Hal Williams
Encyclopedia
Harold "Hal" Williams is an American actor, best known for his recurring role as the black cop Officer Smith ("Smitty") on Sanford and Son
, and as the patriarch Lester Jenkins, the husband of Marla Gibbs
's character, on 227
.
Williams started out in show business in 1969. Since then, he has appeared in movies such as Hardcore, Private Benjamin
(he also took his role of Sgt L.C. "Ted" Ross to the television series of the same name), and The Rookie. He was controversially fired from The Jimmy Stewart Show
in 1971 at the insistence of its star, James Stewart
. In the early to mid-1990s, he starred in many of comic Sinbad's productions, including The Sinbad Show
and The Cherokee Kid
. Most recently, he played the grandfather in the Bernie Mac
film Guess Who
.
His other television credits include Moonlight
, Moesha
, Suddenly Susan
, Minor Adjustments
, L.A. Law
, Night Court
, Magnum, P.I.
, Hill Street Blues
, Gimme a Break, The Jeffersons
, The Dukes of Hazzard, T.J. Hooker, The Waltons
, Knots Landing
, The White Shadow
, What's Happening!!
, Good Times
, Quincy, M.E.
, Kung Fu
, S.W.A.T.
,Gunsmoke
and That Girl
.
Williams is also the host of the annual Sickle Cell Anemia Foundation nationally-televised telethon.
Sanford and Son
Sanford and Son is an American sitcom, based on the BBC's Steptoe and Son, that ran on the NBC television network from January 14, 1972, to March 25, 1977....
, and as the patriarch Lester Jenkins, the husband of Marla Gibbs
Marla Gibbs
Marla Gibbs is an American television and film actress and singer. She is best remembered for playing Louise and George Jefferson's sarcastic maid, Florence Johnston, on The Jeffersons and spinoff Checking In...
's character, on 227
227 (TV series)
227 is an American situation comedy that originally aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, until May 6, 1990. The series starred Marla Gibbs as a sharp-tongued, inner-city resident gossip and housewife, Mary Jenkins...
.
Williams started out in show business in 1969. Since then, he has appeared in movies such as Hardcore, Private Benjamin
Private Benjamin
Private Benjamin is a 1980 American comedy film starring Goldie Hawn. The film was one of the biggest box office hits of 1980, and also spawned a short-lived television series. The film is ranked 82 on the American Film Institute's "100 Funniest Movies" poll, and 59 on Bravo's "100 Funniest...
(he also took his role of Sgt L.C. "Ted" Ross to the television series of the same name), and The Rookie. He was controversially fired from The Jimmy Stewart Show
The Jimmy Stewart Show
The Jimmy Stewart Show is an American sitcom starring James Stewart as a professor at a small town university called Josiah Kesser College. Twenty-four episodes of the show were broadcast in the 1971–1972 season on the NBC network's Sunday night schedule , under the sponsorship of Procter &...
in 1971 at the insistence of its star, James Stewart
James Stewart
James Stewart was a Hollywood movie actor and USAF brigadier general.James Stewart may also refer to:-Noblemen:*James Stewart, 5th High Steward of Scotland*James Stewart, the Black Knight of Lorn James Stewart (1908–1997) was a Hollywood movie actor and USAF brigadier general.James Stewart...
. In the early to mid-1990s, he starred in many of comic Sinbad's productions, including The Sinbad Show
The Sinbad Show
The Sinbad Show is an American sitcom starring comedian Sinbad that premiered on September 16, 1993 on Fox. The show's main plot is about a bachelor taking in two orphaned children. Chuck Brown performed this sitcom's theme music...
and The Cherokee Kid
The Cherokee Kid
The Cherokee Kid is the name of a 1996 HBO television movie starring Sinbad, James Coburn, Burt Reynolds, Gregory Hines, A Martinez, Ernie Hudson, Dawnn Lewis, and Vanessa Bell Calloway....
. Most recently, he played the grandfather in the Bernie Mac
Bernie Mac
Bernard Jeffrey McCullough , better known by his stage name, Bernie Mac, was an American actor and comedian. Born and raised on the South Side of Chicago, Mac gained popularity as a stand-up comedian. He joined comedians Steve Harvey, Cedric the Entertainer, and D. L...
film Guess Who
Guess Who (film)
Guess Who is a 2005 American comedy film about race relations directed by Kevin Rodney Sullivan. It is a loose remake of the 1967 film Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, in the form of a romantic comedy...
.
His other television credits include Moonlight
Moonlight
Moonlight is the light that reaches Earth from the Moon. This light does not originate from the Moon, but from sunlight. The Moon does not, however, reflect sunlight like a mirror, but it reflects light from those portions of its surface which the Sun's light strikes. See diffuse reflection.In...
