💪🏿"The First Black Action Hero"Richard Roundtree (born July 9, 1942) is an American actor and former model. He was born in New Rochelle, New York to John and Kathryn Roundtree.

💪🏿"The First Black Action Hero"

Richard Roundtree (born July 9, 1942) is an American actor and former model. He was born in New Rochelle, New York to John and Kathryn Roundtree. Roundtree attended New Rochelle High School, where he played on the school’s nationally ranked football team. In 1961, Roundtree earned an athletic scholarship to attend Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois, but he left school in 1963 to pursue a career as an actor and a model.

Roundtree is noted as being "the first black action hero" for his portrayal of private detective John Shaft in the 1971 film Shaft, and its four sequels, released between 1972 and 2019. For his performance in the original film, Roundtree was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actor in 1972.

Roundtree began his professional career around 1963. Roundtree began modeling in the Ebony Fashion Fair after being scouted by Eunice W. Johnson. After his modeling success with the Fashion Fair, Roundtree began modeling for such products as Johnson Products' Duke hair grease and Salem cigarettes

Roundtree went on to join the Negro Ensemble Company in 1967, where he played the role of boxing legend Jack Johnson in the company’s production of The Great White Hope.

Roundtree was a leading man in early 1970s blaxploitation films, his best-known role being detective John Shaft in the action movie, Shaft (1971) and its sequels, Shaft's Big Score! (1972) and Shaft in Africa (1973). Roundtree also appeared opposite Laurence Olivier and Ben Gazzara in Inchon (1981).

On television, he played the slave Sam Bennett in the 1977 television series Roots and Dr. Daniel Reubens on Generations from 1989 to 1991. He also played another private detective in 1984's City Heat opposite Clint Eastwood and Burt Reynolds.

Roundtree reprised the role of John Shaft in the 2000 film Shaft, starring Samuel L. Jackson as his character’s nephew, and directed by John Singleton.

Roundtree has also appeared in several television series including Soul Food, Desperate Housewives, Heroes, and Grey’s Anatomy.

In 2013, he became a series regular on the television show Being Mary Jane, appearing alongside actresses Gabrielle Union and Margaret Avery. Roundtree also appeared in multiple episodes of FOX’s television series Star in 2017 and 2018.

AWARDS & NOMINATIONS

◾Nominated for the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actor in 1972

◾MTV Lifetime Achievement Award for his role as Shaft

◾Image Award nomination in 1998

◾Peabody Award in 2002

◾Black Theater Alliance Award Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010.