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{{short description|American actor and film director (born 1944)}}
{{other people}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2020}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Tim Reid
| image              = Tim Reid at USDA Black History Month celebration.jpg
| caption            = Reid in 2012
| birth_name         = Timothy Lee Reid Sr.
| birth_date         = {{Birth date and age|mf=yes|1944|12|19}}
| birth_place        = [[Norfolk, Virginia]], U.S.
| death_date         = 
| death_place        = 
| known_for          = {{hlist|''[[WKRP in Cincinnati]]''|''[[Simon & Simon]]''|''[[Sister, Sister (TV series)|Sister, Sister]]''|''[[That '70s Show]]''}}
| occupation         = {{flatlist|
* Actor
* comedian
* director}}
| years_active       = 1968–present
| spouse             = {{ubl
  | {{marriage|Rita Sykes |1966|May 9, 1980|end=div}}
  | {{marriage|[[Daphne Maxwell Reid|Daphne Maxwell]] |December 4, 1982}}
  }}
| alma_mater         = [[Norfolk State University]] ([[Bachelor of Business Administration|BBA]])
| children           = 2
}}
'''Timothy Lee Reid Sr.''' (born December 19, 1944) is an American actor, comedian and film director best known for his roles in [[prime time]] American [[television program]]s, such as [[Venus Flytrap (WKRP in Cincinnati)|Venus Flytrap]] on ''[[WKRP in Cincinnati]]'' (1978–82), Marcel "Downtown" Brown on ''[[Simon & Simon]]'' (1983–87), Ray Campbell on ''[[Sister, Sister (TV series)|Sister, Sister]]'' (1994–99) and William Barnett on ''[[That '70s Show]]'' (2004&ndash;06).<ref name=filmr/><ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NUXIAgAAQBAJ&dq=tim+reid+december+1944&pg=PA1912 | title=Encyclopedia of Television | isbn=9781135194727 | last1=Newcomb | first1=Horace | date=February 3, 2014 | publisher=Routledge }}</ref>

Reid also starred in a CBS series, ''[[Frank's Place]]'', as a professor who inherits a Louisiana restaurant. Reid is the founder and president of Legacy Media Institute, a non-profit organization "dedicated to bringing together leading professionals in the film and television industry, outstanding actors, and young men and women who wish to pursue a career in the entertainment media".<ref>[http://www.legacymediainstitute.org/seminars-and-workshops/2010-summer-workshop-scheduled/ Legacy Media Institute.]</ref>

==Early years==
Reid was born in [[Norfolk, Virginia|Norfolk]], [[Virginia]], and raised in the Crestwood area of [[Chesapeake, Virginia|Chesapeake]], formerly [[Norfolk County, Virginia|Norfolk County]], Virginia. He is the son of William Lee and Augustine (née Wilkins) Reid. He had experienced segregation growing up in Norfolk, the majority of businesses around him being black-owned.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://richmond.com/tim-reid/article_7268be3d-8a6c-556a-85b1-2a8522b77b15.html | title=Tim Reid | date=February 4, 2005 }}</ref><ref name="filmr">{{cite web|url=http://www.filmreference.com/film/71/Tim-Reid.html|title=Tim Reid Biography (1944-)|publisher=Film Reference|access-date=June 4, 2012}}</ref> He earned his [[Bachelor of Business Administration]] degree at [[Norfolk State University|Norfolk State College]] in 1968. Reid also became a member of [[Alpha Phi Alpha]] fraternity. After graduation, he was hired by [[Dupont Corporation]], where he worked for three years.<ref name="mbc">[http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/R/htmlR/reidtim/reidtim.htm Tim Reid profile] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081018135907/http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/R/htmlR/reidtim/reidtim.htm |date=October 18, 2008 }}, [[Museum of Broadcast Communications]] website; accessed January 11, 2014.</ref>

