A role to relish
Jamaicans may remember actor Jeffrey Anderson-Gunter for his fight scene with action star Steven Seagal in the 1990 movie, Marked For Death.
The veteran Jamaican actor showcases his lighter side in the American sitcom, Arnold’s Caribbean Pizza, which premiered on FLow TV on April 7.
“I love comedy and most of the roles in the past have been action roles, dramatic roles, a few doctors, and stuff. I did have a series on NBC, with a similar restaurant theme. But it is a nice change from the ‘shoot em up’, gangster, dreadlocks, rapist kind of thing. And so, I gravitate to these kind of roles because I love to make people laugh. I make people laugh on a regular basis so I think it’s necessary to humankind at this moment; anything that brings a nice chuckle or a laugh,” Anderson-Gunter told the Jamaica Observer from his California home yesterday.
He plays Arnold, a pizza shop owner who serves Caribbean-themed toppings at his restaurant. The sitcom is executive produced by Trenten Gumbs and produced and directed by Bentley Kyle Evans. Its all-Jamaican cast also comprises Judi Johnson, Mark Anthony Williams, and Courtney Nevers.
According to Anderson-Gunter, the challenge for producers and cast is maintaining the authenticity of language without losing American viewers.
“It’s free but you still have to find this happy medium, because our audience is not only Caribbean or Jamaican; our audience is American and British… but we have to be careful that our accent is watered down so much that it sounds like the fake thing. So we have to be very careful along that grey line… We have to be specific with that language for the show but not take away the patois from the reality of the show,” he said.
Born on Victoria Avenue in downtown Kingston, Anderson-Gunter attended Excelsior High School. Against his father’s wishes, he got involved in theatre and was coached by iconic folklorist Louise “Miss Lou” Bennett-Coverley.
“Yeah man, Miss Lou coach mi. She used to call me: ‘Jeffus, yuh ready?’ I entered festival with Dennis Scott’s Apostrophe and I got second place. My best friend got first place in the poetry category,” he said.
Anderson-Gunter directed Basil Dawkins’ plays, Bangarang and Forbidden. The latter starred Leonie Forbes and Charles Hyatt.
Since migrating to the United States in 1968, he has racked up a prolific resume, appearing in movies such as Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994), Predator II, and Don’t Be A Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in The Hood (1996).
Marked For Death, in which he played a gangster, was heavily criticised by the Jamaican Diaspora for its negative portrayal of Jamaicans.
Anderson-Gunter said Seagal, who was one of the hottest actors in Hollywood at the time, told him to be as real as possible.
He had a word of advice for up-and-coming actors.
“The talent in Jamaica should not give up. Do everything to hone your talent because you’ll never know when something will happen and you need to be ready,” he said. “It will be worth your while.”
