Tony Okungbowa

{{Infobox person

| name = Tony Okungbowa

| image = Tony Okungbowa 2013.jpg

| imagesize =

| caption = Tony Okungbowa in 2013

| birth_date = c. {{Birth based on age as of date|38|2006|1|8}}

| birth_name = Anthony Victor Okungbowa

| birth_place = London, England

| death_place =

| nationality = English-American

| citizenship = American

| alma_mater = Middlesex University

| occupation = Actor, film producer, DJ

| othername = Tony Okungbowa, DJ Tony O.

| yearsactive = 1994–present

| website = {{url|tonyokungbowa.com}}

}}

Anthony Victor Okungbowa (born c. 1967/1968){{cite news|last=King|first=Susan|url= https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-jan-08-ca-working8-story.html|title=Putting his spin on TV talk|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date= January 8, 2006|archive-date=August 5, 2020|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200805151348/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-jan-08-ca-working8-story.html |url-status=live|quote=Age: 38}}{{subscription required}} is an English-American actor, film producer, and DJ. He was the resident DJ for The Ellen DeGeneres Show from 2003 to 2006 and again from 2008 to 2013 when he was replaced by Stephen "tWitch" Boss. He returned as a guest on April 28, 2014. Since 2019, Okungbowa has played Kofo in the CBS sitcom Bob Hearts Abishola.

Early life

Okungbowa is of Nigerian descent and grew up in Nigeria and London.[http://www.tv.com/anthony-okungbowa/person/16344/summary.html "Biography: Anthony Okungbowa"], TV.com. He has a degree in drama from Middlesex University in Middlesex, London.{{cite web|url= http://www.tonyokungbowa.com/actor.php |title= Actor / DJ|publisher=Tony Okungbowa official website|archive-date= February 4, 2013|archiveurl=https://archive.today/20130204123715/http://www.tonyokungbowa.com/actor.php|url-status=dead}}. He moved to New York City in 1992 to do post-graduate work at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute; he left for Los Angeles in 1998.

Career

The Ellen DeGeneres Show featured a DJ to provide musical accompaniment, a role Okungbowa began in 2003 and continued until the end of season three of the show in 2006, when he left to further his acting career.{{cite press release|authorlink=Allison Kugel|last=Kugel|first=Allison|url= http://www.pr.com/article/1044 |title=Tony Okungbowa: Resident Deejay on The Ellen DeGeneres Show Blazes His Own Trail in Hollywood|via=PR.com|publisher= Tony Okungbowa|date= June 1, 2006|archivedate=February 2, 2017|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20170202071908/https://www.pr.com/article/1044|url-status=live}} He was replaced at the beginning of season four by Jon Abrahams, who is also an actor. Okungbowa returned in 2007 making occasional substitute appearances. He returned to DJ full-time for the sixth season which began September 8, 2008. He DJ'd for the 2004 Grammy Awards.

His acting roles include guest spots on The X-Files, NYPD Blue, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and NCIS: Los Angeles in 2014. He was executive producer of and acted in the film Restless City which had its debut at the Sundance Film Festival in Salt Lake City, Utah in 2011.{{cite magazine|magazine=Variety|title=Review: 'Restless City'|date=February 1, 2011|first=John|last=Anderson|url=https://www.variety.com/review/VE1117944471/}} As of January 7, 2013 or earlier, Okungbowa became a naturalized citizen of the United States.{{cite AV media|title=Tony is an American Citizen!|work=The Ellen DeGeneres Show|date=January 7, 2013|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVhlVxWgRDc |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211217/LVhlVxWgRDc |archive-date=2021-12-17 |url-status=live|access-date=2019-02-03|via=YouTube}}{{cbignore}}

Filmography

class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%;" ! colspan="4" style="background: LightSteelBlue;" \| Film
Year ! Film ! Role ! Notes
1993 \| The Punk \| Punk Friend #2 \|
2002 \| The Wild Thornberrys Movie \| Ranger \| Voice
2003 \| Gate to Heaven \| Amadou \|
2008 \| Miracle of Phil \| Seth \|
2009 \| The One Last Time \| Scarecow \|
rowspan=2\|2011 \| Restless City \| Bekay \|
CIS: Las Gidi \| The Tax Man \|
2013 \|Mother of George \|Biyi \|
2014 \|Echo Park \|Alex \|
colspan="4" style="background: LightSteelBlue;" \| Television
Year ! Title ! Role ! Notes
1999 \| The X-Files \| Barnes' Driver \| Episode: "The Sixth Extinction"
2000 \| Arli$$ \| Homeless Joe \| Episode: "Where There's a Will"
2001 \| NYPD Blue \| Tristan L. Gibbs \| Episode: "Fools Russian"
2001; 2010 \| The Bold and the Beautiful \| Diver/Dempsey \| 6 episodes
2003–06; 2008–13 \| The Ellen DeGeneres Show \| Himself/DJ \| 1,672 Episode
2008 \| Law & Order: Special Victims Unit \| Dr. Bakari \| Episode: "Trials"
2014 \| NCIS Los Angeles \| Bakari Deng \| Episode: "Exposure"
2015 \| Kids Say the Darndest Things Nigeria \| Himself/host \| 2 episode
2017 \| Ballers \| Dr. Dester \| Episode: "Alley-Oops"
2017 \| Ray Donovan \| Bolaji \| Episode: "Horses"
2019–2024 \| Bob Hearts Abishola \| Kofo \| Main role

class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%;"

! colspan="4" style="background: LightSteelBlue;" | Film

Year

! Film

! Role

! Notes

1993

| The Punk

| Punk Friend #2

2002

| The Wild Thornberrys Movie

| Ranger