Yaphet Kotto - Early Life

Early Life

Kotto was born in New York City. His mother was Gladys Marie, a local nurse and U.S. Army officer. His father was Avraham Kotto (originally named Njoki Manga Bell), a businessman from Cameroon. In his autobiography titled Royalty, Kotto writes that his father was "the crown prince of Cameroon." Kotto stated that he found out that his family was royal in adult life while studying his family's lineage, and also stated that he is a descendant of Queen Victoria. Kotto's father, who emigrated to the U.S. in the 1920s, was, according to Kotto, an observant Jew who spoke Hebrew, and Kotto's mother reportedly converted to Judaism before marrying his father. Kotto also stated that his great-grandfather King Alexander Bell ruled the Douala region of Cameroon in the late-19th century and was also a practicing Jew. Kotto has said that his paternal family originated from Israel and migrated to Egypt and then Cameroon, and have been African Jews for many generations. His claim of being a descendent of Queen Victoria has been denied by the Buckingham Palace press office.

Being black and Jewish gave other children (both whites and blacks) even more reason, he has said, to pick on him growing up in New York City. "It was rough coming up," Kotto said. "And then going to shul, putting a yarmulke on, having to face people who were primarily Baptists in the Bronx meant that on Fridays, I was in some heavy fistfights."