Ernestine Wade (August 7, 1906 â€" April 15, 1983) was an American
actress who is best known for playing the role of Sapphire Stevens on
both the radio and TV versions of The Amos 'n' Andy Show.Born in
Jackson, Mississippi, Wade was trained as a singer and organist. Her
family had a strong connection to the theater. Her mother, Hazel Wade,
worked in vaudeville as a performer, while her maternal grandmother,
Mrs. Johnson, worked for the Lincoln Theater in Baltimore,
Maryland.Ernestine grew up in Los Angeles and started her acting
career at age four. In 1935, Ernestine was a member of the Four Hot
Chocolates singing group. She appeared in bit parts in films and did
the voice performance of a butterfly in the 1946 Walt Disney
production Song of the South. Wade was a member of the choir organized
by actress-singer Anne Brown for the filming of the George Gershwin
biographical film Rhapsody in Blue (1945) and appeared in the film as
one of the "Catfish Row" residents in the Porgy and Bess segment. She
enjoyed the highest level of prominence on Amos 'n Andy by playing the
shrewish, demanding and manipulative wife of George “Kingfishâ€
Stevens. Wade, Johnny Lee, and Lillian Randolph, Amanda Randolph,
Jester Hairston, Roy Glenn (and several others) were among the Amos
'n' Andy radio cast members to also appear in the TV series.
actress who is best known for playing the role of Sapphire Stevens on
both the radio and TV versions of The Amos 'n' Andy Show.Born in
Jackson, Mississippi, Wade was trained as a singer and organist. Her
family had a strong connection to the theater. Her mother, Hazel Wade,
worked in vaudeville as a performer, while her maternal grandmother,
Mrs. Johnson, worked for the Lincoln Theater in Baltimore,
Maryland.Ernestine grew up in Los Angeles and started her acting
career at age four. In 1935, Ernestine was a member of the Four Hot
Chocolates singing group. She appeared in bit parts in films and did
the voice performance of a butterfly in the 1946 Walt Disney
production Song of the South. Wade was a member of the choir organized
by actress-singer Anne Brown for the filming of the George Gershwin
biographical film Rhapsody in Blue (1945) and appeared in the film as
one of the "Catfish Row" residents in the Porgy and Bess segment. She
enjoyed the highest level of prominence on Amos 'n Andy by playing the
shrewish, demanding and manipulative wife of George “Kingfishâ€
Stevens. Wade, Johnny Lee, and Lillian Randolph, Amanda Randolph,
Jester Hairston, Roy Glenn (and several others) were among the Amos
'n' Andy radio cast members to also appear in the TV series.
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