Montel Williams

Montel Williams is a distinctively bald, mustachioed African-American actor and spokesperson best known for his long-running daytime talk series "The Montel Williams Show" (CBS, 1991-2008). As a host, he brought a variously incisive, dignified, smarty-pants or pompous style to his duties discussing trendy and sometimes trashy topics with his studio audience. While serving in the military, Williams began touring the country, giving motivational speeches to young Americans. He later filmed an introduction to the classroom version of the Civil War epic "Glory" (1989) and within two years the tall, imposing speaker landed "The Montel Williams Show." Something of a vagabond in its search for a home, "The Montel Williams Show" did not challenge the dominance of Phil Donahue and Oprah Winfrey in the ratings, but Williams's more-than-decent start boded well for his future as a TV personality.

Williams made his dramatic debut in the TV movie "Perry Mason: The Case of the Telltale Talk Show Host" (NBC, 1993) and later starred in the short-lived CBS series "Matt Waters" (1996) as a concerned and caring high school teacher. While his daytime show thrived, he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, and he began to actively manage the disease. He occasionally continued to dabble in acting, most notably with a recurring part on a few episodes of the military series "JAG" (CBS, 1995-2005). In 2008, "The Montel Williams Show" was canceled, and he moved on to a stint on the soap opera "Guiding Light" (CBS, 1952-2009). Eventually turning to infomercials, Williams later revisited acting with an appearance in the sports movie "Golden Shoes" (2013).