John Amos, who starred as the family patriarch on the hit 1970s sitcom 鈥淕ood Times" and earned an Emmy nomination for his role in the seminal 1977 miniseries 鈥淩oots,鈥 has died. He was 84.
Amos鈥 publicist, Belinda Foster, confirmed the news of his death Tuesday. No other details were immediately available.
He played James Evans Sr. on 鈥淕ood Times,鈥 which featured one of television鈥檚 first Black two-parent families. Produced by Norman Lear and co-created by actor Mike Evans, who co-starred on 鈥淎ll in the Family鈥 and 鈥淭he Jeffersons,鈥 it ran from 1974-79 on CBS.
鈥淭hat show was the closest depiction in reality to life as an African American family living in those circumstances as it could be,鈥 Amos told Time magazine in 2021.
His character, along with wife Florida, played by Esther Rolle, originated on another Lear show, 鈥淢aude.鈥 James Evans often worked two manual labor jobs to support his family that included three children, with Jimmie Walker becoming a breakout star as oldest son J.J.
Such was the show's impact that Alicia Keys, Rick Ross, the Wu-Tang Clan are among the musicians who name-checked Amos or his character in their lyrics.
Amos and Rolle were eager to portray a positive image of a Black family, struggling against the odds in a public housing project in Chicago. But they grew frustrated at seeing Walker's character being made foolish and his role expanded.
鈥淭he fact is that Esther's criticism, and also that of John and others 鈥 some of it very pointed and personal 鈥 seriously damaged my appeal in the Black community,鈥 Walker wrote in his 2012 memoir 鈥淒yn-O-Mite! Good Times, Bad Times, Our Times."
After three seasons of critical acclaim and high ratings, Amos was fired. He had become critical of the show鈥檚 white writing staff creating storylines that he felt were inauthentic to the Black characters.
鈥淭here were several examples where I said, 鈥楴o, you don鈥檛 do these things. It鈥檚 anathema to Black society. I鈥檒l be the expert on that, if you don鈥檛 mind,鈥樷 he told Time magazine. 鈥淎nd it got confrontational and heated enough that ultimately my being killed off the show was the best solution for everybody concerned, myself included.鈥
Amos' character was killed in a car accident. Walker lamented the situation. 鈥淚f the decision had been up to me, I would have preferred that John stay and the show remain more of an ensemble,鈥 he wrote in his memoir. 鈥淣obody wanted me up front all the time, including me.鈥
Amos and Lear later reconciled and they shared a hug at a 鈥淕ood Times鈥 live TV reunion special in 2019.
Actor John Amos appears at the ABC Summer Press Tour in Beverly Hills, Calif., on July 26, 2007. (AP Photo/Nick Ut, FIle)
Amos quickly bounced back, landing the role of an adult Kunta Kinte, the centerpiece of 鈥淩oots,鈥 based on Alex Haley鈥檚 novel set during and after the era of slavery in the U.S. The miniseries was a critical and ratings blockbuster, and Amos earned one of its 37 Emmy nominations.
鈥淚 knew that it was a life-changing role for me, as an actor and just from a humanistic standpoint,鈥 he told Time magazine. 鈥淚t 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.鈥
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 degree and played on the school鈥檚 football team.
Before pursuing acting, he moved to New York and was a social worker at the Vera Institute of Justice, working with defendants at the Brooklyn House of Detention.
He had a brief professional football career, playing in various minor leagues. He signed a free-agent contract in 1967 with the Kansas City Chiefs, but coach Hank Stram encouraged Amos to pursue his interest in writing instead. He had jobs as an advertising and comedy writer before moving in front of the camera.
Amos鈥 first major TV role was as Gordy Howard, the weatherman on 鈥淭he Mary Tyler Moore Show鈥 from 1970-73. As the show鈥檚 only Black character, he played straight man to bombastic anchor Ted Baxter.
Among Amos鈥 film credits were 鈥淟et鈥檚 Do It Again鈥 with Bill Cosby and Sidney Poitier, 鈥淐oming to America鈥 with Eddie Murphy and its 2021 sequel, 鈥淒ie Hard 2,鈥 鈥淢adea鈥檚 Witness Protection鈥 and 鈥淯ncut Gems鈥 with Adam Sandler. He was in Ice Cube and Dr. Dre鈥檚 1994 video 鈥淣atural Born Killaz.鈥
He was a frequent guest star on 鈥淭he West Wing,鈥 and his other TV appearances included 鈥淗unter,鈥 鈥淭he District,鈥 鈥淢en in Trees,鈥 鈥淎ll About the Andersons,鈥 鈥淭wo and a Half Men,鈥 and 鈥淭he Ranch.鈥
In 2020, Amos was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame. He served in the New Jersey National Guard.
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