Reid's entertainment career also began in 1968. He and insurance salesman [[Tom Dreesen]] met at a [[Junior Chamber of Commerce]] meeting near Chicago.<ref name="cnn">Leopold, Todd (October 2, 2008), [http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/books/10/02/tim.and.tom/index.html "'WKRP' vet Reid, standup Dreesen's previous life"], [[CNN]].</ref> They were "put together to promote an anti-drug program in the local schools" and, prompted by a comment from a child, decided to form a comedy team.<ref name="cnn"/> The team, later billed as "[[Tim and Tom]]", was the first interracial [[Double act|comedy duo]]. Years later, Reid and Dreesen wrote a book about those years called ''Tim & Tom: An American Comedy in Black and White'' (2008), co-written with sports writer Ron Rapoport.<ref>[http://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/T/bo5631126.html ''Tim and Tom''] page at The University Press of Chicago.</ref><ref>[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005347/bio?ref_=nm_ov_bio_sm "Tim Reid Biography"] at IMDb.</ref>

==Television acting career==
Reid started out on the short-lived ''[[The Richard Pryor Show]]'' in 1977. Reid starred as DJ "[[Venus Flytrap (WKRP in Cincinnati)|Venus Flytrap]]" on the hit [[CBS]] sitcom ''[[WKRP in Cincinnati]]'' from 1978-1982, in what is perhaps his best known TV role. He reprised his role in a 1992 episode of the sequel series ''[[The New WKRP in Cincinnati]]''.

Reid starred as Lieutenant Marcel Proust "Downtown" Brown on the CBS detective series ''[[Simon & Simon]]'' from 1983-1987. In 1988, Reid won an award from Viewers for Quality Television Awards as "Best Actor in a Quality Comedy Series" in CBS comedy ''[[Frank's Place]]'' (1987-1988). In 1988, the same role earned him an [[NAACP Image Award|Image Award]] for "Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series",<ref>[http://www.bronzefest.com/guests.html Tim Reid profile]; accessed November 26, 2007.</ref> but the series was short-lived as was his subsequent CBS series ''[[Snoops (1989 TV series)|Snoops]]'' (1989-1990).

Reid played the adult Mike Hanlon in the 1990 television mini-series adaptation of [[Stephen King]]'s epic horror novel ''[[It (novel)|It]]''. He made an appearance as Sgt. Ray Bennett of the Seacouver Police Department in three first-season episodes of ''[[Highlander: The Series]]'' from 1992-1993. Reid had a starring role in the series ''[[Sister, Sister (TV series)|Sister, Sister]]'' as Ray Campbell for the entire six-season run from 1994–1999. On April 13, 2009, he appeared opposite former ''Sister, Sister'' co-star [[Tamera Mowry]] on the short-lived [[Freeform (TV channel)|ABC Family]] series ''[[Roommates (TV series)|Roommates]]'' as Mr. Daniels. Reid had a recurring role on ''[[That '70s Show]]'' as William Barnett from 2004 to 2006.<ref>{{IMDb name|id=0005347}}</ref>

==Directing==
Reid has directed various television programs, as well the 1996 film ''[[Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored]]'', based on [[Once Upon a Time When We Were Colored|a similarly titled memoir]] by [[Clifton L. Taulbert]]. Reid directed and adapted a children's TV show called ''[[Bobobobs]]'' that aired in the late 1980s. He is the creator of [[Stop the Madness]], an after-school special video in the fight against drugs, recorded on December 11, 1985.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5zJvX3pIY4 |title='STOP THE MADNESS' (1985, 1986) anti-drug music video|via=YouTube}}</ref>

==New Millennium Studios ==
Tim and Daphne Maxwell Reid built New Millennium Studios in 1997. Located in [[Petersburg, Virginia|Petersburg]], Virginia, the 57.4-acre site with its 14,850-square-foot sound studio was both the only Black-owned film studio in the United States since the 1930s, and also one of the largest independent film studios outside of Hollywood.

New Millennium Studios was used in dozens of movie and television productions, including scenes from the 2001 film ''[[Hearts in Atlantis (film)|Hearts in Atlantis]]'' of the [[Stephen King]] [[Hearts in Atlantis|book of the same name]]; parts of 2000's ''[[The Contender (2000 film)|The Contender]]'' and elements of [[Steven Spielberg]]'s 2012 film ''[[Lincoln (film)|Lincoln]]'' were all shot there. The Reids also produced feature films of their own.

