Father of the Smollett’s, Joel Smollett, might not be a familiar name on his own. But, Smollett is definitely a name well-known far and wide in the Hollywood industry. Janet Smollett’s husband and the father of six was the head of the Smollett family. Joel is famous for his contribution to Hollywood.
While there aren’t any works in Hollywood in which Joel has worked, what he has done is guide his childrens in their path to the flashing lights of Hollywood. All six of Joel and Janet Smollet’s childrens are prominent figures in Hollywood, and they credit their career and success to their supporting father.
Joel set a new bar in parenting, and it is only natural to want to know what his childrens think of him and what he did. For that reason, stay with us as we give you insight into his life and his children’s opinion about him.
Joel Smollett Early Life
Born on October 8, 1956, Joel Smollett is a jew. His grandparents are Polish Jews, and his mom is probably of Russian decent as he is of Russian-Polish nationality. But his ancestry also involves Romania, which might be his grandmother’s side.
There is no information on his educational background or his childhood. Joel reportedly also has a sibling and a half-brother, but nothing is known about them.
Joel was born to mother Molly Hirschenson, and father Peter Smollett, and the family migrated to the USA while Joel was in his late teens. After moving to the US, he started fighting for Civil rights along with other peoples in the movement. That is where Smollett met his wife to be Janet Smollett for the first time in the Bay Area.
Joel’s Many Children with Janet Smollet
Janet and Joel met as Joel was stepping into his 20s, and they fell in love. With a common goal and fighting together for the civil right, they fell in love eventually, spending time together. Joel and Janet got married quietly, and the African-American lady hailing from New Orleans was soon going to be a mother.
But, the responsibility of being a mother didn’t act as a handicap on Janet in her fight for civil rights. Tutored under Julian Bond with the likes of Huey Newton and Bobby Seale, she became a centerpiece of the movement. Janet later became a Civil rights leader and one of the founders of the Black Panther Party.
Joel and Janet have six children together, and when they had their first children together, Joel was 20 years old, and Janet was 25 years old in 1977.
Let’s talk about those childrens now, who seem to hold their father in high regard.
Jojo Smollett
Jojo Smollett was born in California as the eldest son of Joel and Janet on August 28, 1977. Jojo is famous for his works in movies like The Practice (1991), Roseanne (1988), and City of Hope (1991) as an actor and producer. Jojo has also appeared in the TV series of 1994 On Our Own along with his siblings. He is the first son of the family and shared the responsibility for his three brothers and two sisters.
Jazz Smollett
The first daughter of the Smollett family, born on April 1, 1980, is Jazz Smollett. She is an actress and producer from Northern California. At the age of 14, she stepped in front of the camera for the first time in 1994 on the TV series On Our Own along with her siblings.
Right now, Jazz is already married and has a child with her husband, Troy Warwell. Troy and Jazz have been married since 2012, but no information about their daughter has been made public. Jazz helps her husband occasionally if needed as an assistant producer and an actress.
Jussie Smollett
Jussie is one of the most active and most well known among the Smollett siblings. Born on 21st June 1982, Jussie is the second son of the Smollett family and is also called ‘Justin.’ The work which put him in the spotlight is Empire, a musical TV drama series. Besides acting, he is also a singer by profession.
Jussie has worked in movies like Allen Covenant (2017) and Marshall (2017), to name a few. Throughout his career, Jussie has been nominated for 23 awards and won 12 of those awards. He also came into show-biz with the TV series On Our Own.
In an Instagram post, Jussie addressed his father with the caption,
“Yesterday, January 7, 2015 my family lost our king but we gained a righteous angel. You showed the deepest strength and dignity until your very last breath.” Continuing, ” You are not just a fighter… You are the CHAMP. As I try to make sense of our own grief, I smile in my heart with the words that your oldest daughter, @jazzsmollettwarwell told us all “Daddy was here to help transition us into the world… We are blessed enough to be able to help transition him out of the world.” I love and honor you. I will continue to work hard to make you proud and will always & forever be your son. You live on. Fly high Daddy. #JoelSmollettSr. October 8, 1956 – January 7, 2015 #FamilyFirst #CancerSucks”
With such an emotional and motivating caption, he had uploaded a photo of his father carrying small Jussie.
Jurnee Smollett
The second daughter and fourth children of the Smollett family, Jurnee Smollett was born on October 1, 1986. Jurnee is an activist beside being an actress. From the young age of 11, she started working in campaigns against HIV AIDS; she got motivation from Hydeia Broadbent, a survivor of AIDS from back in 1989.
While Jurnee entered the show-biz from On Our Own just like her siblings, she has established herself as a successful actress securing awards for her other works. Jurnee has won the award ‘Best Younger Performer’ for her work in the movie ‘Choice,’ she has other awards under her belt as well.
Jake Smollett
Born on July 29, 1989, the third son of the Smollet family and fifth child is also an actor. Besides working in On Our Own, Jake has also worked in movies like Eve’s Bayou (1997) and The Middleman (2008).
Jake is keen about cooking, and most of his posts on Instagram also feature his recipes and dishes. A TV show called raw featuring Jake as the cook is under production and will be coming out soon. He has over 80k followers in Instagram.
Jocqui Smollett
Though Jocqui also starred in On Our Own along with his siblings, he chose to walk away from the limelight. In 2016, he came back to the show-biz with the show ‘Smollett Eats’ but had his career already set up somewhere else.
Jocqui is the owner and founder of Hosted, an application for IOS. Its details are available on Jacqui’s Instagram profile, where he has over 35k followers in Instagram.
Joel Smollett Career and Net Worth
Besides fighting for civil rights, Joel used to work as a cable splicer. As the sole provider of the family, he worked hard to secure his children’s future and everyday meals. Though his net worth might not have been much in his working days as a cable splicer, as his childrens started their own career, it rose up quite significantly.
While it is unknown what Joel’s precise net worth is, some have estimated it to be around $500k. His daughter Jurnee purportedly has a net worth of $2 million so, $500k for Joel might not be far fetched with his six childrens.
Joel Smollett Life and Death
Joel lived a happy life with his family, his beautiful wife Janet, and his six childrens. He worked hard as the provider and protector of the family, and the respect gets from his family members is well earned.
Born in 1956 Joel, died on 2015 Jan 7 at the age of 58. He died battling cancer, but even after his death, his family stands by his side and wishes him best. His wife of nearly 50 years. Janet is single and living with her childrens. Joel’s childrens openly pay tribute to their father and express their love.
Being a supporting and loving father and husband, Joel has secured a place in his family’s heart. Even though its been four years already, we can find his children’s posting on social media wishing him on special occasions.
Quick Facts about Joel Smollett
| Name | Joel Smollett |
| Date of Birth | October 8, 1956 |
| Date of Passing | January 7, 2015 |
| Spouse | Janet Smollett |
| Childrens | Six (two daughters and four sons) Jazz and Jurnee Smollett (Daughters) Jojo, Jussie, Jake and Jocquie Smollett (sons) |
| Net Worth | Estimated $500k |
| Ancestry | Russian, Romanian, Polish |
| Occupation | Cable Splicer |
| Zodiac Sign | Libra |