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IMDbPro

Mabel King(1932-1999)

  • Actress
  • Soundtrack
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Mabel King
Mabel King was best-known for the role of Mama on the 1970's sitcom What's Happening!, but she also appeared in the films The Jerk with Steve Martin and The Wiz with Michael Jackson. Before What's Happening!, she portrayed the Wicked Witch of the West in the Broadway version of The Wiz.
BornDecember 25, 1932
DiedNovember 9, 1999(66)
BornDecember 25, 1932
DiedNovember 9, 1999(66)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
  • Awards
    • 2 nominations total

Photos12

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Known for

Steve Martin in The Jerk (1979)
The Jerk
7.1
  • Mother
  • 1979
Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, Ted Ross, and Nipsey Russell in The Wiz (1978)
The Wiz
5.7
  • Evillene
  • 1978
What's Happening!! (1976)
What's Happening!!
7.1
TV Series
  • Mabel 'Mama' Thomas
Bill Murray in Scrooged (1988)
Scrooged
6.9
  • Gramma
  • 1988

Credits

IMDbPro

Actress

  • Dead Men Don't Die (1990)
    Dead Men Don't Die
    4.3
    • Chafuka
    • 1990
  • Bill Murray in Scrooged (1988)
    Scrooged
    6.9
    • Gramma
    • 1988
  • Kevin Spacey, Jonathan Banks, and Ken Wahl in Wiseguy (1987)
    Wiseguy
    7.8
    TV Series
    • Mae Nina
    • 1988
  • Tales from the Darkside (1983)
    Tales from the Darkside
    7.4
    TV Series
    • Ruby Cuzzins
    • 1986
  • Charlton Heston, Stephanie Beacham, Maxwell Caulfield, Katharine Ross, Tracy Scoggins, Barbara Stanwyck, John James, Emma Samms, and Claire Yarlett in The Colbys (1985)
    The Colbys
    6.1
    TV Series
    • Fortune Teller
    • 1986
  • Kevin Costner, Harvey Keitel, Charlie Sheen, Christopher Lloyd, and John Lithgow in Amazing Stories (1985)
    Amazing Stories
    7.4
    TV Series
    • Jennifer Mowbray
    • 1986
  • Sherman Hemsley and Isabel Sanford in The Jeffersons (1975)
    The Jeffersons
    7.5
    TV Series
    • Mother Tobin
    • 1984
  • Lee Van Cleef, Shô Kosugi, and Timothy Van Patten in The Master (1984)
    The Master
    4.6
    TV Series
    • Willie
    • 1984
  • The Jerk, Too (1984)
    The Jerk, Too
    2.8
    TV Movie
    • Mama Johnson
    • 1984
  • The Wiz
    7.0
    Video
    • Evillene, the Wicked Witch of the West
    • 1983
  • Andrea Elson and Matthew Labyorteaux in Whiz Kids (1983)
    Whiz Kids
    6.9
    TV Series
    • Velma Sherry
    • 1983
  • Lottery! (1983)
    Lottery!
    6.9
    TV Series
    • Mabel
    • 1983
  • ABC Weekend Specials (1977)
    ABC Weekend Specials
    7.8
    TV Series
    • Mrs. Trussker
    • 1983
  • Ricardo Montalban and Hervé Villechaize in Fantasy Island (1977)
    Fantasy Island
    6.6
    TV Series
    • Mama Parker
    • Bertha Jones
    • Lelani
    • 1978–1981
  • Getting Over (1981)
    Getting Over
    6.2
    • Mabel Queen
    • 1981

Soundtrack

  • Doug Walker in The Nostalgia Critic (2007)
    The Nostalgia Critic
    7.5
    TV Series
    • performer: "Don't Nobody Bring Me No Bad News"
    • 2012
  • Love Is Not Enough
    5.6
    • performer: "Don't Nobody Bring Me No Bad News" (uncredited)
    • 1979
  • Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, Ted Ross, and Nipsey Russell in The Wiz (1978)
    The Wiz
    5.7
    • performer: "Don't Nobody Bring Me No Bad News", "Don't Nobody Bring Me No Bad News (Reprise)"
    • 1978
  • Ganja & Hess (1973)
    Ganja & Hess
    6.2
    • performer: "March Blues"
    • 1973
  • Mabel King, Avon Long, and Esther Rolle in Don't Play Us Cheap (1972)
    Don't Play Us Cheap
    5.7
    • performer: "Saturday Night", "The Book Of Life", "Feast On Me"
    • 1972

Personal details

  • Alternative name
    • Maybel King
  • Height
    • 5′ 4″ (1.63 m)
  • Born
    • December 25, 1932
    • Charleston, South Carolina, USA
  • Died
    • November 9, 1999
    • Los Angeles, California, USA(complications from diabetes)
  • Spouse
    • Melvin KingJune 17, 1967 - September 8, 1989 (divorced, 1 child)
  • Children
    • Larry King
  • Other works
    Stage: Appeared (as "Evilene, the Wicked Witch of the West") in "The Wiz" on Broadway.
  • Publicity listings
    • 1 Article

Did you know

  • Trivia
    Her most famous role (both on Broadway and in the screen version) was as Evillene, the Wicked Witch of the West, in 'The Wiz'.

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