Clarence Alfred Gilyard Jr.
(December 24, 1955 – November 28, 2022) was an American university professor, actor, and author. As a performer, he appeared in film, television, and stage productions; some sources give his middle name as Alfred.
Gilyard was known for his roles as second private investigator and right-hand man
Conrad McMasters
These are the characters of the American television legal drama '' Matlock''.
Main
Ben Matlock
Benjamin Leighton "Ben" Matlock is a renowned, folksy yet cantankerous defense attorney who charges a fee of $100,000 to take a case. He is known ...
to
Ben Matlock
Benjamin Leighton Matlock is a fictional character from the television series, '' Matlock'', played by Andy Griffith. Matlock is a renowned, folksy yet cantankerous defense attorney who is worth every penny of his $100,000 fee. Known for visitin ...
(played by
Andy Griffith
Andy Samuel Griffith (June 1, 1926 – July 3, 2012) was an American actor, comedian, television producer, southern gospel singer and writer whose career spanned seven decades in music and television. Known for his Southern drawl, his character ...
) on the
legal
Law is a set of rules that are created and are law enforcement, enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. ...
drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...
series
Series may refer to:
People with the name
* Caroline Series (born 1951), English mathematician, daughter of George Series
* George Series (1920–1995), English physicist
Arts, entertainment, and media
Music
* Series, the ordered sets used in ...
''
Matlock ''from 1989 to 1993; Pastor Bruce Barnes in the first two ''Left Behind'' movies; Cordell Walker's (played by
Chuck Norris
Carlos Ray "Chuck" Norris (born March 10, 1940) is an American martial artist and actor. He is a black belt in Tang Soo Do, Brazilian jiu jitsu and judo. After serving in the United States Air Force, Norris won many martial arts championshi ...
)
Texas Ranger
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by bo ...
partner, James "Jimmy" Trivette, in the 1990s
crime drama
Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and comb ...
''
Walker, Texas Ranger
''Walker, Texas Ranger'' is an American action crime television series created by Leslie Greif and Paul Haggis. It was inspired by the film '' Lone Wolf McQuade'', with both this series and that film starring Chuck Norris as a member of the ...
''; Theo, the terrorist computer expert in ''
Die Hard''; and Lieutenant (junior grade) Evan "Sundown" Gough in ''
Top Gun
''Top Gun'' is a 1986 American action drama film directed by Tony Scott, produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer, with distribution by Paramount Pictures. The screenplay was written by Jim Cash and Jack Epps Jr., and was inspired by an ...
''.
Early life and education
Gilyard was born into a military family in
Moses Lake, Washington
Moses Lake is a city in Grant County, Washington, United States. The population was 25,146 as of the 2020 census. Moses Lake is the largest city in Grant County. The city anchors the Moses Lake Micropolitan area, which includes all of Grant C ...
, on
Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas Day, the festival commemorating the birth of Jesus. Christmas Day is observed around the world, and Christmas Eve is widely observed as a full or partial holiday in anticipation ...
, in 1955,
the son of Barbara and Clarence Alfred Gilyard Sr., a
U.S. Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sign ...
officer. Gilyard was the second of six children.
His family was originally from
, but Gilyard grew up on Air Force bases in Hawaii, Texas, and Florida. Raised primarily as a
Lutheran
Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched ...
, he became
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
in the 1990s.
During his young adulthood, Gilyard lived in the
San Bernardino
San Bernardino (; Spanish for "Saint Bernardino") is a city and county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States. Located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California, the city had a population of 222,101 in the 2020 cen ...
suburb of
Rialto, California
Rialto is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States, 56 miles east of Los Angeles, near the Cajon Pass, Interstate 15, Interstate 10, State Route 210 and Metrolink routes.
Its population was 104,026 as of the 2020 Census ...
, and attended
Eisenhower High School. He was an excellent student, graduating in 1974, and afterward spent a year as an
Air Force Academy
An air force academy or air academy is a national institution that provides initial officer training, possibly including undergraduate level education, to air force officer cadets who are preparing to be commissioned officers in a national air for ...
cadet before leaving the service to attend
Sterling College. In college, he played football, and became a member of the
Sigma Chi
Sigma Chi () International Fraternity is one of the largest North American fraternal literary societies. The fraternity has 244 active (undergraduate) chapters and 152 alumni chapters across the United States and Canada and has initiated more t ...
fraternity. He also received a tennis scholarship, but dropped out of school before completing his studies.
While living with his parents in high school, Gilyard was preoccupied with women, alcohol, and occasionally, drugs.
His parents urged him to move out, so he relocated to
Long Beach, California
Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California.
Incorporate ...
, with a friend. He attended
California State University, Long Beach
California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) is a public research university in Long Beach, California. The 322-acre campus is the second largest of the 23-school California State University system (CSU) and one of the largest universities ...
