Rosanne Katon
Rosanne Katon
Rosanne Katon is an American model, actress, comedian and activist. She was Playboy magazine's Playmate of the Month for its September 1978 issue. Her centerfold was photographed by Mario Casilli. Katon was born in New York City to a Jamaican-born father and an African-American mother. Beginning in the mid-1970s, Katon worked steadily in Hollywood, including a stint on Grady, the short-lived spin-off of the hit situation comedy Sanford and Son that starred Whitman Mayo in the title role, and guest appearances on Jason of Star Command, What's Happening!!, Good Times and That's My Mama, which starred Clifton Davis. She then had leading roles in two Cirio Santiago action films, both released in 1976, Ebony, Ivory & Jade, in which she received top billing, and The Muthers, in which she acted alongside former Playboy centerfold Jean Bell. However, the shapely actress was often typecast in sex kitten roles in R-Rated comedies such as The Swinging Cheerleaders (1974), Chesty Anderson, U.S. Navy (1976), American Raspberry (1976), Lunch Wagon (1981), Zapped! (1982) and Bachelor Party (1984). This was solidified by her appearance as the September 1978 Playboy centerfold. She had a recurring role opposite Denzel Washington on the medical drama St. Elsewhere and her appearance in two award-winning UCLA student films, Julie Dash's "Illusions," released in 1982, in which she portrayed a singer doubling for a white actress in 1940s Hollywood (whether she did her own singing in the role was not known as of mid December 2012), and S. Torriano Berry's "Rich," in which she portrays the title character's supportive girlfriend. Her other film credits included the TV movie The Night They Took Miss Beautiful (1977), the cult horror film Motel Hell (1980), Body and Soul (1981), City Girl (1984) and Harem (1985), opposite Nastassja Kinski and Ben Kingsley. Katon was selected as Miss Golden Globes for the 1981 awards show. The honor and the task of presenting the statuettes during the ceremony goes to an up-and-coming actress. Katon was the first African American to be selected, since the custom started in 1962. Additionally, Katon has had several stage credits, including a Broadway lead role in Godspell and a featured role in the parody of women in prison movies, Women Behind Bars. At one point, Katon segued into the world of stand-up comedy, and during that period in her career, she appeared in the June 1991 Playboy pictorial "Funny Girls," which covered female comedians.
Known For Acting
Most Rating 0.032
Birthday 1954-02-05
Place of Birth New York City, New York, USA
Also Known As
The Swinging Cheerleaders
1974

The Swinging Cheerleaders

Motel Hell
1980

Motel Hell

Autism: The Musical
2007

Autism: The Musical

Ebony, Ivory & Jade
1976

Ebony, Ivory & Jade

Lunch Wagon
1981

Lunch Wagon

The Muthers
1976

The Muthers

Chesty Anderson U.S. Navy
1976

Chesty Anderson U.S. Navy

Police Story: The Watch Commander
1988

Police Story: The Watch Commander

The City Girl
1984

The City Girl

The Comeback Kid
1980

The Comeback Kid

Harem
1985

Harem

Playboy's Roller Disco & Pajama Party
1979

Playboy's Roller Disco & Pajama Party

Casting
1983

Casting

Rich
1983

Rich

Bachelor Party
1984

Bachelor Party

Zapped!
1982

Zapped!

Illusions
1982

Illusions

The Night They Took Miss Beautiful
1977

The Night They Took Miss Beautiful

Peter Gunn
1989

Peter Gunn

Coach
1978

Coach

Body and Soul
1981

Body and Soul