Due to "a lack of incentives in the state" to bring film production to Virginia, the Reids sold the property in March 2015 for $1.475 million to Four Square Property Management LLC, a company formed by Four Square Industrial Constructors, based in Chester, Virginia.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.richmond.com/business/local/reids-sell-new-millennium-studios-property-in-petersburg/article_87326fac-6463-54b0-b66e-2900c05645f2.html|title = Reids sell New Millennium Studios property in Petersburg|first=Randy|last=Hallman|website=Richmond Times-Dispatch|date=May 8, 2015}}</ref>

==Personal life==
[[File:Daphne_and_Tim_Reid_1997.jpg|thumb|[[Daphne Maxwell Reid|Daphne]] and Tim Reid in 1997]]
In 1966, Reid married Rita Ann Sykes; they divorced on May 9, 1980. They have two children together: Timothy II (born 1968) and Tori Reid (born 1971). On December 4, 1982, he married actress [[Daphne Maxwell Reid]].

In July 2011, Reid was named to the board of directors of the [[American Civil War Museum|American Civil War Center]] at [[Tredegar Iron Works]].<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20151023032248/http://thisweekinthecivilwar.com/?p=606 "Actor, studio founder Tim Reid named to board of Virginia Civil War center"]}}, This Week in the Civil War, This Week in the Civil War.</ref> On May 10, 2014, Reid received a Virginia Commonwealth University honorary doctorate for his many outstanding and distinguished contributions after he delivered a commencement speech.

During the 1980s and 1990s, Reid served on the advisory board of the [[National Student Film Institute]]. A native Virginian, Reid resides in Glenshellah, [[Portsmouth, Virginia|Portsmouth]], Virginia.<ref>{{cite book|title=National Student Film Institute/L.A: The Sixteenth Annual Los Angeles Student Film Festival|date=June 10, 1994|location=The Directors Guild Theatre|pages=10–11|ref=Program}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Los Angeles Student Film Institute: 13th Annual Student Film Festival|date=June 7, 1991|location=The Directors Guild Theatre|page=3|ref=Program}}</ref>

