Reg E. Cathey
Cathey in 2016
Born	Reginald Eurias Cathey (1958-08-18)August 18, 1958 Huntsville, Alabama, U.S.
Died	February 9, 2018(2018-02-09) (aged 59) New York City, New York, U.S.
Education	University of Michigan (BFA) Yale University (MFA)
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1984–2018

Reginald Eurias Cathey^[1][2][3] (August 18, 1958 – February 9, 2018) was an American character actor. He was best known for various roles on the children's math showSquare One Television, as well asNorman Wilson inThe Wire,Martin Querns inOz, and Freddy Hayes inHouse of Cards. The latter garnered him three consecutiveEmmy Award nominations forOutstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series, including a win in 2015.^[4]

Cathey was born on August 18, 1958, inHuntsville, Alabama, to Red Cathey, an Army colonel^[5] who fought in World War II, the Korean War and theVietnam War,^[6] and his wife, who was aDOD worker and an educator.^[5][7] He had a sister, Donza.^[2] He spent his childhood with his family on a rural farm^[6] inWest Germany before returning to Alabama at the age of 14.^[6][7][8] His interest in theater began at age 9, after attending aUnited Service Organization show in West Germany.^[9] Cathey graduated fromJ.O. Johnson High School,^[10] where he acted in plays such asTo Kill a Mockingbird.^[11] He subsequently studied theatre at theUniversity of Michigan and theYale School of Drama.^[4]

Cathey's breakout role was onChildren's Television Workshop'sSquare One Television, a math-orientedchildren's TV series.^[12][13] The program aired onPBS from 1987 to 1992.^[14] Cathey was not only the game show announcer but had many bit parts in the various sketches and performed songs like "Nine, Nine, Nine"^{[15][better source needed]} and "Rappin' Judge".^[13] Cathey later referred to the cast as the "Not Ready for Prime-Time Mathematicians".^[12]

This was followed by guest roles in such series asStar Trek: The Next Generation andHomicide: Life on the Street. In 1994, he appeared inThe Mask as Freeze, the main antagonist's friend and bodyguard who gets inadvertently killed by the title character.^[11] He also appeared in 1995'sSe7en as the coroner. He played the villain Dirty Dee in the cult comedy filmPootie Tang and had a regular role on theHBO seriesThe Wire asNorman Wilson during the fourth and fifth seasons.^[16] He also worked withThe Wire creatorDavid Simon on theEmmy Award-winning miniseriesThe Corner; Cathey played a drug addict known as Scalio. He had a recurring role on the HBO prison dramaOz as unit managerMartin Querns. In the filmTank Girl, he played the role of Deetee. He narratedAftermath: Population Zero, aNational Geographic Channel special which imagines whatEarth might be like if humanity no longer existed. He played the homeless man Al, murdered byPatrick Bateman, in the filmAmerican Psycho. He narratedTLC'sWonders of Weather, a TV series. OnBetween the Lions, he played King Ray in the story of "Rumpelstiltskin" in the episode, "Hay Day".^{[citation needed]}

In 2009, Cathey performed inThe People Speak, a documentary feature film that uses dramatic and musical performances of the letters, diaries, and speeches of everyday Americans, based on historianHoward Zinn'sA People's History of the United States.^[17]

In Fall 2009, Cathey played the role of Ellis Boyd "Red" Redding in a theatrical production ofThe Shawshank Redemption atWyndham's Theatre, London.^[18] He has made two guest appearances onLaw & Order: Special Victims Unit, as an undercover police officer involved with animal smuggling (episode: "Wildlife") and later as a high-priced defense attorney to a hooker (episode: "Rhodium Nights"). He also made a guest appearance onLaw & Order: Criminal Intent in the episode "Anti-Thesis" as a college professor suspected of murder. He also played boxing promoter Barry K. Word on theFX seriesLights Out.^[19]

In 2013, Cathey began a recurring role as Freddy Hayes, the owner of Freddy's BBQ, inNetflix's original seriesHouse of Cards, as well as onGrimm, in the recurring role ofBaron Samedi. His portrayal of Hayes in the second, third, and fourth seasons ofHouse of Cards earned three Emmy nominations and one win forOutstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series.^[20]

Cathey had expressed a wish to appear in the Irish soap operaFair City.^[21]

Cathey co-starred inJosh Trank'sFantastic Four (2015), asDr. Franklin Storm, the father ofThe Invisible Woman andThe Human Torch.^[22] He also played the county sheriff in the city of Rome, WV, in the Cinemax seriesOutcast. One of Cathey's final TV roles was portrayingJames Lucas in theNetflix seriesMarvel's Luke Cage.^[23]

Cathey died at his home inNew York City on February 9, 2018, at the age of 59. He was reported to have hadlung cancer.^[2][3][24] He was cremated, and his ashes were spread in New York City.^[25]

• Reg E. Cathey atIMDb
• The People Speak atIMDb

• 1958 births
• 2018 deaths
• 20th-century African-American male actors
• 20th-century American male actors
• 21st-century African-American male actors
• 21st-century American male actors
• American expatriate male actors in Germany
• American male film actors
• American male stage actors
• American male television actors
• Deaths from lung cancer in New York (state)
• Male actors from Huntsville, Alabama
• Primetime Emmy Award winners
• University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance alumni

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