Who is Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs?
Lawrence is an American actor and singer, who is perhaps best known for starring in the role of Jon Chance in the action film franchise consisting of movies “L.A. Heat”, “Angels of the City”, “L.A. Vice” and “Chance”. Additionally, he is widely recognized for appearing in TV series such as “Alien Nation”, “The Jacksons: An American Dream”, and more recently “A House Divided”.
Early Life
Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs was born under the astrological sign of Virgo on the 4th September 1953, in New York City, the fifth of nine children of Clothilda and Hilton Jacobs. He is of American nationality and African-American ethnicity.
Lawrence matriculated from High School of Art and Design in 1971, before enrolling at Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, but from which he eventually dropped out.
He worked on a vast number of odd jobs, including being a messenger boy, delivery boy and even a florist before becoming a freelance artist and package designer. He later studied acting at the Negro Ensemble Company (commonly referred to as NEC) as well as at the Al Fann Theatrical Ensemble.
Acting Career
Lawrence’s acting debut occurred in 1974 when he was cast for the role of Charles in the Oscar-nominated film “Claudine”, after which he appeared in the critically acclaimed crime drama movies “Death Wish” and “The Gambler”.
The real breakthrough in his career occurred in 1975, when he was cast for the role of Cochise in the sport comedy teen film “Cooley High”, after which he landed the recurring role of Freddie ‘Boom Boom’ Washington in the TV comedy series “Welcome Back, Kotter” – he is the only one of the original cast members to appear in all 95 episodes of the show before it was called off in 1979. All these were followed by leading roles in the 1978 movies “Youngblood” and “The Comedy Company”.
Through the early 1980s, Hilton-Jacobs made a streak of supporting appearances in TV series, before landing the role of Garrett Floyd in the 1985 action drama film “The Annihilators”.
In the following years he appeared in television series such as two-time Primetime Emmy Award-nominated “Simon & Simon” and three-time Golden Globe-winning “Fame”, before he was cast for the main role of Jon Chance in the 1989 action movie “L.A. Heat”. Later that year he landed the recurring role of Sgt. Dobbs in the Primetime Emmy-winning television Sci-Fi series “Alien Nation”, which he portrayed ’til 1990.
In 1992 Lawrence starred as Joseph Jackson in the Primetime Emmy-winning TV biographical mini-series about the American pop group The Jackson 5, entitled “The Jacksons: An American Dream”.
Between 1992 and 2000, Lawrence added over a dozen small screen supporting roles to his portfolio, including TV series such as “Renegade”, “Martin” as well as “Roseanne” and “Moesha”. He also appeared as Richie in the comedy series “The Wayans Bros.“. During the early 2000s he appeared in a couple of episodes of the TV series “Gilmore Girls”, while in 2004 he appeared in the main role of the drama movie “30 Miles”.
In 2008 Lawrence was cast in the recurring role of Donny in the television short comedy series “Players at the Poker Place”, after which he starred in the 2009 drama movie “Young American Gangstas”.
In 2011 he starred in one of the leading roles in the drama film “Nocturnal Agony”, while from 2011 to 2013 he appeared in the TV series “Let’s Stay Together”. Throughout the mid-2010s, he appeared in movies such as “Playin’ for Love” and “Mercy for Angeles”, before starring in the Rob Zombie’s 2016 ‘slasher’ horror thriller movie “31”.
Some of the latest on-screen engagements of Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs include the recurring role of Cameran Sanders in the TV drama series “A House Divided”, as well as an appearance in the 2020 critically acclaimed action drama thriller “Shooting Heroin”.
Music Career
Apart from being a successful actor, he has made a notable trace in the music industry as well. In 1978 he signed a record deal with ABC Records, and soon after released his debut album entitled “Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs S/T” which produced three singles “Fly Away”, “Love and Understanding” and “What Kind of Man”. Although it wasn’t a huge commercial success, the album became a valuable collectible in the following years. In March 1979 Lawrence released the album “All The Way… Love”, and in 1981 he was featured on the Rick James’ studio album “Street Songs”. In 1984 he released the EP “I Never Been Here Before”.
Personal Life
Despite his popularity, Lawrence has somehow managed to keep his personal life quite private and far from the media, as there isn’t any relevant yet available information about his marital status or romantic connections.
The 66-year-old actor is standing taller than the average American, with a height of 6ft 3ins (1.91m).
Net Worth
When it comes to Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs’ net worth, as of mid-2020, it has been estimated by authoritative sources that the total of his wealth figures around the sum of $1 million. It has been primarily acquired through his professional acting career, that is currently spanning over 45 years, being active since 1974.