, Moesha
Moesha
Moesha is an American sitcom series that aired on the UPN network from January 23, 1996 to May 14, 2001. The series stars R&B singer Brandy Norwood as Moesha Mitchell, a high school student living with her family in the Leimert Park neighborhood of South Central Los Angeles.-Overview:The show...
, Suddenly Susan
Suddenly Susan
Suddenly Susan is an American sitcom that was broadcast on NBC from 1996 to 2000. The show takes place at The Gate, a fictitious magazine which is based in San Francisco. Among the magazine's employees is Susan Keane , who always has been cared for by someone else...
, Minor Adjustments
Minor Adjustments
Minor Adjustments is an American television sitcom that appeared on the NBC network in the United States during the 1995–96 season. The show was then transferred to UPN to be rebroadcast during the 1996-1997 season.-Synopsis:...
, L.A. Law
L.A. Law
L.A. Law is a US television legal drama that ran on NBC from September 15, 1986 to May 19, 1994. L.A. Law reflected the social and cultural ideologies of the 1980s and early 1990s and many of the cases featured on the show dealt with hot topic issues such as abortion, racism, gay rights,...
, Night Court
Night Court
Night Court is an American television situation comedy that aired on NBC from January 4, 1984, to May 20, 1992. The setting was the night shift of a Manhattan court, presided over by the young, unorthodox Judge Harold T. "Harry" Stone...
, Magnum, P.I.
Magnum, P.I.
Magnum, P.I. is an American television series starring Tom Selleck as Thomas Magnum, a private investigator living on Oahu, Hawaii. The series ran from 1980 to 1988 in first-run broadcast on the American CBS television network....
, Hill Street Blues
Hill Street Blues
Hill Street Blues is an American serial police drama that was first aired on NBC in 1981 and ran for 146 episodes on primetime into 1987. Chronicling the lives of the staff of a single police precinct in an unnamed American city, the show received critical acclaim and its production innovations ...
, Gimme a Break, The Jeffersons
The Jeffersons
The Jeffersons is an American sitcom that was broadcast on CBS from January 18, 1975, through June 25, 1985, lasting 11 seasons and a total of 253 episodes. The show was produced by the T.A.T. Communications Company from 1975–1982 and by Embassy Television from 1982-1985...
, The Dukes of Hazzard, T.J. Hooker, The Waltons
The Waltons
The Waltons is an American television series created by Earl Hamner, Jr., based on his book Spencer's Mountain, and a 1963 film of the same name. The show centered on a family growing up in a rural Virginia community during the Great Depression and World War II. The series pilot was a television...
, Knots Landing
Knots Landing
Knots Landing is an American primetime television soap opera that aired from December 27, 1979 to May 13, 1993 on CBS. Set in a fictitious coastal suburb of Los Angeles in California, the show centered on the lives of four married couples living in a cul-de-sac, Seaview Circle...
, The White Shadow
The White Shadow
The White Shadow is an American drama television series that ran on the CBS network from November 27, 1978, to March 16, 1981.-Overview:...
, What's Happening!!
What's Happening!!
What's Happening!! is an American television sitcom that aired on ABC from August 5, 1976 to April 28, 1979. The show premiered as a summer series. With good ratings and reviews, and after the failure of several other shows on the network, What's Happening!! returned in November 1976 as a weekly...
, Good Times
Good Times
Good Times is an American sitcom that originally aired from February 8, 1974, until August 1, 1979, on the CBS television network. It was created by Eric Monte and Michael Evans, and developed by Norman Lear, the series' primary executive producer...
, Quincy, M.E.
Quincy, M.E.
Quincy, M.E., also called Quincy, is a United States television series from Universal Studios that aired from October 3, 1976, to September 5, 1983, on NBC...
, Kung Fu
Kung Fu (TV series)
Kung Fu is an American television series that starred David Carradine. It was created by Ed Spielman, directed and produced by Jerry Thorpe, and developed by Herman Miller, who was also a writer for, and co-producer of, the series...
, S.W.A.T.
S.W.A.T.
- S.W.A.T. 1 :Date: October 4, 2006Location: VilniusResults: Valentine Bagdonavicius defeated Richard Damanskas by KO Gediminas Bielskis defeated Mantas Kuslin by KO Saulius Poltanavicius vs Aivaras Juska Draw...
,Gunsmoke
Gunsmoke
Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. The stories take place in and around Dodge City, Kansas, during the settlement of the American West....
and That Girl
That Girl
That Girl is an American television situation comedy that ran on ABC from 1966 to 1971. It stars Marlo Thomas as the title character, Ann Marie, an aspiring actress, who had moved from her hometown of Brewster, New York to make it big in New York City...
.
Williams is also the host of the annual Sickle Cell Anemia Foundation nationally-televised telethon.
Theatre
| Year | Production | Role | Theatre(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Nevis Mountain Dew | Boise McCanles | Los Angeles Actors Theatre |