Robert Guillaume
Biography
Robert Guillaume was an American actor and singer whose stage, television and film work spanned more than 50 years. Born in St. Louis, he studied at Saint Louis University and Washington University before joining the Karamu Players in Cleveland and performing in musical comedies and opera. His Broadway debut came with Kwamina in 1961, and he earned a Tony nomination as Nathan Detroit in a revival of Guys and Dolls. He became a television regular as butler Benson DuBois on Soap from 1977 to 1979, then headlined the spin-off Benson until 1986, winning Emmys in 1979 and 1985. Later roles included television executive Isaac Jaffe on Sports Night, and in 1990 he was the first Black actor to play the title role in The Phantom of the Opera. He was the voice of Rafiki in The Lion King (1994) and its sequels, and his spoken-word recording of the film won a Grammy in 1995.
89years old at death
- Born St. Louis
- Died Los Angeles
- Star sign: SagittariusThe sign runs November 22 to December 21
- Robert Peter Williams (birth name)Also credited as Robert P. Williams and Robert Williams
Movie Career
- Films
- 15
- Career span
- 24 years1980 to 2004
Genres
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A first
In 1990, Guillaume took over from Michael Crawford in the title role of the Los Angeles production of The Phantom of the Opera, and he was the first Black actor to play that character.
Beyond film
Guillaume sang on an LP called Just Arrived, catalog number Columbia CS9033, as part of The Pilgrims, a folk trio that also included Angeline Butler and Millard Williams. Columbia producer Tom Wilson created the group to answer Peter, Paul and Mary.
Robert Guillaume movies on Netflix
Best known for
The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.
Most often with
Six actors appear in three of them each. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.
Films together
Jim Cummings's page
James Earl Jones's page
Matthew Broderick's page
Nathan Lane's page
Moira Kelly's page
Ernie Sabella's page
Box office
What Robert Guillaume's films earned in cinemas worldwide.
Combined worldwide box office
$1.0 billion
8 of the 15 films have a worldwide figure.
Of the 15 films: 8 worldwide figure; 2 us gross only; 2 never in cinemas; 3 figure not found.
- 8Worldwide figure
- 2US gross only
- 2Never in cinemas
- 3Figure not found
Highest grossing
The eight biggest films earned 100% of the total. The bars are drawn to scale.
- 1$763M73.1% of the total
- 2$123M11.8% of the total
- 3$47M4.5% of the total
- 4$44M4.2% of the total
- 5$32M3.1% of the total
- 6$27M2.6% of the total
- 7$8.0M0.8% of the total
- 8$1K0.0% of the total
Awards
Four awards and honors from 1979 to 1995, three of them major.
| Year | Award | Film | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emmy Awards | |||
| 1985 | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series | Benson | Won |
| 1979 | Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series | Soap | Won |
| Grammy Awards | |||
| 1995 | Best Spoken Word Album for Children | Won | |
| Other honors | |||
| Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame | Honored | ||
Online
Official profiles and reference pages.