John Amos
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 "The Beastmaster" (1982), "Coming to America" (1988), "Lock Up" (1989), "Die Hard 2" (1990) and "Coming 2 America" (2021).
Prior to acting, he played on the Colorado State Rams football team and in 1964, he signed a free agent contract with the American Football League's Denver Broncos and in 1967 signed a free agent contract with the American Football League's Kansas City Chiefs. Both of these contracts did not land him a spot on the teams and played a final season in the Continental Football League with the Victoria Steelers before pursuing acting.
Known for
The Love Boat
Duke Taylor
Love, American Style
Bell Captain
Love, American Style
The A-Team
Rev. Taylor
Two and a Half Men
Ed
Psych
Uncle Burton
King of the Hill
Glen Johnson (voice)
My Name Is Earl
Joe
30 Rock
John Amos
Ballers
Deacon Eller
Murder, She Wrote
Doc Penrose
Lie to Me
Jim Weaver
The Cosby Show
Dr. Herbert
Walker, Texas Ranger
Pastor Roscoe Jones
The West Wing
Percy Fitzwallace
The New Dick Van Dyke Show
Mark Cooper
Touched by an Angel
Sheriff James Mackey
The Movies That Made Us
Self
Hunter
Capt. Dolan (uncredited)
In the House
The Mary Tyler Moore Show
Gordy Howard
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
Fred Wilkes
Royal Pains
Harrison Phillips
The Ranch
Ed
Good Times
James Evans Sr.
Here's Boomer
Police Story
All About the Andersons
Joe Anderson
NYC 22
Pappy Science
The Chris Rock Show
Self
Roots
Toby
Roots
Older Kunta Kinte
Dinah!
Self
Men in Trees
Buzz
The Outer Limits
Peter 'Yas' Yastrzemski
Suits LA
John Amos
The District
Mayor Ethan Baker
The Last O.G.
Uncle D
Martin
Sgt. Strawn
Future Cop
Bill Bundy
Sanford and Son
Hardcastle and McCormick
Albie Meadows
704 Hauser
Ernie Cumberbatch
Die Hard 2
Major Grant
Coming to America
Cleo McDowell
Uncut Gems
Neighbor 33F
Coming 2 America
Cleo McDowell
The Funny Side
Minority Husband
Me Time
Gil
Lock Up
Captain Meissner
The Beastmaster
Seth
The Last Rifleman
Lincoln Jefferson Adams
Dr. Dolittle 3
Jud
Ricochet
Reverend Styles
Vanishing Point
Super Soul's Engineer
Alcatraz: The Whole Shocking Story
Bumpy Johnson
Madea's Witness Protection
Pastor Nelson
Bad Asses on the Bayou
Earl
My Baby's Daddy
Uncle Virgil
TV in Black: The First Fifty Years
(archive footage)
The Players Club
Freeman
American Flyers
Dr. Conrad
Live in Front of a Studio Audience: "All in the Family" and "Good Times"
Fred Davis
Two Evil Eyes
Det. Legrand
Alcatraz: The Whole Shocking Story
Bumpy Johnson
The Watermelon Heist
Old Man Amos
Disappearing Acts
Mr. Swift
Let's Do It Again
Kansas City Mack
Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song
Biker
Hologram Man
Wes Strickland
Shadowboxing
Хилл
Christmas Belles
Pop Pop
Mac
Nat
Bonanza: The Next Generation
Mr. Mack
Night Trap
Capt. Hodges
Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You
Self
For Better or Worse
Gray
The World's Greatest Athlete
Coach Sam Archer
Voodoo Moon
Dutch
Countdown
Admiral Melory
Act of Faith
Mr. Brady
The Rockford Files: Shoot-Out at the Golden Pagoda
Booker Hutch
Future Cop
Officer Bill Bundy
American Lowrider
Slick
Mary Tyler Moore: A Celebration
Self / Gordy Howard (archive footage)
Touched by Love
Tony
The President's Plane Is Missing
Marine Corporal
Block Party
Dennis
Something to Sing About
Rev. Washington
Shark's Paradise
Taxi Driver
Willa
Virgil
Devotion
Roger
Zombie Hamlet
Edgar Mortimer
Dance of the Dwarfs
Esteban
Christmas in Miami
Chief Host
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
Self
The Truth About Santa Claus
Bob
All Over Again
Coach Zeller
The Beastmaster Chronicles
Self
Cops and Robin
Officer Bill Bundy
Tamales and Gumbo
The Patron
The Merv Griffin Show
Self
Mercy for Angels
God
Ascension Day
Henry
The Mike Douglas Show
Self
Future Cop: Cops and Robin
Officer Bundy
Because of Charley
Grandpa
John Amos: Roots of an American Legend
Self