June 30 will now be known as Marla Gibbs Day in the City of Chicago following an official declaration from the city’s mayor to honor the veteran actor, best known for her roles in small-screen classics such as The Jeffersons and 227.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson confirmed the honor earlier this week as part of a release event held in Los Angeles for Gibbs’ memoir It’s Never Too Late. Speakers present at the event included Tiffany Haddish, Lil Rel Howery, Kim Fields, and Yvette Nicole Brown.
Born in Chicago, Gibbs moved to Los Angeles in the 1960s and earned her big break playing Florence Johnston on Norman Lear’s The Jeffersons. Gibbs earned five Supporting ActressEmmy nominations for her role on the show alongside a Golden Globe nom. The Jeffersons ran for 11 seasons, after which Gibbs led the NBC sitcom 227 alongside Regina King.
Gibbs’ other credits include ER, Cold Case, Chappelle’s Show, Judging Amy, Touched by an Angel, The King of Queens, and Dawson’s Creek. On the big screen, the veteran performer’s credits include Up Against the Wall (1991), The Meteor Man (1993), Lost & Found (1999), and Foolish (1999).
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Released through Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollins, Gibbs’s memoir It’s Never Too Late charts the trajectory of her career. The release event was held at the Nate Holden Performing Arts Center in Los Angeles and was organized by Steve Jones’ long-running event series Hollywood Confidential in partnership with Angela Gibbs and Amil Gibbs, Marla’s daughter and grandson. Gibbs was previously one of Hollywood Confidential’s career honorees.
“Marla didn’t just make us laugh. She expanded what was possible for Black women in television and comedy,” Jones said in a statement. “The path she paved made careers like Quinta Brunson, Issa Rae, and countless others possible. Giving flowers to a living legend while she can still receive them is exactly why Hollywood Confidential exists.”
Gibbs was last seen on NBC’s Chicago Med.
