Sharon Epatha Merkerson was born on the 28th November 1952, in Saginaw, Michigan USA. She is a stage, television and film actress, probably best recognized from starring in the role of Anita Van Buren in the TV drama series “Law & Order” (1993-2010), playing Rachel “Nanny” Crosby in “Lackawanna Blues” (2005), and as Ariel Winters in “Girl, Positive” (2007). She is also known for being a TV host. Her career has been active since 1986.
So, have you ever wondered how rich S. Epatha Merkerson is? It has been estimated by sources that the size of Merkerson’s net worth is over $5 million as of mid- 2016, which has been accumulated through her successful involvement in the entertainment industry not only as an actress, but also as a host. Another source is coming from her career as a teacher of drama at the City College of New York. Additional to all of these, she has also appeared in several commercials, which has also contributed to her net worth.
S. Epatha Merkerson Net Worth $5 Million
S. Epatha Merkerson is the youngest of five children raised by a single mother, Ann, who worked in the post office, as her father left them in 1957. She went to Cooley High School, and right after matriculation in 1970, she enrolled at Wayne State University in Detroit, from which she graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. Later, in 2009, she was rewarded with an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Wayne State University.
Speaking about her acting career, upon graduation from the college, she moved to Albany, New York, where she started her acting career initially on the stage, joining a children’s theater company, and began appearing in off-Broadway productions.
Subsequently, she made her debut television appearance in 1986, with the role as Reba the Mail Lady in a TV show entitled “Pee-Wee’s Playhouse” (1986-1989). With this role her net worth was established, and her popularity began to grow. During the 1980s, she had several more appearances, such as those in “She’s Gotta Have It” (1986), and “Christmas At Pee-Wee’s Playhouse” (1988).
Merkerson continued successfully into the 1990s, securing several notable roles, including as Anita Van Buren in the TV drama series “Law & Order” (1991-2010), appearing in more than 300 episodes, which certainly increased her net worth considerably, but also this role celebrated her as an actress. During the 1990s, she had several more roles in the films and series such as “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” (1991), with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Linda Hamilton in lead roles, “Mann & Machine” (1992), “Here And Now” (1992-1993), “A Place For Annie” (1994), and “Random Hearts” (1999). All of there appearances contributed steadily to her net worth.
Although the role of Anita became the main source of her net worth, she still searched for new roles, and as a result she appeared in films “The Rising Place” (2001), Radio” (2003), “Lackawanna Blues” (2005), “Black Snake Moan” (2006), “Splitstream” (2007), and “Mother And Child” (2009), among others, which also added to her net worth.
After “Law & Order” ended, she continued to feature in TV series and films, such as “Peeples” (2013), “The Challenger” (2015), and most recently “Chicago Fire” (2015), “Chicago Med” (2015-2016) and “Chicago PD. Epatha will also appear in the film “Sexual Healling”, which is set to be released in late 2016.
Thanks to her skills, she received several prestigious awards, including the Golden Globe award in the category Best Performance by an Actress in a Miniseries or a Motion Picture Made for Television for her work on “Lackawanna Blues”, and she also won the Primetime Emmy in the category Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie for the same film. Furthermore, she received two Image Awards in the category Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her work on “Law & Order”, among many others.
Apart from her acting career, she is also recognized for being the host of a reality TV show named “Find Our Missing” in 2012, which also increased her overall net worth.
Speaking about her personal life, S. Epatha Merkerson was married to Toussaint L. Jones, Jr. from March 1994 to February of 2006. Currently she is single and resides in the Washington Heights section of New York City. She is also known for being an outspoken advocate against smoking.
