Childhood & Early Life
Garrett Isaac Morris was born on February 1, 1937, in New Orleans, Louisiana. He was raised by his grandfather, who was a Southern Baptist minister. As a young boy, Morris was passionate about music. His grandfather discovered his talent and encouraged him to participate in church choirs.
Morris received formal training in music, from the ‘Juilliard School of Music.’ In 1956, he received a scholarship to attend a music workshop at ‘Tanglewood.’ Soon, he won the ‘Tanglewood Conductors Award.’ In 1958, Morris graduated from the ‘Dillard University.’
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Career
Morris started his career as a singer. He was part of the vocal music group ‘The Belafonte Folk Singers.’ Morris performed in several ‘Broadway’ musicals, such as ‘Hallelujah, Baby!’ and ‘Ain’t Supposed to Die a Natural Death.’ He worked at the ‘Black Arts Repertory Theatre’ for a short span of time.
In 1970, Morris made his debut in movies, with the black comedy movie ‘Where’s Poppa?’ He performed as the character ‘Garrett.’ In the 1970s, Morris appeared in a few more movies, such as ‘Cooley High,’ ‘The Anderson Tapes,’ and ‘Car Wash.’
In 1975, Garrett Morris bagged the first prominent role of his career, when he was chosen to be part of the TV show ‘Saturday Night Live,’ aired on the ‘NBC’ network. It was a late-night sketch-comedy show, and Morris appeared as various recurring characters. One of his best-known characters on the show was that of the Dominican baseball player ‘Chico Escuela.’ He appeared as ‘Cliff,’ ‘Hodo,’ and ‘Merkon,’ too. Although Morris remained on the show from 1975 to 1980, he was unhappy because he was being typecast. He was always cast in stereotypical African–American roles.
In 1984, Morris performed in the black comedy ‘The Census Taker.’ The movie featured him as the title character, ‘Harvey,’ who was an annoying census-taker. In 1985, he starred in the science-fiction horror movie ‘The Stuff.’ The movie featured him as junk-food manufacturer ‘Charles W Hobbs,’ or “Chocolate Chip Charlie.”
In 1986, Morris was chosen to perform in the crime-drama series ‘Hunter.’ It was aired on the ‘NBC’ network. He portrayed the character ‘Arnold “Sporty” James.’ Morris remained a part of the series from 1986 to 1989. In 1987, he appeared as ‘Dummont’ in the comedy movie ‘The Underachievers.’
In the early 1990s, Morris performed in movies such as ‘Children of the Night,’ ‘Motorama,’ and ‘Severed Ties.’ He was also seen in TV series such as ‘Earth Angel,’ ‘Roc,’ and ‘Maid for Each Other.’ In 1994, Morris was shot by a mugger in what appeared to be an attempt to commit a theft. Morris was seriously injured in the incident. The bullet ripped through his abdomen, and he had to be hospitalized for over a month. This incident affected his career.
In 1994, at the time of the attack, Morris was shooting for the TV series ‘Martin.’ It was one of the most popular sitcoms aired on the ‘Fox’ network. Morris portrayed ‘Stan Winters,’ who was the boss of the protagonist, ‘Martin.’ ‘Winters’ was an untrustworthy man who dressed outrageously. When Morris was shot, his character suffered a setback. Morris returned to the series after recuperating from his injuries but only appeared in a few more episodes.
In 1996, Garrett bagged a role that was another milestone in his career. He was chosen to portray ‘Uncle Junior King’ on ‘The Jamie Foxx Show,’ aired on ‘The WB.’ His character was pivotal to the show, and he remained on the show till 2001.
In the 2000s, Morris performed in TV series such as ‘Justice League,’ ‘’All of Us,’ and ‘Family Guy.’ He was also seen in movies such as ‘Frank,’ ‘Who’s Your Caddy?,’ and ‘Ant-Man.’
From 2011 to 2017, Morris performed as ‘Earl’ in the TV series ‘2 Broke Girls,’ which was aired on the ‘CBS’ network. In 2018, he was seen in the series ‘This Is Us’ and ‘Scandal.’
Facts About Garrett Morris
Garrett Morris is a talented singer and musician, known for his soulful voice and musical performances.
In addition to being a successful actor, Morris is also a skilled comedian who can light up a room with his humor and wit.
Morris has a passion for classic cars and enjoys collecting and restoring vintage automobiles in his spare time.
He is an advocate for diversity in the entertainment industry and has worked to promote opportunities for underrepresented groups in Hollywood.
Morris is a dedicated philanthropist, supporting various charitable causes and organizations that focus on education and social justice.
