John Amos, who played the stoic father in Good Instances and Major Kunta Kinte in Alex Haley’s miniseries Roots, has died at the age of 84.
His son, Kelly Christopher Amos, announced that Amos died on August 21 of natural causes in Los Angeles.
“It is with deep sadness that I share with you that my father has made the transition,” he said in a declaration. “He was a man with the kindest heart and a heart of gold… and he was loved all over the world. Many fans consider him their television father. He lived a good life. “His legacy will live on in his outstanding works in television and film as an actor.”
Amos initially pursued a career in soccer after playing at Colorado State University, trying out for the Denver Broncos and the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs of the American Soccer League. His entertainment career kicked into high gear once he was cast as WJN-TV meteorologist Gordy Howard on The Mary Tyler Moore Present.
After four seasons as a cool presence on the early 1970s sitcom, Amos was asked to audition for the role of James Evans Sr, husband of Esther Rolle’s Florida Evans and father of three, for the CBS series Good Instances. The show, which ran from 1974 to 1979, was developed by Eric Monte and Mike Evans along with All Within the Household creator Norman Lear. Good Instances, a spin-off of Maude, a descendant of the groundbreaking All Within the Household, was the first comedy centered on an African-American family.
Amos starred for three seasons on the series, set in inner-city Chicago. But he became irritated by the stereotypical stories of the Evans’ eldest son, JJ, played by comedian Jimmie Walker. Amos was eliminated from the show once he went public with his criticism.
John Amos in 2007. Photography: Gus Ruelas/AP
“We had several differences,” Amos said of Lear in a 2014 report. interview for the TV Academy Foundation. “I felt like there was too much emphasis being placed on JJ with his chicken hat, saying ‘Dy-no-mite!’ every third page. I felt that the same emphasis and benefit could have been gained from my other two children, one of whom aspired to become a Supreme Court justice, played by Ralph Carter, and the other, Bern Nadette Stanis, who aspired to become a surgeon .
“But I wasn’t the most diplomatic guy in those days, and [the show’s producers] They got tired of having their lives threatened for jokes. So they said, ‘I’ll tell you what, why don’t we kill him? We can get on with our lives!’ That taught me a lesson: I wasn’t as important as I thought to the show or to Norman Lear’s plans.”
Amos’s character died in a car accident in a two-part episode that began the show’s fourth season, in September 1976.
In the same 2014 interview, Amos became emotional as he recalled how “young people, in their 30s and 40s, of every ethnicity imaginable, come up to me and say, ‘You’re the father I never had.’”
After his time on Good Instances, Lear’s company hired him to play a congressman in the pilot of a show called Onward and Upward, which he also eventually abandoned. Shortly after, he was approached to star in Roots, the acclaimed 1977 ABC miniseries.
“Period was just what I needed,” he said. “It took the bad taste of Good Instances out of my mouth; It’s not that Good Instances would have been all bad, but the circumstances in which I left and the acrimony between Norman Lear and me… I realize that a lot of that was brought on by myself. . He wasn’t the easiest guy in the world to get along with or lead. I challenged each and every one.”
Roots was “a vindication, a tremendous feeling of satisfaction.”
Amos’ additional television credits include recurring roles on The Contemporary Prince of Bel-Air, playing Will Smith’s stepfather, as well as Hunter, The District, Males in Timber, All In Regards to the Andersons and the Netflix drama The Ranch . He appeared in films such as The World’s Best Athlete, Die Exhausting 2 and Coming to America 2.
