Hal Williams, the TV veteran who appeared in American sitcom staples like “227” and “Sanford and Son,” has died, according to his manager. He was 91.
“227” ran from 1985 to 1990, and followed a group of middle-aged tenants living together in an apartment building. Williams starred as Lester Jenkins, who, in the show, was husband to Marla Gibbs’ Mary Jenkins and father to Regina King’s Brenda Jenkins. “227” aired 116 episodes across five seasons on NBC. Series star Jackée Harry won an Emmy for best supporting actress for her work on the show in 1987. Other cast members included Helen Martin, Alaina Reed-Hall and Curtis Baldwin.
Williams appeared in 22 episodes of “Sanford and Son” as Officer “Smitty” Smith. The character was part of a duo with Howard Platt’s Officer “Hoppy” Hopkins. The pair had a recurring bit where Hopkins would lead by outlining a case with complicated police jargon, and it would be up to Smith to spell it all out again in layman’s terms.
In a recent interview with WKYC, Williams explained how the Smitty and Hoppy gag came to be: “We did it in one time in rehearsal and the producers thought it was funny. We did it in the first or second episode and it clicked. Some days, we would come to rehearsal and they didn’t have anything solid. [The producers would then say,] ‘Go out, take a break for two hours, and bring us something back.’”
Williams’ other TV credits include “On the Rocks,” “The Waltons,” “Private Benjamin” and “The Sinbad Show.” His most recent TV role was on CBS’ “Matlock” remake. On the film side, Williams appeared in “Hardcore,” “The Rookie,” “Percy & Thunder,” “Guess Who” and “Flight.”