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Reginald VelJohnson
VelJohnson in 2021
Born	Reginald Johnson (1952-08-16) August 16, 1952 (age 72) New York City, U.S.
Education	Benjamin N. Cardozo High School
Alma mater	New York University (BFA)
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1979–present
Known for	Carl Winslow – Family Matters Al Powell – Die Hard

Reginald VelJohnson (born Reginald Johnson; August 16, 1952) is an American actor. He is best known for playing police officer characters, such as Carl Winslow on the sitcom Family Matters, which ran from 1989 to 1998, and LAPD Sergeant Al Powell in the films Die Hard and Die Hard 2.

Early life

VelJohnson was born Reginald Johnson in New York City, in the borough of Queens. His mother Eva was a nurse’s aide, while his father Dan was a hospital attendant. His father left the family, which included Reginald's brother Barry, when Johnson was 13 years old. Their mother subsequently married John Reilly, and Johnson attended Benjamin N. Cardozo High School.

He obtained a Bachelor of Fine Arts in theater from New York University, where he had a chance to work with Joseph Papp's Black/Hispanic Shakespeare Company, in which Morgan Freeman and CCH Pounder were among his fellow actors. Early in his acting career, he changed his name from Reginald Johnson (his birth name) to Reginald VelJohnson. He later said he changed the spelling "because I wanted a name people would remember".

Career

VelJohnson is known for playing police officers in films and on television. His early career included a brief appearance in Ghostbusters (1984) as a municipal corrections officer, and an appearance in Crocodile Dundee (1986) as a limo driver. VelJohnson played alongside Tom Hanks, as Det. David Sutton, in Turner & Hooch (1989). He played an ambulance driver in Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985) in which he was credited by the stage name Ivory Ocean.

VelJohnson had his breakthrough role as Sgt. Al Powell in the 1988 film Die Hard. VelJohnson was hired after Gene Hackman, originally hired to play the role, became unavailable, and producers decided to hire a relatively unknown actor for the part. He came from New York to California to film it for nine months, which was so long that he ended up residing in California permanently thereafter. He later reprised the character in the 1990 sequel Die Hard 2. VelJohnson again portrayed Sgt. Powell in the GameCube video game titled Die Hard: Vendetta in 2002.

In 1989, VelJohnson was cast as police officer and family patriarch Carl Winslow in the ABC (later CBS) sitcom Family Matters, alongside Jo Marie Payton, who played his wife Harriette Winslow. It was a spinoff of the popular show Perfect Strangers on which he appeared only once, though Harriette appeared as a re-occurring guest star. He starred on the show until it ended in 1998. Since the end of Family Matters, VelJohnson has done mostly voice and guest star work. VelJohnson has made guest appearances in several TV shows, including The Equalizer, Diagnosis: Murder, Twice in a Lifetime, Will & Grace, Monk, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Eve, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Crossing Jordan, The Parkers, That's So Raven, and Bones. He had a minor role in the 2002 film Like Mike and a recurring role as Pastor/Brother Haywood on Mike & Molly. In 2007, he appeared in the short films Reverse, Nerve Endings, and Time Upon A Once which were made during the reality show On the Lot. In 2008, he appeared as the "Sgt. Al Powell" character from the Die Hard series in an episode of NBC's Chuck titled "Chuck Versus the Santa Claus", as the cousin of Big Mike (Mark Christopher Lawrence). In 2010, VelJohnson started a recurring role as Principal, later Superintendent, Strickland on the Disney sitcom I'm in the Band and Funnyordie.com's short HBO film titled Just 3 Boyz starring Tim Heidecker, Eric Wareheim, and Zach Galifianakis. He has appeared in the comedy film, The Formula, starring alongside Brandon Baker and Sasha Jackson. He played air traffic controller Bob Abbot in the 2012 film Air Collision.

In 2021, VelJohnson voiced Principal Winslow in the animated adaptation of the comic Invincible. In both the comic and the television series, the main character attends a high school named after the actor, and the character itself is named after his previous role of Carl Winslow from Family Matters. VelJohnson also voices several minor characters in the series. He later reprised his role as David Sutton on Disney's Turner & Hooch.

