The Telma Hopkins Appreciation Thread

I saw her too, but my first thought was how can she still be alive! Glad to know it’s her and she looks and sounds great.

I love her. I will now watch that show.

love her. glad to know she's still out there

Loved her since I was a kid.

Knock three times, Telma!

It doesn't get better than this.....

She was very close to Nell Carter and did a nice tribute to her for Entertainment Weekly when she passed.

70 years old and still so beautiful. Good for her!

I remember when the Tony Orlando and Dawn show was on when I was a kid I knew which one was Tony - but I was not sure which woman was Orlando and which one was Dawn.

I had to read the Wikipedia article to figure it out, R10. I always assumed there were just two people. But Dawn was a fronting band, and 2 singers actually sang backup. It was a bit before my time, but I remember the songs played on some stations for years after.

I loved Telma Hopkins. As a tiny tot I watched "The Tony Orlando and Dawn Show" and noted Telma had the zingers. She was one early influence.

"Acting" career? She played the same damn character in ever show. Sorry, it had to be said.

Loved her in Family Matters.

r13 Shut up you fucking crank.

Happy Telma is getting some love here! Talented singer and great comic actress.

Dawn is a term for daybreak or sunrise.

She and the other half of Dawn (Joyce something?) sang the backing vocals on "Theme From Shaft".

[quote]"Acting" career? She played the same damn character in ever show. Sorry, it had to be said.

Yes - but is true of a lot of TV character actors. She was good in that role.

I liked her on Bosom Buddies. Despite the silly premise, that show had a pretty good cast. Donna Dixon was weak link but she was not unbearable and did not hog the screen time esp as the series went on (i I remember correctly)

Telma lived at the Susan B. Anthony Hotel with Kip and Henry.

I remember Wendie Jo Sperber, but not Telma in Bosom Buddies, but I was only around 8. It was the height of comedy as far as I was concerned. I was a terribly opinionated child.

So what if she plays the same character? She has fantastic comic timing.

Telma was a great foil for Nell Carter on Gimme a Break. She could hold her own. I loved it when these two got into zany adventures.

And I loved the credits when Nell basically body checked Addie onto the couch! lol

I loved that Telma sang episode of Dead to Me.

I met her at a karaoke bar in Florida. We were sitting at tables next to each other. She’d seen a show I was in and started a conversation- very generous considering she was the more accomplished performer. We ended up singing a couple songs together. She was lovely and as fun as one would hope. It was a great night.

R24, that's the nicest thing I've heard about a celeb here in a while!

Telma was the original costar opposite Bill Cosby on his 90s CBS show. But he didn't click with her and asked Phylicia back.

How come she never recorded a solo album?

[quote]Telma was the original costar opposite Bill Cosby on his 90s CBS show. But he didn't click with her and asked Phylicia back.

She dodged a bullet there.

Telma is comic ham (and I mean that in the best way). No way Cosby would want a female lead who could also make faces.

"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" - Tony Orlando and Dawn

Billboard ranks this as the biggest hit song of 1973.

Tie a Yellow Ribbon WAS A HUGE HIT. It was adopted by the families of vets at the time also so it was heard everywhere all the time.

This bitch is boring as hell.

Every performance is the same.

Following her career has been like watching a 40-year-old loaf of bread get moldy.

As a kid I loved when she got sassy with Tony Orlando (who this gayling was crushing on)

She still tours with Tony Orlando and dawn they did a Christmas tour last year. Telma also sang backup on johnnie Taylor’s disco lady.

She's really had incredible staying power in Hollywood, and has been able to co-star alongside all-time greats like Tom Hanks, Eileen Brennan, and Lauri Hendler.

She played Janet Jackson’s mom alongside Rob Lowe and Eileen Brennan in a re-tooled version of the short lived 80s sitcom A New Kind of Family.

More importantly, is she a dyke? Enquiring minds want to know.

R34, Don't forget the loveable kid Joey Lawrence!

R36: Lauri Hendler was in that show before she played Julie on [italic]Gimme A Break![/italic], which began while [italic]Bosom Buddies[/italic] was still running.

goddamn, janet was ugly even back then

She sings in the show!

r40 = Madonnaloon.

^^Lol, yup. Pressed as ever.

Underrated Beauty

She plays Loretta Devine's sister on the Netflix sitcom Family Reunion and is looking great. They even have an episode where she has a much, much younger boyfriend, but it doesn't look as obvious as it should because she is so young looking.

Aunt Rachel, the Dragons trashed your restaurant!?