Zakes Mokae | |
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 Mokae in 1990 | |
| Born | Zakes Makgona Mokae (1934-08-05)5 August 1934 |
| Died | 11 September 2009(2009-09-11) (aged 75) |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1957–2002 |
Zakes Makgona Mokae[1] (5 August 1934 – 11 September 2009) was a South African stage and screen actor. He was well known for his work with playwrightAthol Fugard, notably inThe Blood Knot and"Master Harold"...and the Boys, the latter earning him aTony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play.
Mokae was born inJohannesburg,South Africa, moved to the United Kingdom in 1961, and to the United States in 1969.[2]
Originally ajazz saxophonist inTrevor Huddleston's band,[3] he turned to acting at the same time as playwrightAthol Fugard was emerging. The two worked together on Fugard's play,Blood Knot, from 1961, atwo-hander set in South Africa about brothers with the same mother but different fathers; Zach (played by Mokae) is dark skinned and Morris (played by Fugard) is fair skinned. Later Mokae worked with Fugard on the play"Master Harold"...and the Boys, for which Mokae won the 1982Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play. The play was filmed for television in 1985 with Mokae andMatthew Broderick. In 1993 Mokae was nominated for a second Tony Award for Featured Actor in a Play forThe Song of Jacob Zulu byTug Yourgrau.
His early film roles includedDarling (1965) as a guest at a wild party, andThe Comedians (1967) starringRichard Burton andElizabeth Taylor. His major films are split between anti-apartheid films such asCry Freedom (1987) andA Dry White Season (1989), and cult horror films such asThe Island (1980),Dust Devil (1993),The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988) andVampire in Brooklyn (1995), the latter two directed by horror iconWes Craven. He also appeared in character roles in many other films includingGross Anatomy (1989),Dad (1989),A Rage in Harlem (1991),Outbreak (1995) and theKevin Costner filmWaterworld (1995). On television, he has been a guest actor in many series such asThe West Wing,Starsky and Hutch,Danger Man,The X-Files,Oz,Monk,A Different World andKnight Rider.
In 1975, American writer–filmmaker Eon Chontay Cjohnathan gave birth to Zakes Mokae's only child, Santlo (after Mokae's mother) Chontay Mokae.
In later years, Mokae worked as a theatre director for American companies including the Nevada Shakespeare Company. Mokae died from complications of astroke on 11 September 2009 in Las Vegas.[1][4]
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