| # | Fact |
|---|
| 1 | She is most widely known to be a social butterfly. |
| 2 | Surrogate grandmother of Ian Alexander, Jr., Regina King's daughter. |
| 3 | She along with her former 227 (1985) co-star, Jackée Harry, attended the funeral of Natalie Cole on January 11, 2016, when the singer passed away at the end of 2015. |
| 4 | Lives in Inglewood, California. |
| 5 | Is a fan of the following shows: Everybody Loves Raymond (1996), Frasier (1993), The Golden Girls (1985) (which starred good friends Bea Arthur and Betty White), Scandal (2012), Hot in Cleveland (2010) and Law & Order (1990). |
| 6 | Her favorite roles were those of Florence Johnston on The Jeffersons (1975) and Mary Jenkins on 227 (1985). |
| 7 | Alongside Norman Lloyd, William Daniels, Dick Van Dyke, Ernest Borgnine, Mickey Rooney, Betty White, Angela Lansbury, Charlotte Rae, Adam West, William Shatner, Larry Hagman, Florence Henderson, Shirley Jones and Alan Alda, Gibbs is one of the few actors in Hollywood who lived into their 80s and/or 90s without ever either retiring from acting or having stopped getting work. |
| 8 | Longtime friend of the late Rosa Parks, who attended her funeral on 2 November 2005. A decade before her death, she attended the ceremony of Honoring Martin Luther King Jr., along with Gibbs, in 1995. |
| 9 | Longtime friend of the late Ruby Dee. She got to meet Marla at her nightclub, before Marla would watch her at the play. |
| 10 | Between The Jeffersons (1975), Checking In (1981), and 227 (1985), she had roles on television for 16 consecutive seasons. |
| 11 | Recently seen as Eve Russell's old Aunt Irma on "Passions" (1998). [August 2004] |
| 12 | Accepted "Funniest Woman of the Year" at The Commies on Comedy Central. [December 2003] |
| 13 | She was last seen on Italian TV Show "Meteore" [1999] |
| 14 | In her younger years, her parents ran a theater in a church. |
| 15 | Began her show 227 (1985) at age 54. |
| 16 | Her The Jeffersons (1975) character was originally only supposed to be in 13 episodes, but she proved so popular that she stayed on as a regular. |
| 17 | Has presented Phylicia Rashad, a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Nate Holden Performing Arts Center in Los Angeles, California. [17 February 2011]. |
| 18 | Worked with longtime friend, Della Reese, on episodes of both series: 227 (1985) and Touched by an Angel (1994). |
| 19 | Spent most of her childhood between Chicago and Detroit. |
| 20 | Was reunited with both ex-227 (1985) co-stars, Hal Williams and Jackée Harry, on an episode of The First Family (2012). |
| 21 | Met Hal Williams on both episodes of The Jeffersons (1975). Some eight years later, he would co-star with her on 227 (1985), as her husband. |
| 22 | Attended Northern High School in Detroit, Michigan. |
| 23 | Before she became a successful actress, she worked as a receptionist in a hotel in Detroit. |
| 24 | Was one to sign the Hollywood Squares/March of Dimes Celebrity Scrapbook, a collection of more than 100 autographs from top celebrities that was auctioned on eBay to benefit the March of Dimes. |
| 25 | Attended the 40th Anniversary Reunion of The Waltons (1971). |
| 26 | Was honored at the Gospel Goes To Hollywood Awards. [22 February 2013]. |
| 27 | Became best friends with Sherman Hemsley from 1975 until his death in 2012. |
| 28 | Appeared on the front cover of Jet Magazine five times. |
| 29 | Her daughter, Angela Elayne Gibbs, along with Marla herself, both worked with Carroll O'Connor on a separate episode of In the Heat of the Night (1988). At that time, her daughter was married to Charles Mills, the series' cinematographer. |
| 30 | Acting mentor and friend of Jackée Harry. |
| 31 | Is friends with the late Whitman Mayo, who had a recurring role on 227 (1985). |
| 32 | Was reunited with ex-227 (1985) co-star, Jackée Harry, to have a recurring role in the sitcom The First Family (2012). |
| 33 | She said in an interview, both she along with her ex-227 (1985) co-star, Jackée Harry, did not feud during production, when it was all about people who wanted to create controversy between the two ladies, hence, Gibbs wasn't a fan of that. |
| 34 | After the death of her father, she lived with her grandfather. |
