John Amos, who starred because the household patriarch on the hit Nineteen Seventies sitcom “Good Times” and earned an Emmy nomination for his role in the seminal 1977 miniseries “Roots,” has died. He was 84.
He died Aug. 21 of pure causes in Los Angeles. Amos’ publicist, Belinda Foster, confirmed the news of his loss of life Tuesday.
He performed James Evans Sr. on “Good Times,” which featured one in every of tv’s first Black two-parent households. Produced by Norman Lear and co-created by actor Mike Evans, who co-starred on “All in the Family” and “The Jeffersons,” it ran from 1974-79 on CBS.
“That show was the closest depiction in reality to life as an African American family living in those circumstances as it could be,” Amos advised Time journal in 2021.
Among Amos’ movie credit had been “Let’s Do It Again” with Bill Cosby and Sidney Poitier, “Coming to America” with Eddie Murphy and its 2021 sequel, “Die Hard 2,” “Madea’s Witness Protection” and “Uncut Gems” with Adam Sandler. He was in Ice Cube and Dr. Dre’s 1994 video “Natural Born Killaz.”
Amos’ “Good Times” character, together with spouse Florida, performed by Esther Rolle, originated on one other Lear present, “Maude.” James Evans usually labored two handbook labor jobs to assist his household that included three youngsters, with Jimmie Walker turning into a breakout star as oldest son J.J.
Such was the present’s affect that Alicia Keys, Rick Ross, the Wu-Tang Clan are among the many musicians who name-checked Amos or his character of their lyrics.
“Many fans consider him their TV father,” his son Kelly Christopher Amos stated in an announcement. “He lived a good life. His legacy will live on in his outstanding works in television and film as an actor. My father loved working as an actor throughout his entire life He was my dad, my best friend, and my hero.”
The elder Amos and Rolle had been desperate to painting a optimistic picture of a Black household, struggling towards the percentages in a public housing venture in Chicago. But they grew annoyed at seeing Walker’s character being made silly and his function expanded.
“The fact is that Esther’s criticism, and also that of John and others — some of it very pointed and personal — seriously damaged my appeal in the Black community,” Walker wrote in his 2012 memoir “Dyn-O-Mite! Good Times, Bad Times, Our Times.”
After three seasons of important acclaim and excessive rankings, Amos was fired. He had change into important of the present’s white writing employees creating storylines that he felt had been inauthentic to the Black characters.
“There were several examples where I said, ‘No, you don’t do these things. It’s anathema to Black society. I’ll be the expert on that, if you don’t mind,‘” he advised Time journal. “And it got confrontational and heated enough that ultimately my being killed off the show was the best solution for everybody concerned, myself included.”
Amos’ character was killed in a automobile accident. Walker lamented the scenario. “If the decision had been up to me, I would have preferred that John stay and the show remain more of an ensemble,” he wrote in his memoir. “Nobody wanted me up front all the time, including me.”
Amos and Lear later reconciled and so they shared a hug at a “Good Times” reside TV reunion particular in 2019.
Amos shortly bounced again, touchdown the function of an grownup Kunta Kinte, the centerpiece of “Roots,” based mostly on Alex Haley’s novel set throughout and after the period of slavery within the U.S. The miniseries was a important and rankings blockbuster, and Amos earned one in every of its 37 Emmy nominations.
“I knew that it was a life-changing role for me, as an actor and just from a humanistic standpoint,” he advised Time journal. “It was the culmination of all of the misconceptions and stereotypical roles that I had lived and seen being offered to me. It was like a reward for having suffered those indignities.”
Born John Allen Amos Jr. on Dec. 27, 1939, in Newark, New Jersey, he was the son of an auto mechanic. He graduated from Colorado State University with a sociology diploma and performed on the varsity’s soccer workforce.
Before pursuing performing, he moved to New York and was a social employee on the Vera Institute of Justice, working with defendants on the Brooklyn House of Detention.
He had a quick skilled soccer profession, enjoying in varied minor leagues. He signed a free-agent contract in 1967 with the Kansas City Chiefs, however coach Hank Stram inspired Amos to pursue his curiosity in writing as a substitute. He had jobs as an promoting and comedy author earlier than shifting in entrance of the digital camera.
Amos’ first main TV function was as Gordy Howard, the weatherman on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” from 1970-73. As the present’s solely Black character, he performed straight man to bombastic anchor Ted Baxter.
He was a frequent visitor star on “The West Wing,” and his different TV appearances included “Hunter,” “The District,” “Men in Trees,” “All About the Andersons,” “Two and a Half Men,” and “The Ranch.”
In 2020, Amos was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame. He served within the New Jersey National Guard.
He is survived by daughter Shannon, a former leisure government, and and Kelly Christopher, a Grammy-nominated video music director and editor. They had been from his first marriage to Noel Mickelson, whom he met in school. His second marriage to actor Lillian Lehman additionally resulted in divorce.
Associated Press Writer Kaitlyn Huamani contributed to this report.
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