John Amos passed away on August 21st from natural causes at the age of 84, according to his son.
KC Amos wrote in a statement, “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. 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. My father loved working as an actor throughout his entire life…. most recently in ‘Suits LA’ playing himself and our documentary about his life journey as an actor, ‘America’s Dad.’ He was my dad, my best friend, and my hero. Thank you for your prayers and support at this time.”
Amos is best known for playing the patriarch, James Evans, on Good Times. The series was a Norman Lear sitcom that captured what it was like for a poor African American family surviving in Chicago during the late ’70s. It tackled the hardships that they went through with humor.
However, when the humor and stereotyping became too much, Amos’ complaints about that led to his time on the show coming to an end. His character’s death made way for one of the most iconic moments on television. His character’s wife didn’t seem to be affected by his death. But at the episode, she broke a punch bowl and screamed out, “Damn! Danm Damn!”
He and Lear remained friends, and Amos starred in his sequel to All in the Family in 1994.
His career started in 1970 and continued through this year. While Good Times is what he will be remembered for most, he had plenty of other roles for us to rmeember in. His breakout role was the sane person in the newsroom on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. He also was seen in Coming to America and the sequel, Roots, The West Wing. and All About the Andersons, to name a few.
Today, scream out, “Damn! Damn! Damn!” so that he can hear our voices as he makes his way up to heaven.
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