==Filmography==
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:90%"
|- style="text-align:center;"
! style="background:#B0C4DE;" | Year
! style="background:#B0C4DE;" | Film
! style="background:#B0C4DE;" | Role
! style="background:#B0C4DE;" | Notes
|-
|1974||''[[That's My Mama]]''||Rev. Armbruster||Episode:"Clifton's Persuasion "
|-
|1976||''[[Mother, Jugs & Speed]]''||Unity Dispatcher ||uncredited
|-
|1976|| ''[[Rhoda]]''||Kitchen Helper ||Episode: "Guess Who I Saw Today"
|-
|1977||''[[Fernwood 2 Night]]''|| Matthew Johnson ||Episode: "#1.43"
|-
|1977||''[[The Richard Pryor Show]]''||Blind Man||Episode: "#1.2"
|-
|1977||''[[Lou Grant (TV series)|Lou Grant]]''||TV Cameraman||Episode: "Hostages"
|-
|1977||''[[What's Happening!!]]''||Dr. Claymore ||Episode: "It's All in Your Head"
|-
|1977||''[[Maude (TV series)|Maude]]''|| Policeman ||Episode: "Maude's Christmas Surprise"
|-
|1978||''[[ABC Weekend Specials]]''||Tillson||Episode: "Little Lulu"
|-
|1978–1982||''[[WKRP in Cincinnati]]''||[[Venus Flytrap (WKRP in Cincinnati)|Venus Flytrap]] ||83 episodes
|-
|1979||''[[You Can't Take It with You (play)#Film and TV adaptations|You Can't Take It with You]]''||Donald||TV movie
|-
|1982||''[[Benson (TV series)|Benson]]''||Russell DuBois||Episode: "Thy Brother's Keeper"
|-
|1983||''[[Teachers Only]]''||Michael Horne ||13 episodes
|-
|1983–1987||''[[Simon & Simon]]''||Det. Marcel 'Downtown' Brown ||79 episodes
|-
|1985||''Code Name: Foxfire''||unknown||Episode: "Robin's Egg Blues"
|-
|1987||''[[Matlock (1986 TV series)|Matlock]]''||Danny Miller||Episode: "The Court-Martial: Part 1 and 2"
|-
|1987–1988||''[[Frank's Place]]''||Frank Parish||22 episodes<br />[[NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series]]<br />[[TCA Award for Outstanding Achievement in Comedy]] (shared with Hugh Wilson)<br />[[Viewers for Quality Television|VQT Award for Best Actor in a Quality Comedy Series]]<br />Nominated-[[Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy]]<br />Nominated-[[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series]]<br />Nominated-[[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series]]
|-
|1989||''[[Dead Bang]]''||Chief Dixon ||
|-
|1989–1990||''[[Snoops (1989 TV series)|Snoops]]''||Chance Dennis ||13 episodes
|-
|1990||''[[The Fourth War]]''|| Lt. Col. Clark ||
|-
|1990||''[[Perry Mason (TV film series)|Perry Mason: The Case of the Silenced Singer]]''||Jack Barnett||TV movie
|-
|1990||''[[It (miniseries)|Stephen King's It]]''||Mike Hanlon||TV miniseries
|-
|1991||''[[Zorro (1990 TV series)|Zorro]]''|| Dr. Lorenzo Lozano ||Episode: "Wicked, Wicked Zorro"
|-
|1992||''Just Deserts''||Scott Waring||TV pilot episode
|-
|1992||''[[The New WKRP in Cincinnati]]''|| [[Venus Flytrap (WKRP in Cincinnati)|Venus Flytrap]]||Episode: "Venus, We Hardly Knew Ya"
|-
|1992||''Mastergate''||Chip Chatworth ||TV movie
|-
|1992||''You Must Remember This''||Joe||TV movie
|-
|1992–1993||''[[Highlander: The Series]]''||Sgt. Bennett ||3 episodes
|-
|1993||''[[Say a Little Prayer]]''||Thug||
|-
|1994–1999||''[[Sister, Sister (TV series)|Sister, Sister]]''||Ray Campbell ||114 episodes
|-
|1994||''Race to Freedom: The Underground Railroad''|| Frederick Douglass||
|-
|1995||''[[Simon & Simon|Simon & Simon: In Trouble Again]]''||Downtown Brown||TV movie
|-
|1995||''[[Out-of-Sync]]''||Det. Wilson||
|-
|1996||''[[Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored]]''||{{N/A}}||Debut as a film director
|-
|1997||''[[Touched by an Angel]]''|| Buddy Baker ||Episode: "Last Call"
|-
|1998||''[[Linc's]]''||{{N/A}}||As creator and co-executive producer
|-
|2000||''[[Alley Cats Strike]]''|| Mayor Jeffery "Jeff" McLemore || [[Disney Channel Original Movie]]
|-
|2002||''Las Vegas Warrior''||Doorman 2||
|-
|2003||''[[You Wish! (film)|You Wish!]]''||Larry Pendragon||Disney Channel Original Movie
|-
|2003||''For Real''||Mac|| Also director
|-
|2004–2006||''[[That '70s Show]]''||William Barnett ||9 episodes
|-
|2005||''[[Preaching to the Choir]]''||Prophet ||
|-
|2005||''[[The Reading Room (film)|The Reading Room]]''||Douglas||TV movie
|-
|2006||''[[That's So Raven]]''||Sheriff Jefferson||Episode: "Driving Miss Lazy"
|-
|2007||''[[Trade (film)|Trade]]''||Hank Jefferson ||
|-
|2009||''[[Roommates (TV series)|Roommates]]''||Mr. Stanley Daniels ||Episode: "The Break-In"
|-
|2010||''The Cost of Heaven''||Richard Ginyard||
|-
|2010–2012||''[[Treme (TV series)|Treme]]''||Judge John A. Gatling ||4 episodes
|-
|2012||''[[The Soul Man]]''||Henry||Episode: "Loving Las Vegas"
|-
|2013||''Troop 491: The Adventures of the Muddy Lions''||Pastor Brown||
|-
|2013||''Habeas Corpus''||Ray Senior||Short film
|-
|2016||''By the Grace of Bob''||JJ Barnes||
|-
|2016||''[[Limitless (TV series)|Limitless]]''||Astrophysicist Sturgeon Reid||Episode: "Close Encounters"
|-
|2016||''Tri''||Miles||
|-
|2016||''[[93 Days]]''||Dr. Adeniyi Jones||
|-
|2016||''Chasing Waterfalls''||Quincy||TV movie
|-
|2016||''The Rooftop Christmas Tree''||Dale Landis||TV movie
|-
|2016||''Crushed''||Russell Black||TV movie
|-
|2017–2018||''[[Greenleaf (TV series)|Greenleaf]]''||Bishop Lionel Jeffries||5 episodes
|-
|2017–2018||''[[Me, Myself & I (TV series)|Me, Myself & I]]''||Older Darryl||3 episodes
|-
|2018||''[[Love Is (TV series)|Love Is_]]''||"Wiser" Sean||Episode: "(His) Answers"
|-
|2018||''My Christmas Inn''||Perry Taylor||TV movie
|-
|2019||''[[Grey's Anatomy]]''||Julian||Episode: "I Walk the Line"
|-
|2019||''Radio Christmas''||Garrett||TV movie
|-
|2019||''[[Dolly Parton's Heartstrings (TV series)|Dolly Parton's Heartstrings]]''||Kendal Hooks||Episode: "If I Had Wings"<ref name="IfIHadWings">{{cite web|last1=Andreeva|first1=Nellie|last2=Petski|first2=Denise |title=Brooke Elliott, Ben Lawson, Michele Weaver & Gerald McRaney Star In "If I Had Wings," Part Of Dolly Parton Netflix Series|url=https://deadline.com/2018/11/gerald-mcraney-ben-lawson-brooke-elliott-michele-weaver-cast-if-i-had-wings-episode-dolly-parton-netflix-anthology-series-1202511372/|website=Deadline Hollywood|access-date=January 2, 2019|language=en|date=November 30, 2018}}</ref>
|-
|2019||''Check Inn to Christmas''||Blake||TV movie
|-
|2019||''Baking Christmas''||Phillip||TV movie
|-
|2020||''A Welcome Home Christmas''||General O'Toole||TV movie
|-
|2021||''[[Swagger (TV series)|Swagger]]''||Clyde Sawyer||3 episodes
|-
|2022||''A New Orleans Noel''||Marcel Lirette||TV movie
|-
|2024||''[[Stream (film)|Stream]]''||Dave Burham||<ref>{{cite web|url=https://bloody-disgusting.com/movie/3742528/stream-guitarist-paul-wiley-to-score-new-horror-movie-from-the-producers-of-terrifier-exclusive/|title='Stream' – Guitarist Paul Wiley to Score New Horror Movie from the Producers of 'Terrifier'! [Exclusive]|website=[[Bloody Disgusting]]|first=Brad|last=Miska|date=December 5, 2022|access-date=April 2, 2023}}</ref>
|}

