John Amos

Acting

John Amos

Born December 27, 1939 · Newark, New Jersey, USA

Died August 21, 2024 · aged 84

John Amos (December 27, 1939 – August 21, 2024) was an American actor and retired football player. He is best known for his role as the adult Kunta Kinte in the landmark miniseries "Roots" and for portraying James Evans Sr. on the CBS television series "Good Times." He was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award and an NAACP Image Award. On film, he played numerous supporting roles in movies such as …

Known For

Coming to AmericaComing to America · 1988
Coming to America
6.91988
MovieComedyRomance
An African prince decides it’s time for him to find a princess... and his mission leads him and his most loyal friend to Queens, New York. In disguise as an impoverished immigrant, the pampered prince quickly finds himself a new job, new friends, new digs, new enemies and lots of trouble.
Die Hard 2Die Hard 2 · 1990
Die Hard 2
7.01990
MovieActionThriller
One year after his heroics in Los Angeles, John McClane is an off-duty cop who is the wrong guy in the wrong place at the wrong time. On a snowy Christmas Eve, as he waits for his wife's plane to land at Washington Dulles International Airport, terrorists take over the air traffic control system in a plot to free a South American army general and drug smuggler being flown into the US to face drug charges. It's now up to McClane to take on the terrorists, while coping with an inept airport police chief, an uncooperative anti-terrorist squad, and the life of his wife and everyone else trapped in planes circling overhead.
Uncut GemsUncut Gems · 2019
Uncut Gems
7.22019
MovieDramaThriller
A charismatic New York City jeweler always on the lookout for the next big score makes a series of high-stakes bets that could lead to the windfall of a lifetime. Howard must perform a precarious high-wire act, balancing business, family, and encroaching adversaries on all sides in his relentless pursuit of the ultimate win.
Coming 2 AmericaComing 2 America · 2021
Coming 2 America
6.32021
MovieComedy
Prince Akeem Joffer is set to become King of Zamunda when he discovers he has a son he never knew about in America – a street savvy Queens native named Lavelle. Honoring his royal father's dying wish to groom this son as the crown prince, Akeem and Semmi set off to America once again.
Lock UpLock Up · 1989
Lock Up
6.81989
MovieActionCrime
Frank Leone is nearing the end of his prison term for a relatively minor crime. Just before he is paroled, however, Warden Drumgoole takes charge. Drumgoole was assigned to a hell-hole prison after his administration was publicly humiliated by Leone, and has now arrived on the scene to ensure that Leone never sees the light of day.
Me TimeMe Time · 2022
Me Time
5.82022
MovieComedy
With his family away, a devoted stay-at-home dad enjoys his first me time in years by joining his hard-partying old friend on a wild birthday adventure.
RicochetRicochet · 1991
Ricochet
6.11991
MovieCrimeThriller
An attorney is terrorized by the criminal he put away years ago when he was a cop.
The BeastmasterThe Beastmaster · 1982
The Beastmaster
6.31982
MovieFantasyAdventure
Dar, the son of a king, is hunted by a priest after his birth and grows up in another family. When he becomes a grown man, his new father is murdered by savages and he discovers that he has the ability to communicate with animals, which leads him on a quest for revenge against his father's killers.

Filmography

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Alcatraz: The Whole Shocking StoryAlcatraz: The Whole Shocking Story · 1980
Alcatraz: The Whole Shocking Story
5.51980
MovieCrimeDrama
Filmed on location at Alcatraz Island, this two-part "whole story" actually concentrates on a handful of the denizens behind the cold grey walls of "The Rock". Michael Beck plays the real-life Clarence Carnes, an Oklahoma Choctaw Indian said to be the youngest man ever incarcerated in the notorious maximum security prison. Serving a 99-year sentence for a gas station holdup and murder, Carnes makes periodic attempts to escape, the final attempt being the most violent. Many of the subordinate characters are fictional (as are most of the details concerning Carnes' escape efforts); the one exception is Robert Stroud, the "Birdman of Alcatraz", here portrayed by Art Carney as a gentle, kindly philosopher. Telly Savalas, a costar of the Burt Lancaster vehicle Birdman of Alcatraz, also guest starred in the 1980 film. Originally titled Alcatraz and Clarence Carnes, this made-for-TV movie wavers between gritty realism and "I'm bustin' outta here!" artifice.

Bumpy Johnson

HunterHunter · 1984
Hunter
7.11984
SeriesAction & AdventureDrama
Hunter is an American police drama television series created by Frank Lupo, and starring Fred Dryer as Sgt. Rick Hunter and Stepfanie Kramer as Sgt. Dee Dee McCall, which ran on NBC from 1984 to 1991. However, Kramer left after the sixth season to pursue other acting and musical opportunities. In the seventh season, Hunter partnered with two different women officers. The titular character, Sgt. Rick Hunter, was a wily, physically imposing, and often rule-breaking homicide detective with the Los Angeles Police Department. The show's main characters, Hunter and McCall, resolve many of their cases by shooting dead the perpetrators. The show's executive producer during the first season was Stephen J. Cannell, whose company produced the series.

Captain Dolan