C. C. H. Pounder

Carol Christine Hilaria Pounder (born December 25, 1952), known professionally as C. C. H. Pounder (styled "CCH Pounder"), is a Guyanese-American film and television actress. She has appeared in numerous films, made-for-television films, television miniseries and plays, and has made guest appearances on notable television shows. She stars as Mo'at, the Na'vi Tsahik (spiritual leader) in the film Avatar.

Early life
Pounder was born on December 25, 1952, in Georgetown, British Guiana (now Guyana), the daughter of Betsy Enid Arnella (née James) and Ronald Urlington Pounder. She was educated in England and moved to the U.S. in 1970, where she attended Ithaca College. Pounder made her acting debut in the 1979 film All That Jazz.

Career
Pounder starred in the film Bagdad Café, and has made smaller appearances in many other successful films. She has focused primarily on her television career. In the early 1980s, Pounder first appeared in guest roles on Hill Street Blues, and then on several other popular shows (Miami Vice, RoboCop 3, L.A. Law, The X-Files, Living Single and Quantum Leap) before landing a long-running recurring role as Dr. Angela Hicks on ER from 1994 to 1997. In the midst of this she had a large co-starring role in the 1995 Tales From the Crypt feature film Demon Knight. She then returned to guest appearances on other shows, including The Practice, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Millennium, The West Wing (where she was considered for the role of C.J. Cregg) and the short-lived sitcom Women in Prison.

From 2002 to 2008, she starred as Detective Claudette Wyms in the FX Networks police drama The Shield. For this role she was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in 2005. She had previously been nominated for Emmys in 1995 (for guest starring in The X-Files) and in 1997 (for her supporting role on ER). She has also lent her voice to several video games and animated projects, including Aladdin and the King of Thieves, True Crime: Streets of LA, Gargoyles as Desdemona and Coldfire, and most recently Justice League Unlimited as Amanda Waller, a role she reprised for the animated movie adaption of the comic book Superman/Batman: Public Enemies. Also, Pounder was one of the readers for the HBO film Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narrative that aired in 2003, directed by Ed Bell and Thomas Lennon. She currently appears on the Syfy series Warehouse 13. Pounder also was one of the stars of the cancelled Fox sitcom Brothers. Pounder was nominated for the Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series for her appearance in the BBC/HBO series The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency.

Personal life
Pounder is married to Senegalese anthropologist Boubacar Kone. The couple were married in an African ceremony in Dakar, Senegal and remarried in Los Angeles, California six months later. Kone is the founder of The Boribana Museum in Dakar, Senegal, for the study of cultures of the African diaspora. They have three children, Nicole (b. 1971), Libya (b. 1973), and Matthew (b. 1982).

Pounder used to own a jewelry shop called Banji Girls with her business partner Conni Marie Brazelton, but now sells jewelry through her website.

Advocacy
As one of the founders of Artists for a New South Africa, Pounder has energized awareness of post-apartheid and HIV/AIDS issues. In an interview, she said about the pandemic: "When it's this massive disease, and it's affecting things in five thousand different ways, it requires great strength and power—and there is power in numbers. So we need to involve as many people as we can, like we do with ANSA. I call it my little engine that could. It is a remarkable, tiny organization with a huge outreach. We use actors and artists with the biggest voices so they can use every opportunity to talk about AIDS."

