Entertainment
Clarence Williams III, Star of “The Mod Squad”, “Purple Rain”, Dies at 81
Clarence Williams III, who played the role of cool detective Linc Hayeson ABC “The Mod Squad”, and Prince’s abusive father in the 1984s “Purple rain” is dead. He was 81 years old.
Williams died on June 4 in Los Angeles from colon cancer, his management company confirmed to USA TODAY.
The late actor starred in the counter-culture crime series alongsidePeggy lipton (died in 2019) as Julie Barnes and Michael Cole as Pete Cochran from 1968 to 1973. The trio portrayed young adults who had previously come into contact with the police, but who later became LAPD secret agents under the command of the Captain Adam Greer (Rod Andrews).
It was revolutionary for a black actor at the time to have the lead role for five seasons in the executive of the Aaron Spelling-produced series, as Williams discussed in a 1995 Interview with the Los Angeles Times.
“It was a very different role for an African American and a wonderful lead character that a lot of young people, black and white, and mostly young African Americans could relate to,” he said.
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As the musician and actor Lenny Kravitz said on Twitter in tribute Sunday, “When I was a kid growing up in New York City, Clarence Williams III was a face on television that I identified with and who inspired me.”
“From Mod Squad to Purple Rain and Sugar Hill, he’s always played with dynamic energy. Rest in power, King,” Kravitz added.
Williams, born August 21, 1939, was the son of professional musician Clay Williams and singer and actress Eva Taylor. His grandfather Clarence Williams was a composer-pianist and a frequent collaborator with blues legend Bessie Smith.
After enlisting in the US Army and serving as a paratrooper in the 101st Airborne Division, Williams returned to the movies and landed the starring role in “The Mod Squad”.
His character’s use of the word “solid” as a positive description has been one of the main terms of “Mod Squad” to fit into the mainstream venacular stream.
Williams played the role of Wesley Snipes’ father in “Sugar Hill” in 1993 and as a religious detective in “Deep Cover” in 1992 with Laurence Fishburne and Jeff Goldblum.
InDave Chappelle’s 1998 stoner comedy “Half Baked”, Williams played a flamboyant local drug lord, Samson Simpson.
Working with Prince on “Purple Rain”, describing his father, was “chaotic”, but a special experience in his life, Williams told The Times.
“There was an acoustic guitar on the set and Prince was sitting on the floor just staring into space and I guess he was going through the same process as I was thinking about what we had shot,” Williams recalls. “He just picked up the guitar and started to doodle. I had my eyes closed, and I was leaning back in the chair and thought of Jimi Hendrix. I mean he was touching a few chords and the soundstage was absolutely quiet. It was just a wonderful, wonderful experience. “
He also played the role of Maynard in “Lee Daniels ‘The Butler” in 2013 and appeared as music legend Huey Jarvis in Daniels’ “Empire” in 2015.
Williams was married to actress Gloria Foster from 1967 to 1984. He is survived by his sister Sondra Pugh, daughter Jamey Phillips, niece Suyin Shaw, grandnephews Elliot Shaw and Ese Shaw, and grandniece Azaria Verdin.
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