Erika Alexander, From “Cosby Show” to “Living Single”
Actress Erika Rose Alexander is best known for her role as Cousin Pam Tucker on NBC’s The Cosby Show from 1990-1992 and as Maxine Shaw on all five seasons of Living Single, which aired on Fox from 1993-1998.
Alexander was raised in Flagstaff, Arizona, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and is one of six children. Her father was a school teacher and her mother was a children’s book author.
After graduating from the Philadelphia High School for the Girls, she pursued a career in acting; the rest is history. For her work, she has won many awards including two NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series for her role in Living Single.
In the 2000s, she has even been seen in major films like Deja Vu with Denzel Washington. She also played Perenna in Netflix’s Black Lightning, and Linda Diggs in Hulu’s Wutang: An American Saga.
She is also a writer who co-wrote a science fiction graphic novel in 2012 with her then-husband, Tony Puryear. In 2018, she was even a co-writer for the Buffy the Vampire spin-off, “Giles,” a graphic novel collaboration with Joss Whedon and Dark Horse.
Now at 52 years old and still beautiful as ever, she is the co-founder of Color Farm Media, she has also stepped into the arena of film director. In fact, she co-directed a documentary film about the first reparations bill for African Americans entitled The Big Payback that debuted at Tribeca Festival in 2022.
In addition to her entertainment career, Erika is a critical thought leader on racial and gender equity and leadership. She serves as a Board member for One Fair Wage and Exponent and is highly involved with many other social and racial justice organizations, including The Poor People’s Campaign, Color of Change, NAACP, UNCF, and others. Her work in content reflects the social activism work she does on the ground.
