- Just before her death, Rolle was reunited with Bea Arthur on RuPaul's VH-1 talk show, where Rolle was brought out to surprise Arthur. This was the first time they had seen each in over 25 years.
- When Rolle received the lead role of Florida Evans on Good Times (1974), she insisted that the family be headed by a male figure.
- Became the first woman to receive the NAACP Chairman's Civil Rights Leadership Award for helping raise the image of blacks.
- Her former Good Times (1974) co-star, BernNadette Stanis said in an interview that Rolle was a good role model for her and she became a better person because of this relationship.
- Her sisters Estelle Evans and Rosanna Carter made guest-appearances on Good Times (1974), with Rolle.
- Was the tenth of eighteen children of Bahamian immigrants to the United States.
- Her sister, Estelle Evans, passed away on July 20, 1985 at age 78.
- Originated the role of Dorcas Moulineaux in Steve Carter's play, "Dame Lorraine", at the Victory Gardens Theater in Chicago, Illinois on March 27, 1981.
- Esther Rolle passed away on November 17, 1998, just nine days after she celebrated her 78th birthday. One year after her death, the film Train Ride (2000) was dedicated to her.
- Before her death, she had never retired from acting.
- Did not have a successful acting career until she was age 51; when she had a recurring role on Maude (1972). Since her character proved to be so popular, producer Norman Lear decided to feature her in her own sitcom, starring on Good Times (1974), which was a spin-off from Maude (1972).
- In her final interview, on the day of her 78th birthday, she said that she was glad and very happy. For some unknown reason, when she was younger, Rolle said she never thought she would live to be 50. She lived to be age 78.
- Was 19 years older than John Amos, who played her husband on Good Times (1974).
- When she died in 1998, she left an estate valued in excess of $1.7 million including $200,000 in cash a $400,000 home, $1,072,000 in treasuries. In addition, she owned 1,000 shares of Bethdames Corporation, several Mutual Funds, and 2% interest in El Toro, Ltd.
- Before she was a successful actress, she was a member of Asadata Dafora's dance troupe, Shogolo Oloba; where she was the troupe's director.
- Left Good Times (1974) after the 1976-1977 season due to her displeasure with the what she saw as the character J.J. being a bad role model for young blacks. She returned at the beginning of the 1978-1979 season after the producers guaranteed that they would make J.J. a more respectable character.
- Before she was a successful actress, she worked in a traditional job in New York City's garment district.
- Survived by her stepdaughter, three nieces, one brother and two sisters.
- Had a close working relationship with Bea Arthur on Maude (1972).
- Had no biologic or adopted children of her own, but did have stepchildren from her husband's previous marriage.
- Her former Good Times (1974) co-star, Jimmie 'JJ' Walker, was the only "Good Times" regular cast member not to attend her funeral.
- Producer Norman Lear approached her, after seeing her performances on Broadway, as his first choice for portraying Florida Evans on Maude (1972), and then the same character on the spin-off series Good Times (1974), she accepted the role.
- Met John Amos on the set of Maude (1972), where he portrayed her husband, Henry Evans. Amos later portrayed the same character (but with a different first name) on the spin-off series Good Times (1974), as James Evans Sr., for more than television seasons, until his firing in 1976.
- In 1939, when Rolle was age 18, she followed her two sisters to New York City. Her writing teacher talked her into taking acting classes instead.
- Was 25 years older than Ja'net DuBois, who played her best friend (from high school) on Good Times (1974).
- Friends with: Bea Arthur, Bill Macy, Conrad Bain, Rue McClanahan, Marla Gibbs, Hal Williams, Helen Martin, Della Reese, Carroll O'Connor, Norman Lear, Gavin MacLeod, Bernie Kopell, Aaron Spelling, Ruby Dee, Maya Angelou, Louis Gossett Jr., Susan Harris, Moses Gunn, Alice Ghostley, Albert Reed, Gerren Keith, Herbert Kenwith and Barbara Billingsley.
- A gospel singer, she had a one-hit wonder, "I Can Feel Him Moving", on her Christian album, "The Garden of My Mind" (1975).
- Just before her death, her former Good Times (1974) co-star, BernNadette Stanis, attended her acting mentor's 78th birthday party, during an Awards Gala in North Hollywood, California.
- Was named after her mother, Elizabeth Iris Rolle, who passed away in 1981, having lived to be 88 years old.
- Rolle always dyed her hair black until letting it go gray in the early 1990s.
- She did not begin acting until she was age 39.
- Last film was Train Ride (2000), an independent feature-film written and directed by Rel Dowdell, which was shot on location at Cheyney University in Cheyney, Pennsylvania, the oldest Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCU) college in the United States. She was also in Dowdell's multi-award winning short film version of "Train Ride", done while he was a graduate student at Boston University. She was appearing in "A Raisin in the Sun" at the Huntingdon Theatre in Boston at the time.
- While she was hospitalized at Brotman Memorial Hospital in Culver City, California, she was hooked up to a kidney dialysis machine for two months.
- She was a member of the Negro Ensemble Company.
- Her character's last name on Maude (1972) and Good Times (1974), is also the same last name of one of her real-life sisters, and her character's first name, Florida, was the same name as the state of her birth.
- Following her death, she was interred at Westview Cemetery in Broward County, Pompano Beach (her birthplace), Florida.
- Despite the controversy, she enjoyed working with Ja'net DuBois on Good Times (1974).
- Her stepdaughter, Sherley Mae Robinson, from her ex-husband's previous marriage, was only 16 years younger than she was.
- Attended and graduated from Blanche Ely High School in Pompano Beach, Florida (1938), a school still in operation as of 2020.
- Born and raised on a 10-acre farm in Pompano Beach, Florida, USA.
- Her father, Jonathan Rolle, was a farmer, and her mother, Elizabeth Iris Rolle, was a housewife.
- Inspired by her father, Rolle's elder siblings formed a drama group, that also toured Florida.
- In 1986, Rolle's family gathered in the Bahamas for her family reunion.
- Created the character Florida Evans on Maude (1972) and its spin-off series Good Times (1974).
- Both acting and long lives ran in her family.
- Worked with Louis Gossett Jr. in episodes of two different series: Good Times (1974) and Touched by an Angel (1994).
- Was both a heavy smoker and a diabetic.
- Her sister, Rosanna Carter, passed away on December 30, 2016 at age 98.
- Sister of Estelle Evans and Rosanna Carter.
- Acting mentor and friends with Ja'net DuBois, BernNadette Stanis, Jimmie 'JJ' Walker and Ralph Carter.
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