The Hollywood actor John Amos, best known for his roles in ‘Coming To America’ and ‘Good Times’, died at the age of 84.
His son, Kelly Christopher Amos, said in a statement on Tuesday that the actor died on August 21 of natural causes.
His father had a “heart of gold,” according to him, and his legacy “will live on.”
“It is with heartfelt sadness that I share with you that my father has transitioned. He was a man with the kindest heart and a heart of gold and he was loved the world over,” the statement reads.
“Many fans consider him their TV father. He lived a good life. His legacy will live on in his outstanding works in television and film as an actor.”
Amos, who was born in New Jersey on December 27, 1937, began his football career by participating in games at Colorado State University and making tryouts with the American Football League teams Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs. When he was chosen to play WJN-TV weatherman Gordy Howard on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, his career in entertainment officially began.
Acting became Amos’s new hobby in 1970. His career spans over 50 years in television and movies.
His film résumé also included ‘The World’s Greatest Athlete’ (1973), ‘Let’s Do It Again’ (1975), ‘The Beastmaster’ (1982), ‘Die Hard 2’ (1990), ‘Ricochet’ (1991), ‘Mac’ (1992), ‘Night Trap’ (1993), ‘For Better or Worse’ (1995), ‘The Players Club’ (1998), ‘Coming to America 2’ (2021) and ‘Because of Charley’ (2021).
He featured in over 40 films and was nominated for the Emmys, CableACE Awards, NAACP Image Awards, and DVD Exclusive Awards.
In 1965, Smith tied the knot with Noel Mickelson. However, they divorced in 1975.
He then married Lilian Lehman in 1978 but they parted ways barely a year later in 1979.
Amos was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame in 2020.
