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August 28, 2025 32 mins

Harvey Brownstone conducts an in-depth Interview with Vernée Watson, Renowned Actress, Producer, Director, Educator & Author


About Harvey's guest:


Today’s guest, Vernée Watson, is a popular and beloved actress, producer, director, educator and author who’s been dazzling audiences in a spectacular career spanning almost 6 decades. On the big screen, she’s appeared in many great movies including “Cotton Comes to Harlem”, “Norman, Is That You?”, “Death Drug”, “No Turning Back”, “Antwone Fisher”, “Nocturnal Agony”, “Beyond the Heavens”, “A Man Called Jon”, “Clemency”, “The Mandela Effect”, and many more. 


On television, we all remember her as “Verna Jean Williams” in “Welcome Back, Kotter”, “Lucille Banks” in “Carter Country”, “Althea” in “The Big Bang Theory”, “Gloria Tyler” in “Bob Hearts Abishola”, and of course, she played Will Smith’s mother, “Vy”, in the hugely popular sitcom, “Fresh Prince of Bel Air”. 


In the world of daytime dramas, our guest has been immortalized as “Birdie” in “The Young and the Restless”, “Dr. Ella Kraft” in “Days of Our Lives”, and her most acclaimed soap opera role, “Stella Henry” on “General Hospital”, for which she has won TWO Daytime Emmy Awards. She was also the voice of “Dee Dee Skyes” in the animated series, “Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels”, and she was the voice of “Danielle Craig” on the popular sitcom, “Baby Talk”. She has also guest starred in dozens of classic TV series including “Good Times”, “The Jeffersons”, “Hill Street Blues”, “Murphy Brown”, “Married With Children”, “L.A. Law”, “ER”, “The X-Files”, “The West Wing”, “CSI”, “Dexter”, “Two and a Half Men”, “Young Sheldon”, and believe me, I’m only scratching the surface.  


And she’s appeared in a whole slew of wonderful TV movies including “The Boy in the Plastic Bubble”, “Love’s Savage Fury”, “The Violation of Sarah McDavid”, “Hell Hath No Fury”, “Applause for Miss E”, “Home by Spring”, and many, many more. 


Our guest has also written 2 very informative books entitled, “Commercials, Just My Speed” and “Kids in the TV Commercial Biz”, which give practical advice to aspiring actors who’d like to break into the world of television commercials. 


And when she’s not on the set, she’s a highly respected acting teacher at a nonprofit performing arts company in Los Angeles that she co-founded, called The H.E.ART, Heartfelt Education Through the Arts, which provides a healthy, creative environment where aspiring actors, dancers and singers of all ages – and especially young people - can feel inspired and empowered to cultivate their talents. 


In fact, in 2023, she was inducted into the prestigious Gold Circle by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences for over 50 years of community service. And if all of that weren’t enough, our guest is also the subject of an excellent and truly inspirational documentary entitled, “You Look Familiar Vernée Watson”, in which she reminisces about her iconic career, and shares many of the life lessons she’s learned along the way.   


For more interviews and podcasts go to: https://www.harveybrownstoneinterviews.com/


To learn more about Vernée Watson, go to:

https://www.instagram.com/verneewatson/


@harveybrownstone,#harveybrownstone,@harveybrownstoneinterviews,#harveybrownstoneinterviews,#VernéeWatson,@VernéeWatson,#DenzelWashington,#FreshPrinceofBelAir,#WelcomeBackKotter,#AlfreWoodard,#BarbraStreisand,#WillSmith,#ReddFox,#AntwoneFisher,#Sexualharassment




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