In January 2023, VelJohnson began appearing in advertisements for Progressive as "TV Dad," a parody of his previous Carl Winslow role.

In September 2024, VelJohnson was announced as one of the celebrities competing on season 33 of Dancing with the Stars. He was partnered with Emma Slater and they finished in 10th place.

Personal life

As of 2009, VelJohnson had homes in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Los Angeles, and resided primarily in Oceanside, New York. He has never married and has no children.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

References

1. "Reginald VelJohnson Biography (1952–)". FilmReference.com. Retrieved June 7, 2010.
2. "Reginald Veljohnson ". TVGuide.com. Archived from the original on September 18, 2015. Retrieved March 21, 2018.
3. "Reginald Veljohnson Biography". Yahoo! Movies. Archived from the original on July 12, 2012. Retrieved June 7, 2010.
4. "QConfidential". Queens Tribune. New York City. Archived from the original on July 15, 2010. Retrieved June 7, 2010.
5. ^ Hill, Michael E. (November 25, 1990). "Reginald VelJohnson". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on December 3, 2019. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
6. "Reginald Vel Johnson: Class of 1975". New York University Grad Acting Alumnni Association. Archived from the original on April 7, 2019.
7. Buck, Jerry (November 16, 1989). "Reginald Veljohnson of 'Family Matters' reminisces". The Dallas Morning News.
8. ^ Thompson, Simon (November 2, 2018). "Reginald VelJohnson Talks 'Die Hard' At 30 And 'Crocodile Dundee' Sequel [Interview]". Forbes.com Contributor. Archived from the original on June 1, 2020. Retrieved December 18, 2019. Note: Forbes magazine in its website's legal notices states Forbes contributors are not staffers and are under no editorial oversight. They are personal blogs.
9. ^ Seemeyer, Zach (June 14, 2022). "'Family Matters' Star Reginald VelJohnson Talks Challenging Co-Stars and Being an Iconic TV Dad (Exclusive) | Entertainment Tonight". Entertainment Tonight. Retrieved June 18, 2022.
10. ^ Dawn, Randee (November 7, 2018). "Reginald VelJohnson reveals how 'Die Hard' helped him get cast in 'Family Matters'". Today. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
11. "On this day in comedy... In 1952 comedian and actor Reginal VelJohnson was born!". Humor Mill Mag. September 16, 2016. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
12. "On the Lot: Episodes". Archived from the original on May 28, 2007. Retrieved May 28, 2007.
13. Smith, William. "Mixing 'The Formula' For Success". The Hawk Eye. Retrieved November 14, 2012.
14. Special Episode: Robert Kirkman and the Invincible Show, March 22, 2021, archived from the original on December 12, 2021, retrieved March 22, 2021
15. Conway, Jeff. "Actor Reginald VelJohnson Discusses His 'TV Dad' Progressive Commercials And His Professional Mindset At 70". Forbes. Retrieved March 9, 2023.
16. "Meet the celebrity cast of 'Dancing with the Stars' season 33". ABC News. September 4, 2024. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
17. Bloom, Mike (October 8, 2024). "Another Double Elimination! Who Went Home on the 'Dancing with the Stars' Tonight?". Parade. Retrieved October 9, 2024.
18. Cast list, Out at the Wedding closing credits
19. "'12 Dog Days Till Christmas': Claflin event includes screening of S.C.-made film". The Times and Democrat. Orangeburg, South Carolina. April 5, 2015. Archived from the original on March 22, 2018. Retrieved December 17, 2017.
20. Bits Studios. Die Hard Vendetta. Sierra Entertainment. Scene: Ending credits, 2:45:30 in, VOICE AND MOTION CAPTURE ARTISTS.

External links

• Reginald VelJohnson at IMDb
• Reginald VelJohnson at Yahoo! TV at archive.today (archived February 9, 2013)
• Reginald VelJohnson at the Internet Broadway Database
• Reginald VelJohnson at the Internet Off-Broadway Database

• 1952 births
• Living people
• American male film actors
• American male stage actors
• American male television actors
• Benjamin N. Cardozo High School alumni
• New York University alumni
• Male actors from Queens, New York
• 20th-century American male actors
• 21st-century American male actors
• 20th-century African-American male actors
• 21st-century African-American male actors