, majoring in acting, and worked as a waiter while seeking acting opportunities. He completed his bachelor's degree at
California State University, Dominguez Hills
California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH, CSU Dominguez Hills, or Cal State Dominguez Hills) is a public university in Carson, California. It was founded in 1960 and is part of the California State University (CSU) system.
In 2020, ...
.
Gilyard worked with a housemate at a clothing store, where he was promoted to manager. He left this to work briefly selling industrial chemicals.
In 2003, Gilyard returned to school, receiving a
master of fine arts
A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.)
is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts ...
in theatre performance at
Southern Methodist University
, mottoeng = " The truth will make you free"
, established =
, type = Private research university
, accreditation = SACS
, academic_affiliations =
, religious_affiliation = United Methodist Church
, president = R. Gerald Turner
, p ...
.
Career
Actor
In 1979, Gilyard moved to Los Angeles to become an actor. Among other work, a role in the play ''
Bleacher Bums
''Bleacher Bums'' is a 1977 play written collaboratively by members of Chicago's Organic Theater Company, from an idea by actor Joe Mantegna. Its original Chicago production was directed by Stuart Gordon. A 1979 performance of the play was tap ...
'' made him what one magazine called "the first black actor to play a cheerleader",
before he segued into television roles. As a
character actor
A character actor is a supporting actor who plays unusual, interesting, or eccentric characters.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrieved 7 August 2014, "..a breed of actor who has the ability to b ...
, Gilyard made guest appearances on TV shows such as ''
Diff'rent Strokes
''Diff'rent Strokes'' is an American television sitcom, which aired on NBC from November 3, 1978, to May 4, 1985, and on ABC from September 27, 1985, to March 7, 1986. The series stars Gary Coleman and Todd Bridges as Arnold and Willis Jackso ...
'', ''
The Facts of Life'', ''
227
Year 227 ( CCXXVII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Senecio and Fulvius (or, less frequently, year 980 ''Ab urbe condi ...
'', ''
Simon & Simon
''Simon & Simon'' is an American crime drama television series that originally ran from November 24, 1981, to September 16, 1989. The series was broadcast on CBS, and starred Gerald McRaney and Jameson Parker as two disparate brothers who oper ...
'', and ''
Riptide
A rip tide, or riptide, is a strong offshore current that is caused by the tide pulling water through an inlet along a barrier beach, at a lagoon or inland marina where tide water flows steadily out to sea during ebb tide. It is a strong tidal flo ...
''. In 1982–1983, Gilyard was cast in the final season of the
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
TV series ''
CHiPs
''CHiPs'' is an American crime drama television series created by Rick Rosner and originally aired on NBC from September 15, 1977, to May 1, 1983. It follows the lives of two motorcycle officers of the California Highway Patrol (CHP). The seri ...
'' as Officer Benjamin Webster, opposite
Erik Estrada
Henry Enrique Estrada (born March 16, 1949) is an American actor and police officer. He is known for his co-starring lead role as California Highway Patrol officer Francis (Frank) Llewelyn "Ponch" Poncherello in the police drama television series ...
. He co-starred with
Jim Carrey
James Eugene Carrey (; born January 17, 1962) is a Canadian-American actor, comedian and artist. Known for his energetic slapstick performances, Carrey first gained recognition in 1990, after landing a role in the American sketch comedy t ...
in the 1984 NBC sitcom ''The Duck Factory''. He appeared in a commercial for
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is an American multinational fast food chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechristened their business as a hambur ...
in 1987.
Gilyard's movie debut in 1986 was as an
F-14 Tomcat
The Grumman F-14 Tomcat is an American carrier-capable supersonic aircraft, supersonic, twinjet, twin-engine, two-seat, twin-tail, variable-sweep wing fighter aircraft. The Tomcat was developed for the United States Navy's Naval Fighter Experi ...
radar intercept officer, LT.(JG) Marcus "Sundown" Williams, in ''
Top Gun
''Top Gun'' is a 1986 American action drama film directed by Tony Scott, produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer, with distribution by Paramount Pictures. The screenplay was written by Jim Cash and Jack Epps Jr., and was inspired by an ...
''. He was also a military man in the 1986 film ''
The Karate Kid Part II
''The Karate Kid Part II'' is a 1986 American martial arts drama film written by Robert Mark Kamen and directed by John G. Avildsen. It is the second installment in the ''Karate Kid'' franchise and the sequel to the 1984 film '' The Karate Kid'' ...
''. He appeared in the 1988 action film ''Die Hard'' as Theo, a criminal computer expert. He also appeared as Reverend Bruce Barnes in ''
Left Behind: The Movie'' and its sequel, ''
Left Behind II: Tribulation Force''.
