Ben Vereen

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ben Vereen (2014)

Ben Vereen , actually Benjamin Augustus Middleton , (born October 10, 1946 in Miami , Florida ) is an American film and theater actor and preacher .

Life

Family relationships

Ben Vereen grew up in Bedford , New York with adoptive parents James and Pauline Vereen, a factory worker and cloakroom attendant.

It was not until 1967, at the age of 21, when Vereen was applying for a new passport that it was made aware that he had been adopted . In the partially false documents, his mother's name was given as Essie Middleton and Laurinburg , North Carolina , as his place of birth . Only in April 2006 was the biological family determined with the help of a genealogist Vereen. That was how he learned that his mother's name was Essie May Pearson and that Vereen was an illegitimate child. In order not to be branded during the existing conservative conditions at that time, Pearson, who died in 1982, made a trip to Miami in 1946, where her son Ben was born. She left her child with strangers and returned to Laurinburg. It wasn't until May 2006 that Vereen met his sister Gloria, who now lives in New Haven , Connecticut .

Professional career

Vereen was encouraged by his adoptive parents at an early age and sang in the church choir as a child. After attending New York's High School of the Performing Arts and Emerson College in Boston , Vereen made his debut in the stage production Prodigal Sun at the age of 18 and shortly thereafter went on tour with the musical production Sweet Charity for the first time. In 1969, Sweet Charity was made into a film, and the film, in which Vereen starred alongside Shirley MacLaine , made his film debut.

In 1970 Vereen won a Theater World Award for his portrayal of Judas Iscariot in Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical Jesus Christ Superstar . Vereen became a member of the National Shakespeare Company , with which he celebrated professional success. With her he appeared on numerous American stages, including in Las Vegas , Atlantic City and Lake Tahoe , but also in Europe and Asia .

Private

Ben Vereen was married twice. A brief first marriage to Andrea Townsley in the 1960s resulted in his son Ben. Even through his relationship with Townsley, Vereen came closer to the Christian faith, as she is a pastor at a church in Brooklyn . Since July 15, 1976, Vereen has been married to Nancy Bruner, who was born in Britain. The couple have four daughters together, Kabara, Malaika, Naja and Karon. Naja died in a traffic accident in 1987 at the age of 16. In June 1992, Vereen was approached on California State Route 1 by music producer David Foster . The circumstances of the accident have not yet been fully clarified. There is some evidence that Vereen suffered a stroke outside of his car after his head hit the steering wheel of his car a few hours earlier. Other sources speak of a suicide attempt .

Ben Vereen survived the accident and was able to continue his career after a lengthy rehabilitation . His experience of the accident enhanced his faith to the extent that he was ordained a preacher .

Others

Vereen, 1989

Filmography (selection)

Feature films

TV Shows

Awards

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Vereen, Ben
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Middleton, Benjamin Augustus (real name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American film and stage actor and preacher
DATE OF BIRTH October 10, 1946
PLACE OF BIRTH Miami , Florida