Marla Gibbs

Marla Gibbs was interviewed for two-and-a-half hours in Los Angeles, CA.  She talked about her start as an actress in Los Angeles after working many jobs and raising a family in the Midwest.  She spoke in great detail about the role and the series for which she is most identified, “Florence Johnston” on The Jeffersons.  She recalled how she retained her job at United Airlines while appearing on the series until she was comfortable that her work on the series would be steady.  She described the premise of the show, talked about the series ensemble, and outlined the series workweek, which started with a read-through on Wednesday and taped the following Tuesday.  She commented on the brief spin-off series Checking-In, and her return to The Jeffersons.  She then recounted the way she landed her next series, 227, which was developed from a play in which she starred.  She talked about the casting of the series, the production, and her role as uncredited producer.  She described her work outside of television as the owner of several performance spaces in Los Angeles.  She then talked about her later work on such series as The Hughleys, ER, and Passions.  Throughout the interview she stressed the importance of keeping active and healthy and staying mentally young.  The interview was conducted by Gary Rutkowski on July 27, 2006.