always ruled into him that the hit TV show he was on could end at any moment
and he needed to prepare himself for that Malcolm decided to diversify his skill set early on by 16
he'd begun directing and went on to do many music videos including new additions any heartbreak
rappers Special Ed's I'm the Magnificent and British R B group five stars I love you for
sentimental reasons he also directed episodes of many TV shows including The Cosby Show all that
Keenan and Kell The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air where he also made a memorable guest appearance and his
next sitcom hit Malcolm and Eddie years later Malcolm admitted that he only needed one word
to sum up his experience on the show miserable he told Sway in the Morning in 2016 that it
was a culture shock going from The Cosby Show environment where black people were portrayed
in a very non-stereotypical way to UPN where all they wanted to do was be as stereotypical
as possible Malcolm spent much of his time I'm constantly fighting with the network producers
and writers to raise the bar another person he had a volatile relationship with was his very
own co-star Eddie Griffin Malcolm's been candid about confessing that they didn't get along due
to he says them coming from two very different schools of life he does emphasize though that
they both approach their work in a professional manner around this time Malcolm picked up a new
hobby playing bass guitar he started to help him deal with all the craziness going on behind
the scenes of the show and never believed that it would go any further than that well to date
he's gone on to release four albums in addition to music he's also a performance poet Malcolm
said that he considers himself a poet before an actor due to his father's influence of making a
point to educate his son on African-American history through books and poetry since the
late 80s Malcolm's landed numerous film roles but has continued to have the most success on
the small screen in addition to The Cosby Show and Malcolm and Eddie he's also starred in the short
productions here and now Jeremiah Sherry and read between the lines of them all that last
one looked to be the most promising with Malcolm working alongside girlfriend star Tracy Ellis Ross
while the idea behind the show was to highlight the couple's ups and downs together as a blended
family Malcolm revealed both him and Tracy were adamant about making sure they didn't take the
typical approach to a black sitcom unfortunately from the beginning the writers that were hired all
had a background in scripting for typical black sitcoms as a result he says there was always a
struggle over what the show was supposed to look and feel like several years later Malcolm would
land another starring role on the Fox medical drama the resident he would play the role of Dr
AJ Austin for the show's entire sixth season run even though at the height of Malcolm's Fame his
personal life was never on display he did have some serious long-term relationships presumably
the first of which was a six-year bid with actress Michelle Thomas who portrayed his girlfriend
Justine Phillips on The Cosby Show while they were no longer dating when she passed away in
1998 from stomach cancer he still made a point to be by her side on that day during Malcolm and
Eddie's run he dated his co-star Karen Molina white who he'd already developed a friendship
with since her appearance on The Cosby Show years earlier they were together for over seven years
he also dated actress Regina King from 2011 to 2013. the pair originally met in the 80s
and formed a bond as child stars when Malcolm was on Cosby and Regina starred on 227 Reports
say he was the one to call it quits requesting that she and her son move out of the home they
shared and that she was blindsided and devastated today Malcolm is married with a daughter he's
chosen not to disclose his wife and child's names publicly citing privacy concerns since 2014 when
accusations about Bill Cosby's sexual misconduct which had shadowed him for years resurfaced many
people who've worked with the Entertainer over the years have been questioned about their opinion on
the matter including Malcolm in the January 2023 interview with Jamil Hill he was asked if he feels
any resentment towards bill for how people now perceive The Cosby Show and what kind of
personal financial impact the comedian's downfall has had on the show's Legacy Malcolm's answer was
a simple no because he knows how the business Works he said that while he can't defend Bill's
actions he can't throw him under the bus either because of how layered and complex the situation
is he admits that he and the rest of the cast have taken a financial hit but his career specifically
overall hasn't been affected that can easily be attributed to his mother's insistence that Malcolm
always be prepared for a rainy day whenever that would be and have his life set up for Success
when that day came as a staple in television and film for over 30 years Malcolm Jamal Warner has
positioned himself as one of the most accomplished talents in the industry today and continues to
use his seasoned acting music directing and producing skills to entertain fans worldwide
thank you