| 35 | Was named after her aunt Margaret. |
| 36 | Despite being a fan of dance, she cannot participate as a finalist on Dancing with the Stars (2005), due to her broken foot. |
| 37 | Attended the 80th birthday party of her childhood friend Della Reese on 19 August 2011. |
| 38 | Was featured on Larry Manetti's talk show on the day of her 80th birthday in 2011, where Manetti told a story all about having lunch with her and Roger E. Mosley. |
| 39 | Childhood friends of Della Reese and Nichelle Nichols. |
| 40 | Is a health food enthusiast. |
| 41 | Like her best friend Charlotte Rae, Gibbs also wanted to be a serious actress, but she eventually wound up being a comedienne. |
| 42 | Her favorite episode of 227 (1985) was the one where Hal Williams's character was sick and was ringing the bell, and her character was tired of hearing it. |
| 43 | Her 227 (1985) character was born on June 14, as was Gibbs in real-life. |
| 44 | Prior to her parents' divorce, her mother moved to Detroit, Michigan, while young Marla stayed with her father and two sisters in Chicago, Illinois. |
| 45 | Had always adored Betty White's work. |
| 46 | Grandmother of Amil. |
| 47 | Is an avid game show watcher. |
| 48 | Florence Johnston, her character from The Jeffersons (1975), reminded her of both her grandmother and aunt, and the people who were around her. |
| 49 | Attended the Mafundi Institute in Los Angeles, California, where Roger E. Mosley was her acting coach. |
| 50 | After her divorce, she moved to Los Angeles, California, in 1973, to become an actress. |
| 51 | Before she was a successful actress, she worked as a reservations agent on the telephone for United Airlines, from 1963 to 1975. |
| 52 | Attended the defunct Cortez W. Peters Business School in Chicago, Illinois. |
| 53 | Was reunited with her ex-227 (1985) co-star, Regina King, on an episode of Southland (2009). Gibbs played an unassuming grandmother who had been used by her granddaughter's typical compassionate charm. |
| 54 | Was a tomboy in high school. |
| 55 | Used to be a spokesperson for Accent brand seasoning and Sears Department Stores in the 1980s. |
| 56 | Enjoys cooking, praying, sewing, reading the Bible, movies, playing tennis, traveling, singing, listening to jazz music, spending time with her family and acting. |
| 57 | Played the same character, Florence Johnston, on two different series: The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990) and House of Payne (2006). |
| 58 | She got the role of Florence Johnston on The Jeffersons (1975), because her agent wrote a letter to the Hollywood Reporter. |
| 59 | From an early age, she's been a dog lover. |
| 60 | Her jazz club closed in 1997. |
| 61 | Is a Democrat. |
| 62 | Was inducted into The LaFemme Film Festival as Honorary Board Member in Los Angeles, California. [17 October 2010]. |
| 63 | Was evicted from her grandmother's house, when she was only 18. Her grandmother wouldn't allow her to keep the dog in the house. |
| 64 | Had surgery for her broken foot in 2010. |
| 65 | Mary Jenkins, her character from 227 (1985), was based on her Florence Johnston character from The Jeffersons (1975). |
| 66 | Her 227 (1985) co-star, Jackée Harry, was one of the actresses to visit Alaina Reed-Hall in the hospital, just before her death. Reed played Gibbs's best friend on 227 (1985). |
| 67 | Made a guest appearance on Wheel of Fortune (1975), where a contestant solved a puzzle on her. |
| 68 | Her daughter, Angela Elayne Gibbs, was going to work with John Forsythe. |
| 69 | Jane Wyman was also said to be another one of her idols. |
| 70 | Her mother, Ophelia Kemp, died in 1967. |
| 71 | Composed the 227 (1985) theme song, "There's No Place Like Home". |
| 72 | Because of her busy work schedule, she had never seen a single episode of All in the Family (1971), before being casted on The Jeffersons (1975), which that show spun-off. |
| 73 | Her favorite scenes on The Jeffersons (1975) were the Aunt Jemima episode where her character's boss asked her to play the proper maid, and the one where Billy Dee Williams's character finds her character and comes back. |