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
*[http://www.timreidproductions.com/ Tim Reid Productions]
*{{IMDb name|id=0005347}}
*[http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/books/10/02/tim.and.tom/index.html?iref=mpstoryview 'WKRP' vet Reid, standup Dreesen's previous life]
*[http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/709000.html An excerpt] from ''Tim & Tom: An American Comedy in Black and White'' by Tim Reid and Tom Dreesen with Ron Rapoport
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110718000319/http://www.alpha-phi-alpha.com/PressNewsDetails.php?newsID=172&newsCat=News Alpha Phi Alpha News.]
* {{The Interviews name|tim-reid}}

{{NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reid, Tim}}
[[Category:1944 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:20th-century American comedians]]
[[Category:20th-century African-American male actors]]
[[Category:20th-century American male actors]]
[[Category:21st-century American comedians]]
[[Category:21st-century African-American male actors]]
[[Category:21st-century American male actors]]
[[Category:People from Hampton Roads]]
[[Category:African-American film directors]]
[[Category:African-American male comedians]]
[[Category:African-American comedians]]
[[Category:American male comedians]]
[[Category:American male television actors]]
[[Category:Film directors from Virginia]]
[[Category:Male actors from Norfolk, Virginia]]
[[Category:Norfolk State University alumni]]
[[Category:Comedians from Virginia]]