Rodney King and A Different World
During season 6 of the NBC sitcom A Different World the focus was often on several newcomers to the hit show. Charmaine Tyesha Brown (Karen Melina White) Gina Deveaux ( Ajai Sanders) Lena James (Jada Pinket Smith) Tyrell Walker ( Patrick Malone) and Dorian Heywood (Bumper Robinson) moved out of the dorms to a house owned by Sweet Knuckles Page (Billy D Williams) and were going to begin their adult lives together.
Executive producer Debbie Allen has said that the series was supposed to go on for at least two more years but the two episodes where Dwayne Wayne (Kadeem Hardison) and Whitley Gilbert Wayne (Jasmine Guy) were on their honeymoon during the LA riots led to the death of the show. NBC executives and sponsors at the time felt that addressing Rodney King on prime time was controversial and although the series was still pretty high in the ratings the decision was made to cancel.
A Different World: The season 6 crew
Gina came to Hilllman in season 4 and brought a lot of humor as well as sass. Lena enrolled in season 5 by scamming her way into Hillman but eventually found her way. She was from the hood in Baltimore and kept things real. Dorian, Terrell, and Charmaine were in the final season and each brought their individual flavor to the series. These actors fit right in with the original cast as well as forming their own bond.
Dorian was the basketball star and church boy who was waiting for marriage before having sex. Terrell was a prankster who made straight A’s and at times did not seem to take things seriously. Charmaine was the talkative one, the know it all and dubbed “Miss mouth all mighty.”
These characters blended well together and fans would have loved to see them move forward and graduate from Hillman but it was not to be. Let’s take a look at these talented celebrities and find out where their talents led them after A Different World was canceled.
Jada Pinket Smith
Jada Pinket Smith is the most well known of the group and has made a name for herself in many films including Girls Trip, Set it Off, The Matrix Revolution, and Jason’s Lyric. She founded the band Wicked Wisdom where she was a singer and songwriter and hosts her own podcast Red Table Talk and is the wife of Will Smith. The couple has two children a daughter Willow and son Jayden.
Bumper Robinson
Robinson was a child star who had a recurring role as Leon on Night Court and as Clarence on Amen. He was also on a number of sitcoms which include The Facts of Life, The Jeffersons, Punky Brewster, and Hill Street Blues, Bones and CSI NY. He starred as Jackie Jackson in the miniseries The Jacksons an American Dream
In 2001, Robinson starred in the PBS film The Old Settler and later he co-starred in an American-Chinese produced action series filmed in Shanghai called Flatland, Hop along with Dennis Hopper. In 2003 he was part of the cast of Sabrina The Teenage Witch then went to New Mexico to star in Death Valley.
Robinson is also a voice actor who lent his talent to Scooby-Doo and the Ghoul School, Brother Bear, Futurama, Pinky and the Brain, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. He also provided the voices of Porter C. Powell, Blitzwing, Bumblebee, and Blackout on Transformers: Animated. In 2009 the actor married actress Katherine Penton and they have one daughter.
Ajai Sanders
Sanders was a standup comic prior to A Different world and returned to this profession after the series ended. She also had roles in the sitcoms Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper Martin, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, The Parent ‘Hood, The Jamie Foxx Show, Moesha and The Wayans Brothers. In 2001 she guest-starred in an episode of the Lifetime show, The Division. In 2002 the actress married Michael Brownlee but they divorced in 2016 and did not have children.
Karen Malina White
White portrayed Kaneesha Carter, in the film Lean on Me, was Charmaine Brown during the two final seasons of The Cosby Show before taking the character to A Different World. She portrayed Nicolette Vandross on the sitcom Malcolm & Eddie (1996–2000)an and was the voice of Dijonay Jones on the Disney Channel animated series The Proud Family.
She appeared in 2 episodes of The Fresh Prince of Bel Air as the wife of Jazz and has been in a number of movies including Jump In, Where do we go From here, Mule, and Silent Cry Aloud. Her additional television appearances include Hanging with Mr. Cooper, The Parent Hood, Roc, My so-called Life and Getting By. The actress once dated Malcolm Jamaal Warner but has never been married and has no children.