Gilyard played the role of Ben Matlock's private investigator, Conrad McMasters, on ''
Matlock'' opposite Andy Griffith from 1989 to 1993. He replaced
Kene Holliday
Kenneth Earl Holliday (born June 25, 1949) is an American actor of stage, film, and television. He is known for his role as Ben Matlock's original private investigator, Tyler Hudson, on '' Matlock'', and as Sgt. Curtis Baker on ''Carter Count ...
, who was fired for his dependency on drugs and alcohol. Gilyard appeared in almost every ''Matlock'' episode starting in season 3 of the show. When the show moved from
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
to
ABC for the series' seventh season, production moved from Los Angeles to
Wilmington, North Carolina
Wilmington is a port city in and the county seat of New Hanover County in coastal southeastern North Carolina, United States.
With a population of 115,451 at the 2020 census, it is the eighth most populous city in the state. Wilmington is t ...
. Andy Griffith suggested to Gilyard that he move there, too, which he did, before departing to work on a
pilot for another series at
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
the following year.
In 1993, he began another long-time co-starring role opposite Chuck Norris on ''Walker, Texas Ranger''. Gilyard portrayed fellow
Texas Ranger
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by bo ...
and best friend of Walker, James "Jimmy" Trivette. Gilyard had a
cameo appearance
A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...
in the 2005
television movie
A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...
, ''Walker, Texas Ranger: Trial by Fire''.
In 2012, after taking time off to teach, Gilyard began appearing onscreen again, mostly in independent projects. In 2014, he appeared in the religious film ''A Matter of Faith''.
On January 17, 2016, Gilyard performed the role of Hoak Colburn onstage at the
University of New Mexico
The University of New Mexico (UNM; es, Universidad de Nuevo México) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Founded in 1889, it is the state's flagship academic institution and the largest by enrollment, with over 25,400 ...
's Popejoy Hall in the Neil Simon Festival's ''
Driving Miss Daisy
'' Driving Miss Daisy'' is a 1989 American comedy-drama film directed by Bruce Beresford and written by Alfred Uhry, based on his 1987 play of the same name. The film stars Jessica Tandy, Morgan Freeman, and Dan Aykroyd. Freeman reprised his ro ...
'', opposite his former ''Walker, Texas Ranger'' co-star,
Sheree J. Wilson
Sheree Julienne Wilson (born December 12, 1958) is an American actress, producer, businesswoman, and model. She is best known for her roles as April Stevens Ewing on the American primetime television series ''Dallas'' (1986–1991) and as Alex Ca ...
.
In the 2018 edition of the football video game ''
Madden NFL
''Madden NFL'' (known as ''John Madden Football'' until 1993) is an American football video game series developed by EA Tiburon for EA Sports. It is named after Pro Football Hall of Fame coach and commentator John Madden and sold more than 130 m ...
'', Gilyard plays high school coach Devin Wade in the "Longshot" section of the game. Two years later, Gilyard reprised his role as criminal gang member Theo from ''Die Hard'', alongside star Bruce Willis, in a commercial for
Advance Auto Parts
Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (Advance) is an American automotive aftermarket parts provider. Headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, it serves both professional installer and do it yourself (DIY) customers. As of July 13, 2019, Advance operated 4 ...
'
DieHard brand of car batteries.
Professor
In 2006 Gilyard took a break from acting and became an associate professor in the College of Fine Arts – Department of Theatre at the
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. It includes th ...
, where he taught stage and screen acting.
He continued to teach for many years. Following his death, the school's film chair said "Professor Gilyard was a beacon of light and strength for everyone around at UNLV".
Personal life and death
Gilyard was married twice and had six children. His first marriage, to Catherine Dutko in 1989, ended in divorce, and he married his second wife, Elena Castillo, in 2001.
He served as the consultant of the communications committee of the
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Conference (US ...
.
After a long illness, Gilyard died at his home in Las Vegas, Nevada, on November 28, 2022, at the age of 66.
Filmography
Film
Television
Bibliography
* ''The Dance of the Star'' (1990)
* ''Instructors and Students'' (1992)
* ''Eagle in a Cage'' (1996)
* ''Perfume at Night'' (1997)
* ''Melancholy in the Mirror'' (2002)
* ''Past and Present: My Story'' (2005)
* ''The Game of Venus'' (2006)
* ''Memories of a Stranger Wanderer'' (2008)
* ''Cry of the Cat'' (2010)
* ''Red Lights'' (2011)
References
External links
*
Clarence Gilyard Net Worth
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gilyard, Clarence
1955 births
2022 deaths
20th-century African-American people
20th-century American male actors
21st-century African-American people
21st-century American male actors
African-American Catholics
African-American male actors
American male film actors
American male television actors
California State University, Dominguez Hills alumni
Catholics from California
Catholics from Washington (state)
Converts to Roman Catholicism from Lutheranism
Male actors from Washington (state)
People from Moses Lake, Washington
People from Rialto, California
Southern Methodist University alumni
University of Nevada, Las Vegas faculty
American male stage actors