Film appearances

 * Coriolanus (1979) as Valeria
 * All That Jazz (1979) as Nurse Blake
 * Union City (1980) as Mrs. Lewis
 * I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can (1982) as Anne
 * Prizzi's Honor (1985) as Peaches Altamont
 * Bagdad Café (1987) as Brenda
 * Postcards from the Edge (1990) as Julie Marsden
 * Psycho IV: The Beginning (1990) as Fran Ambrose
 * The Importance of Being Earnest (1992) as Miss Prism
 * Benny & Joon (1993)
 * Lifepod (1993)
 * Sliver (1993)
 * RoboCop 3 (1993)
 * Demon Knight (1995)
 * Aladdin and the King of Thieves (1996) as the Oracle
 * Melting Pot (1997)
 * Blossoms and Veils (1997)


 * Face/Off (1997)
 * Race (1998)
 * End of Days (1999) as Detective Marge Francis
 * Funny Valentines (1999)
 * Cora Unashamed (2000)
 * Things Behind the Sun (2001)
 * Boycott (2001)
 * Baby of the Family (2002)
 * Tèt Grenné (2002)
 * Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives (2003 HBO Film)
 * Redemption: The Stan Tookie Williams Story (2004) as Winnie Mandela
 * Rain (2008) as Ms. Adams
 * Orphan:(2009) as Sister Abigail
 * Superman/Batman: Public Enemies (2009) as Amanda Waller
 * Avatar (2009) as Mo'at, spiritual leader of the Na'vi

Television appearances

 * Booker (1984) as Jane
 * Go Tell It On The Mountain (1985) as Deborah
 * The Atlanta Child Murders (TV mini series, 1985) as Venus Taylor
 * If Tomorrow Comes (TV mini series, 1985) as Ernestine Littlechap
 * Resting Place (TV movie, 1986) as Ada Johnson
 * As Summers Die (TV movie, 1986) as Priscilla
 * Valerie (1 episode, 1986) as Mrs. Davis
 * Cagney & Lacey (1 episode, 1986) as Timmons
 * Hill Street Blues (3 episodes, 1981–1986) as Jasmine, Wilma Tucker
 * The Line (TV movie, 1987) as Anna Mae Demesy
 * Women in Prison (1987) as Dawn Murphy
 * Run Till You Fall (TV movie, 1988) as Janice
 * Leap Of Faith (TV movie, 1988) as Roberta
 * CBS Schoolbreak Special (1 episode, 1989) as Renee Cook
 * 227 (1 episode, 1989) as Lucinda Merkle
 * Third Degree Burn (TV movie, 1989) as Julie Cartwright
 * No Place Like Home (TV movie, 1989) as Prue
 * Miami Vice (1 episode, 1990) as Yvonne


 * Murder In Mississippi (TV movie, 1990) as Fannie Lee Chaney
 * Common Ground (TV movie, 1990) as Rachel Twymon
 * Quantum Leap (1 episode, 1990) as Mama Harper
 * Cop Rock (3 episodes, 1990)
 * Lifestories (1 episode, 1991) as Roxanne Tevis
 * L.A. Law (4 episodes, 1986–1992) as Judge Roseann Robin
 * The Cosby Show (1 episode, 1992) as Clair's friend
 * Biker Mice from Mars (unknown episodes, 1993) as Stonecutter
 * The Ernest Green Story (TV movie, 1993) as Daisy Bates
 * The X-Files (season two, 1994) as Agent Lucy Kazdin
 * ER (seasons 1 to 4, 1994–1997) as Dr. Angela Hicks
 * Millennium (1997–1999) as Dr. Cheryl Andrews
 * The West Wing (1 episode, 2000) as Deborah O'Leary, Secretary of Housing & Urban Development
 * Living Single as Maxine Shaw's mother Mrs. Shaw
 * Outer Limits (2000) "Decompression" as the Time Traveler
 * Law and Order: SVU (2001) "Ridicule"
 * Law and Order: SVU (2004) "Careless"
 * Justice League Unlimited as Amanda Waller (head of Cadmus)
 * Numb3rs (season one, 1 episode, 2005) as Lt. Havercamp
 * ''W.I.T.C.H. as Queen Kadma
 * The Shield (series run, 2002–2008) as Claudette Wyms
 * The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency (1 episode, 2009) as Mrs. Curtin
 * Warehouse 13 (2009-) as Mrs. Irene Frederick
 * Brothers (2009) as Adele Trainor