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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Samuel L. Jackson and LaTanya Richardson Jackson met in Atlanta’s college theater community, moved to New York in 1976, married in 1980 and welcomed their daughter, Zoe, in 1982. The exact year they first met and the date of their wedding are not established by the available accounts.
College years: Meeting in Atlanta
LaTanya Richardson studied theater at Spelman College while Samuel L. Jackson attended Morehouse College. They met in the Atlanta college community and acted together as undergraduates with Black Image Theatre. A 1982 profile reported that Richardson encouraged Jackson to pursue acting, but the sources do not identify the year they first met.
The Washington Post’s 1982 profile offers an early account of their theater years; its 2025 profile of Richardson Jackson also describes their undergraduate theater work.
1976: Moving to New York
Richardson Jackson later recalled that they came to New York in 1976, during the city’s Halloween parade. In a June 2025 interview with theater director George C. Wolfe, she said, “We got married in ’80, but we came to New York in ’76, in the middle of the Halloween parade.” This is her retrospective account; it does not establish a precise day of arrival.
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In New York, both pursued theater work. The 1982 profile reported that Richardson was working at the Public Theater while Jackson went through a six- or seven-month period without work and took a security job. Richardson later recalled working at Henry Street Playhouse and staying at the Public Theater for more than nine years. Read her 2025 interview with Wolfe.
1980: Marriage
Richardson Jackson gives 1980 as the year they married, a year also reported in The Washington Post’s 2025 profile. Neither account establishes a month or exact wedding date.
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1982: Daughter Zoe is born
The couple’s daughter, Zoe, was born in 1982, according to the 2025 Washington Post profile. That same year, the earlier profile of Jackson depicted the couple building their theater careers in New York.
By 1990: Recovery and a path into Hollywood
A 2019 60 Minutes interview described Jackson as an established New York actor by 1990, following roles in Spike Lee films. Jackson and Richardson Jackson also discussed his recovery from drug and alcohol problems. He credited her support, saying, “I credit her because she could have just taken Zoe and walked out and been done with me.” She replied, “No, I didn’t. He saved his life. He and God saved his life.”
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The segment recounts that Spike Lee called Jackson during rehabilitation about Jungle Fever, a role Jackson said opened the door to Hollywood. The interview does not give a precise date for his rehabilitation. Watch or read the 2019 60 Minutes account.
2016: Supporting the National Museum of African American History and Culture
In a 2016 Washington Post interview, the Jacksons were described as founding donors to the National Museum of African American History and Culture, which was opening in Washington. The report placed their contribution at $1 million or more. Read the 2016 interview.
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2022: Working together on The Piano Lesson
Richardson Jackson directed The Piano Lesson in 2022, with Samuel L. Jackson among its cast, according to the 2025 Washington Post profile. Their shared theater work followed decades in which each had built a distinct career onstage and onscreen.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.2025: Richardson Jackson on Broadway
In June 2025, Richardson Jackson was profiled for her Tony-nominated performance in Purpose and her continuing theater career. The profile also reported that she remained on the board of the National Museum of African American History and Culture. It reported that the couple donated $5 million to help renovate Spelman’s fine-arts building, now named the LaTanya Richardson Jackson and Samuel L. Jackson Performing Arts Center. Read the profile.
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