LOS ANGELES-
Leslie Jordan, the actor whose drawling voice and Southern versatility made him standout comedy and drama on TV series such as “Will & Grace” and “American Horror Story,” has died. The Emmy winner, whose videos turned him into a social media star during the pandemic, was 67.
“The world is definitely a much darker place today without the love and light of Leslie Jordan. Not only was he a mega talent and a joy to work with, but he provided emotional sanctuary for the nation at the time. one of his most difficult times,” a Jordanian official said in a statement on Monday. “Knowing that he left the world at the height of his professional and personal life is the only consolation one can have today.”
The Chattanooga, Tennessee native, who won an Outstanding Guest Actor Emmy in 2005 for his role as Beverly Leslie in ‘Will & Grace,’ had a recurring role in Mayim Bialik’s comedy ‘Call me Kat’. and starred in the sitcom “The Cool Kids.”
Jordan’s other eclectic credits include “Hearts Afire”, “Boston Legal”, “Fantasy Island”, and “The United States vs. Billie Holiday”. He played various roles in the franchise series “American Horror Story”.
Jordan died Monday in a single car accident in Hollywood, according to reports from celebrity website TMZ and the Los Angeles Times, citing unnamed law enforcement sources.
Jordan gained an unexpected new audience in 2021 when he spent time during the pandemic lockdown near his family in his hometown. He broke the similarity by posting daily videos of himself on Instagram.
Many of Jordan’s videos included him asking “How are you?” and some included stories about Hollywood or his childhood growing up with identical twin sisters and their “mom,” as he called her. Other times he did stupid things like complete an indoor obstacle course.
“Someone called from California and said, ‘Oh, honey, you’ve gone viral. And I said, ‘No, no, I don’t have COVID. I’m just in Tennessee,’ Jordan said. Celebrities such as Michelle Pfeiffer, Jessica Alba and Anderson Cooper, as well as brands such as Reebok and Lululemon, would post comments.
Soon he became obsessed with how many views and subscribers he had, as not much else was going on. At the time of his death, he had amassed 5.8 million followers on Instagram and another 2.3 million on TikTok.
“For a while there, it was like an obsession. And I was like, ‘This is ridiculous. Stop, stop, stop. You know, it almost became, ‘If this doesn’t happen on Instagram, it didn’t happen.’ And I thought, ‘You’re 65, first of all. You’re not a teenager.’
The spotlights have opened up new opportunities. Earlier this month he released a gospel album titled “Company’s Comin” featuring Dolly Parton, Chris Stapleton, Brandi Carlile, Eddie Vedder and Tanya Tucker. He has written a new book, “How Y’all Doing?: Misadventures and Mischief from a Life Well Lived.”
It was Jordan’s second book, following his 2008 memoir, “My Trip Down the Red Carpet.”
“It kind of dealt with all the angst and growing up gay in the Baptist Church and la, la, la, la, la. And this one, I just wanted to tell stories,” he said. to the Associated Press in a 2021 interview. Among the anecdotes: working with Lady Gaga on “American Horror Story”; how meeting Carrie Fisher led Debbie Reynolds to name her mother and the Shetland pony he had as a child named Midnight.
In a 2014 interview with Philadelphia magazine, Jordan was asked how he related to his role in the 2013 film “Southern Baptist Sissies,” which explored growing up gay while being raised in a conservative Baptist church.
“I really wanted to be a really good Christian, like some of the boys in the movie. I was baptized 14 times,” Jordan said. “Every time the preacher said, ‘Move on, sinners!’ My mom thought I was being dramatic. She was like, “Leslie, you’re already saved,” and I was like, “Well, I don’t think it took.”
Jordan said he considers himself a storyteller by nature.
“It’s very southern. If I had to learn a lesson or something like that when I was a kid, I was told a story,” he told AP.
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Mark Kennedy and Alicia Rancilio in New York contributed to this report.
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