Orlando Jones

PHOTO GALLERY
Date of Birth : Apr 10th 1968

American comedian and film and television actor. He is notable for being one of the original cast members of the sketch comedy series MADtv and for his role as the 7 Up spokesman from 1999 – 2002.

Jones was born in Mobile, Alabama. His father was a former professional baseball player for the Philadelphia Phillies. He then moved to Mauldin, South Carolina when he was young and graduated from Mauldin High School in 1985. One of his early acting experiences involved playing a werewolf in a haunted house to help raise money for the Junior/Senior prom. Jones then enrolled in the College of Charleston, South Carolina, and received his degree in 1990.

In an effort to pursue his interest in the entertainment industry, Orlando Jones set up his own production company named Homeboy’s Productions and Advertising. Soon after, he scored his first Hollywood job in 1987, writing for the NBC comedy A Different World, on which he had a small guest role in the season five finale. In 1991 and 1992, Jones penned the FOX series Roc and, in 1993, he co-produced The Sinbad Show. He also made a quick appearance on the FOX sitcom Herman’s Head in 1992.

After hosting Fox’s music series Sound FX, in 1994, Jones became one of the original nine cast members of MADtv. Unlike some of his fellow original repertory performers on MADtv, Jones came to the show with limited sketch comedy experience. However, his comedy writing and television producing skills proved very valuable to the early success of the show.