LeVar Burton Bio | Wiki
LeVar Burton (Full Name: Levardis Robert Martyn Burton Jr.) is a well-known American actor, director, and children’s television host. As of now, Burton works as a host of the LeVar Burton Reads podcast where he reads a piece of short fiction and shares his thoughts on it. The podcast has been well received by both USA Today and The New Yorker. The podcast LeVar Burton Reads began in June 2013 and won the 2020 Ignyte Award for Best Fiction Podcast.
Burton is known for his roles as Kunta Kinte in the ABC miniseries Roots in 1977, Lt. Commander Geordi La Forge in Star Trek: The Next Generation from 1987 through 1994, and as host of the PBS Kids educational television series Reading Rainbow for over 23 years from 1983 to 2006, for which Burton has won 12 Daytime Emmy Awards, and a Peabody Award as host and executive producer of the show.
He earned the Grammy Award due to his Best Spoken Word Album at the 42nd Annual Grammy Awards for his narration of the book The Autobiography of Martin Luther King Jr. Burton was honored in 1990, for his achievements in television with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He was chosen as the Grand Marshal of the 2022 Rose Parade in Pasadena, California, on October 5, 2021. In addition, Burton presided over the parade and the afternoon Rose Bowl Game on January 1, 2022.
LeVar Burton Age
Burton was born on February 16, 1957, in Landstuhl, West Germany. He is 66 years old. Burton celebrates his birthday on February 16, every year.
LeVar Burton Height
He is a man of average stature. Burton stands at a height of 5 ft 7 in (Approx 1.7 m).
LeVar Burton Family
He was born and brought up in Landstuhl, West Germany to his parents. Burton’s mother Erma Gene (née Christian), served as a social worker, administrator, and educator, while his dad and namesake served as a photographer for the U.S. Army Signal Corps stationed at Landstuhl at the time of his son’s birth. He has two sisters Letitia and Valencia who together were brought up by his mother in Sacramento, California.
LeVar Burton Wife | Kids
Burton is married to his lovely wife Stephanie Cozart who works as a professional make-up artist. The pair married on October 3, 1992. Burton and his wife Stephanie have two kids: a son Eian Burton Smith and a daughter Michaela “Mica” Jean Burton. He lives in Sherman Oaks, California with his wife and kids.
LeVar Burton Daughter
He has a daughter named Michaela Jean Estelle “Mica” Burton who was born on July 8, 1994, in Los Angeles, California, and is a cosplayer, actress, YouTuber, streamer, and retired staff member at Rooster Teeth Productions. Burton’s daughter held a position as an editor, recurring secondary host, and head of streaming at Achievement Hunter who would edit and run their live streams, prior to her finally moving to become co-host and working as an editor for The Know.
Mica reported via Twitter and an RT Journal on April 30, 2018, that she was moving back to Los Angeles to further pursue her acting, cosplaying, and modeling careers. Mica is no longer an employee of Rooster Teeth, and only appears in the content on rare occasions.
LeVar Burton Star Trek
Gene Roddenberry approached Burton in 1986, with the role of the then Lieutenant Junior Grade Geordi La Forge in the Star Trek: The Next Generation television series. He also portrayed La Forge in the subsequent feature films based on Star Trek: The Next Generation, from Star Trek Generations in 1994 to Star Trek: Nemesis in 2002.
Burton also directed two episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation and many episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, and Star Trek: Enterprise. During the 1990s and early 2000s, Burton directed episodes for every various Star Trek series then in production. Burton has directed more Star Trek episodes than any other retired regular cast member.
LeVar Burton Reading Rainbow
He worked as the host and executive producer of Reading Rainbow starting in 1983 for PBS. Its series ran for 23 seasons. Following Reading Rainbow went off the air in 2006, Burton and his business colleague, Mark Wolfe, acquired the global rights to the brand and created RRKIDZ, a new media company for children. Reading Rainbow became reimagined as an all-new application for the iPad in 2012, and became an immediate success, becoming the position one educational application within 36 hours. At RRKIDZ, he works as co-founder and curator-in-chief, ensuring that the projects produced under the banner meet the high expectations as well as the trust of the Reading Rainbow brand.
Burton and many colleagues from other past works started on May 28, 2014, a Kickstarter campaign project to bring back Reading Rainbow. Burton’s desire is to have the new Reading Rainbow be integrated into the classrooms of elementary schools across the country, plus for schools in need to have free access. The Kickstarter campaign has since raised over $5 million, reaching triple its goal in only three days.
He became sued in 2017, by the public broadcasting company WNED-TV for alleged copyright infringement for use of the Reading Rainbow brand in marketing the new iPad app and other online media. RRKIDZ afterward became known as LeVar Burton Kids and the iPad app, Skybrary.
LeVar Burton Roots
His breakthrough role was as the young Kunta Kinte in the ABC miniseries Roots in 1977, based on the novel of a similar name by Alex Haley. He has described his first day playing Kunta as the start of his professional career. Due to his performance, Burton became nominated for an Emmy in the Outstanding Lead Actor for a Single Appearance in a Drama or Comedy Series category.
Burton reprised the role of Kunta Kinte in the 1988 television film Roots: The Gift. If asked about the societal influence of Roots, he is quoted as saying: “It expanded the consciousness of people. Blacks and whites started to see each other as human beings, not as stereotypes. And if you throw a pebble into the pond, you’re going to get ripples. I think the only constant changes, and it’s always slow. Anything that happens overnight is lacking in foundation. Roots are part of a changing trend, and it’s still being played out.”
LeVar Burton Movies And Tv Shows
– Reading Rainbow (1983-2006)
– Roots (1977)
– Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987-1994)
– Roots: The Gift ((1988)
– Star Trek: First Contact (1996)
– Smart House (1999)
– Captain Planet and the Planeteers (1990-1996)
– Blizzard (2003)
– Perception (2012-2015)
– Our Friend, Martin (1999)
– The Hunter (1980)
LeVar Burton Podcast
Burton works as a host of the LeVar Burton Reads podcast where he reads a piece of short fiction and shares his thoughts on it. The podcast has been well-received by both USA Today and The New Yorker. The podcast LeVar Burton Reads began in June 2013 and won the 2020 Ignyte Award for Best Fiction Podcast.
Every episode features him reading a short story. During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Burton continues to read on his podcast and also give live readings three times a week during a Twitter Livestream focused at a different time to different children, young adults, as well as adult audiences.
LeVar Burton Net Worth
He is an actor, director, and children’s television host who works as a host of the LeVar Burton Reads podcast where he reads a piece of short fiction and shares his thoughts on it. Therefore, Burton has accumulated a decent fortune over the years. Burton’s estimated net worth is $2 million.
Is LeVar Burton Married
Yes. Burton is married to his lovely wife Stephanie Cozart who works as a professional make-up artist. The pair married on October 3, 1992. Burton and his wife Stephanie have a son named Eian Burton Smith and a daughter named Michaela “Mica” Jean Burton. He lives in Sherman Oaks, California with his wife and kids.