| 74 | Had briefly left her role on The Jeffersons (1975), during the seventh season to star in the spin-off series that flopped. She returned to The Jeffersons (1975) after her own series got canceled. |
| 75 | Before she was a successful actress and comedienne, she used to work at a garment company. |
| 76 | Changed her name from Margaret Bradley to Marla Gibbs, this was because her name was too long. She wanted to go with the ebb and flow of her newly, rechristened name. |
| 77 | Starred in a Broadway play of 227 (1985), produced by Christine Houston, which led to her starring, producing and writing in the series. |
| 78 | Before she was a successful actress and comedienne, she did everything from working at a bookbinding company to a mail clerk in the mailroom. |
| 79 | Was a best friend of the late Alaina Reed-Hall, who co-starred on 227 (1985) with her. |
| 80 | Was raised near the same city as: Hugh O'Brian, Rock Hudson and Charlton Heston. |
| 81 | Before 227 (1985) co-star, Regina King, played Gibbs's TV daughter in both the play and the series, she was a childhood television heroine of Gibbs. |
| 82 | Her parents got divorced when she was only 4. |
| 83 | With the death of Sherman Hemsley, on July 24, 2012, she and Berlinda Tolbert are the two surviving original cast members of The Jeffersons (1975). |
| 84 | Suffered a small aneurysm, right at the same time, she had a stroke in 2006. |
| 85 | Has every episode of Pryor's Place (1984), on videotape. She made a guest-appearance on the show. |
| 86 | Of German descent by her grandfather. |
| 87 | Her older sister, Susie Garrett, died in 2002. Her great niece Cherie Johnson co-starred with Garrett in the popular 1980s sitcom, Punky Brewster (1984). |
| 88 | Her parents, Douglas Bradley was a mechanic and Ophelia Kemp worked at a grocery store, before working in a restaurant and later on, a minister. |
| 89 | After Norman Lear found out The Jeffersons (1975) was abruptly cancelled, Gibbs was finally free to star in her own series, 227 (1985). |
| 90 | Didn't start acting until she was 41. |
| 91 | A movie and musical buff. |
| 92 | All of her children were born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. |
| 93 | Remained good friends with Regina King and Jackée Harry, during and after 227 (1985). |
| 94 | Best known by the public for her role as Florence Johnston on The Jeffersons (1975) and for her starring role as Mary Jenkins on 227 (1985). |
| 95 | Had a crush on William Marshall. |
| 96 | Friends with: Shirley Jones, Bea Arthur, Florence Henderson, Betty White, Charlotte Rae, Esther Rolle, Gavin MacLeod, Ted Lange, Della Reese, Nichelle Nichols, Whitman Mayo, Norman Lear, Alaina Reed-Hall, Anna Maria Horsford, Ned Wertimer, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Roger E. Mosley, Billy Dee Williams, Lynn Hamilton, Lee Weaver, Isabel Sanford, Sherman Hemsley, Roxie Roker, Franklin Cover, Gary Coleman, Mickey Rooney, Lee Weaver, Beverly Garland, Robert Guillaume, Phylicia Rashad, Pat Sajak, Richard Dawson, Dick Clark, Casey Kasem, Ed McMahon, Joan Rivers, Ruby Dee, Maya Angelou, Robert Wagner and Hal Williams. |
| 97 | As a young girl in the 1940s, she would frequently watch movies. Among her idols were : Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, Joan Fontaine, Clark Gable, Tyrone Power and Vivien Leigh. |
| 98 | The second of three children. |
| 99 | Her father, Douglas Bradley, passed away in 1947. |
| 100 | Mother of Angela, Dorian and Joseph. |
| 101 | Honorary member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. |
| 102 | Married at age 13, she had three children by the time she was 20. |
| 103 | High school classmate of Sam Cooke. |
| 104 | Graduated from Wendell Phillips High School in Chicago, Illinois, in 1949. |
| 105 | Younger sister of Susie Garrett. |
| 106 | Since leaving TV in 1990, Marla has been operating the Vision Theater Complex (which closed in 1997) and Marla's Memory Lane jazz supper club, both in Los Angeles. |
| 107 | She used to work for United Airlines, and she continued working there even after she landed a part on The Jeffersons (1975). She did not quit until the show became a hit. |
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