This young, thoughtful African-American player turned down a chance for lucrative steady work in TV to pursue a career in features. Saved from the perils of the streets of NYC's Harlem by attending acting classes in his youth, Payne received his first wide exposure playing a recurring role during the last seasons (1990-92) of the NBC sitcom "The Cosby Show". He was one of the wisecracking friends of Pam Tucker (Erika Alexander), Claire Huxtable's young cousin from the inner-city. Though he passed on a regular gig on "A Different World", Payne shared Mr. Cosby's concern about providing role
