He makes the list of veteran comedians who have managed to remain ever green over the years. Olexander Josphat, real name Peter Sankale, is the consummate actor whose punchlines made us glued to our television sets. Olexander made the State owned Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) tolerable when viewers were limited to only two TV stations.
His act depicting members of his Maasai community became cool that we couldn’t get enough of the funnyman.
Here is his story as told by WoK.
Starting Out as a comedian
The actor first worked as a teller at the now defunct Pan Africa Bank. His then manager, Mr Charles Gitonga, encouraged him to try his hand in acting as he thought he was humorous. Olexander joined KBC in 1995 where he had his first taste of acting on Vitimbi show. The actor, who doubles as an MC, went on to join Vioja Mahakamani where he became a household name.
But his parents were disappointed when he left a white collar job to pursue acting as a career. Appearing on Churchill Show The Journey Edition, Sankale said of decision to become an actor;
“For my parents it was like I was not serious. They would wonder when I would become serious. Eventually it became a career. Actually after school I ended up in a bank called Pan African Bank. My parents were happy because it was a white collar job……” he said.
Life after Vioja Mahakamani
Olexander was among the actors who left KBC in a show of solidarity with their Vitimbi counterparts who had been shown the door due to old age. Lucy Wangui-who played the Judge on Vioja-said of their decision to leave the national broadcaster:
“when the cast of Vitimbi was told to leave due to their old age, we quit in solidarity as we are a family”.
Hullaballo Estate-Maisha Magic
The cast left KBC enmass in 2015 but it did not take long before lady luck came calling. Olexander once again teamed up Makokha and Ondieki to star in Hullaballo Estate aired on Maisha Magic.
Daktari-KTN
Their exit from KBC was a blessing in disguise. Olexander was to rejoin his old colleagues for the now must watch Daktari, a sitcom aired on KTN.
So how much does Olexander make?
When he started out, the actor earned a paltry kes700 only but this changed as his stature grew. So how much does he earn?
Vioja Mahakamani-the actor made about kes40,000 per month when he was an actor at the popular court drama program on the State broadcaster. When he started out Olexander made less than kes10,000 per month.
Hullaballo Estate-paid about kes20,000 per episode
Daktari-Paid about kes15,000 per episode
Emcee-Olexander is one of the best Emcees in the country. His finesse in the trade has seen him have gigs in the US. He makes between kes30,000 to kes150,000 to emcee in weddings.
He is also a choir conductor.
Making comeback to Vioja Mahakamani
The actor was among the original cast members of Vioja Mahakamani who made a comeback to the once popular program.
Sankale the family man
Sankale is a husband a loving father.