Leslie Jordan, the Emmy Award-winning actor, writer and singer best known for his roles on “Will & Grace,” “American Horror Story” and “Hearts Afire,” has died. He was 67.
Jordan was driving in Hollywood Monday morning and crashed into the side of a building on Cahuenga Blvd. and Romaine St. It is suspected that he was dealing with some kind of emergency.
A veteran actor, Jordan also starred in “The Help,” “The Cool Kids” and “Call Me Kat,” which is currently in its third season on Fox. In 2006, he won the Emmy Award for Guest Actor in a Comedy Series for his work on “Will & Grace,” playing the sexually ambiguous socialite Beverly Leslie, who is Karen.
He appeared in television series including “Ugly Betty,” “Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman,” “Hidden Palms,” “Star Trek: Voyager,” “Caroline in the City,” “Pee-Wee’s Playhouse, ” ” Reba,” “Boston Public,” “Nash Bridges” and “Boston Legal,” as well as films such as “Ski Patrol,” “Roadside Rodeo,” “Love Ranch,” “Southern Baptist Sissies” and “The United States vs. . Billie Holiday.”
One of Jordan’s most famous roles was his turn as Earl “Brother Boy” Ingram in the stage play “Sordid Lives,” which was later adapted into a romantic comedy of the same name in 2000. In 1993, he created his first autobiographical stage play, “Hysterical Blindness and Other Southern Tragedies That Have Plagged Life My So Far,” which ran off-Broadway for seven months at the SoHo Theatre. The play chronicled Jordan’s early life in Chatanooga, Tenn., and featured the actor backed by a gospel choir singing mocking songs about racism and homophobia. When the play was staged, Diversity praised Jordan’s “impressive stage presence” and called the show “bittersweet and funny”.
In 2020, Jordan became a social media phenomenon, gaining millions of followers on Instagram due to his humorous videos posted throughout the pandemic.
Jordan released a gospel music album titled “Company’s Comin'” in 2021 and later that year made a guest appearance on “The Masked Singer” performing the gospel standard “This Little Light of Mine.”
“The world is definitely a much darker place today without the love and light of Leslie Jordan,” said David Shaul, Jordan’s agent. “He was not only a great talent and a joy to work with, but he provided the nation with an emotional haven during one of its most difficult times. What he lacked in height he made up for in generosity and magnanimity as a son, brother, artist, comedian, friend and human being. Knowing that he has left the world at the height of both his professional and personal life is the only consolation one can get today.”
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