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John Allen Amos Jr. (born December 27, 1939) is an American actor known for his role as James Evans Sr. on the
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 ...
television series ''
Good Times ''Good Times'' is an American television sitcom that aired for six seasons on CBS, from February 8, 1974, to August 1, 1979. Created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans and developed by executive producer Norman Lear, it was television's first African ...
''. Amos's other television work includes ''
The Mary Tyler Moore Show ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' (also known simply as ''Mary Tyler Moore'') is an American television sitcom created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns and starring actress Mary Tyler Moore. The show originally aired on CBS from 1970 to 1977. Moor ...
'', a recurring role as Admiral Percy Fitzwallace on ''
The West Wing ''The West Wing'' is an American serial (radio and television), serial political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the ...
'', and the role of Washington, D.C., Mayor Ethan Baker in the series ''
The District ''The District'' is an American crime drama and police procedural television series which aired on CBS from October 7, 2000, to May 1, 2004. The show followed the work and personal life of the chief of Washington, D.C.'s police department. Pre ...
''. Amos has appeared on Broadway and in numerous films in his five-decade career. He has been nominated for a
Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime ...
and an
NAACP Image Award The NAACP Image Awards is an annual awards ceremony presented by the U.S.-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to honor outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music, and literature. Similar to ...
. On film, he has played numerous supporting roles in movies such as ''
The Beastmaster ''The Beastmaster'' is a 1982 sword and sorcery film directed by Don Coscarelli and starring Marc Singer, Tanya Roberts, John Amos and Rip Torn. Loosely based on the 1959 novel ''The Beast Master'' by Andre Norton, the film is about a man wh ...
'' (1982), ''
Coming to America ''Coming to America'' is a 1988 American romantic comedy film directed by John Landis and based on a story originally created by Eddie Murphy, who also stars in the lead role. The film also co-stars Arsenio Hall, James Earl Jones, Shari Head ...
'' (1988), ''
Die Hard 2 ''Die Hard 2'' (also known by its tagline ''Die Harder'')The film's onscreen title is ''Die Hard 2'', as also given at the initial home-video release'official website The film's original advertising used "Die Harder" as a tagline, and many rele ...
'' (1990) and '' Coming 2 America'' (2021).


Early life

John A. Amos Jr. was born on December 27, 1939, in
Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.East Orange, New Jersey East Orange is a City (New Jersey), city in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 69,612. The city was List of municipalities in ...
, and graduated from
East Orange High School East Orange High School was a comprehensive community public high school serving students in ninth through twelfth grades from 1891 to 2002 in East Orange, in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. For most of its existence, the school ...
in 1958. He enrolled at
Long Beach City College Long Beach City College (LBCC) is a public community college in Long Beach, California. It was established in 1927 and is divided into two campuses, the Liberal Arts Campus in Lakewood Village and the Pacific Coast Campus in central Long Beach ...
and graduated from
Colorado State University Colorado State University (Colorado State or CSU) is a public land-grant research university in Fort Collins, Colorado. It is the flagship university of the Colorado State University System. Colorado State University is classified among "R1: ...
, qualifying as a
social worker Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social work ...
with a degree in
sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...
. Amos also played on the
Colorado State Rams football The Colorado State Rams football program (established 1893) represents Colorado State University and is a member of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision and the Mountain West Conference. Since joining the Mountain West, the Rams have be ...
team. After college, he was a Golden Gloves boxing champion.


Football career

In 1964, Amos signed a free agent contract with the
American Football League The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Football Conference. ...
's
Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...
. Unable to run the 40-yard dash because of a pulled hamstring, he was released on the second day of training camp. He then played with the Canton Bulldogs and Joliet Explorers of the United Football League. In 1965, he played with the Norfolk Neptunes and Wheeling Ironmen of the Continental Football League. In 1966, he played with the Jersey City Jets and Waterbury Orbits of the
Atlantic Coast Football League The Atlantic Coast Football League (ACFL) was a professional american football minor league that operated from 1962 to 1973. Until 1969, many of its franchises had working agreements with NFL and AFL teams to serve as farm clubs. The league paid ...
. In 1967, Amos signed a free agent contract with the American Football League's
Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...
. Coach
Hank Stram Henry Louis Stram (; January 3, 1923 – July 4, 2005) was an American football coach. He is best known for his 15-year tenure with the Dallas Texans / Kansas City Chiefs of the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NF ...
told him, "You're not a football player, you're a man who is trying to play football." He returned to the Continental League, where he played that year with the
Victoria Steelers The Spokane Shockers were a professional American football team based in Spokane, Washington. The team was founded in 1967 as the Victoria Steelers of the Continental Football League but transferred to Spokane during the 1967–68 offseason. While ...
.


Acting career

Amos became well known in his first major TV role, playing Gordy Howard, the weatherman on ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show,'' from 1970 until 1973. Upon the death of
Betty White Betty Marion White (January 17, 1922December 31, 2021) was an American actress and comedian. A pioneer of early television, with a television career spanning almost seven decades, White was noted for her vast work in the entertainment indust ...
, Amos and
Joyce Bulifant Joyce Collins Bulifant (born December 16, 1937) is an American actress and author. In addition to recurring roles on television, including ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' as Marie Slaughter, Bulifant is recognized for film roles in '' The Happiest ...
(who played Marie Slaughter) became the last surviving semi-regular cast members of that show (not counting child actors). In 1971, he appeared with
Anson Williams Anson Williams (born Anson William Heimlich, September 25, 1949, in Los Angeles, California) is an American actor, singer, and director, best known for his role as gullible, well-intentioned singer Warren "Potsie" Weber on the television series ...
in a commercial for
McDonald's McDonald's Corporation is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechri ...
. But he is best known for his portrayal of
James Evans Sr. ''Good Times'' is an American television sitcom that aired for six seasons on CBS, from February 8, 1974, to August 1, 1979. Created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans and developed by executive producer Norman Lear, it was television's first African ...
, the husband of
Florida Evans ''Good Times'' is an American television sitcom that aired for six seasons on CBS, from February 8, 1974, to August 1, 1979. Created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans and developed by executive producer Norman Lear, it was television's first African ...
, first appearing three times on the sitcom '' Maude'' before continuing the role in 61 episodes of ''Good Times'' from 1974 to 1976.


''Good Times'' (1974–1976)

Although cast as a hard-working middle-aged father of three, Amos was 34 when the show began production in 1973, only eight years older than the actor who played his oldest son (
Jimmie Walker James Carter Walker Jr. (born June 25, 1947) is an American actor and comedian. Walker portrayed James Evans Jr. ("J.J."), the older son of Florida and James Evans Sr., on the CBS television series '' Good Times'', which ran from 1974 to 1979 ...
) and 19 years younger than his screen wife (
Esther Rolle Esther Elizabeth Rolle (November 8, 1920 – November 17, 1998) was an American actress. She is best known for her role as Florida Evans, on the CBS television sitcom '' Maude,'' for two seasons (1972–1974), and its spin-off series ''Go ...
). Much like Rolle, Amos wanted to portray a positive image of an African-American family, struggling against the odds in a poor neighborhood, but saw the premise slighted by lower comedy, and he expressed dissatisfaction. During his tenure on ''Good Times'', Amos openly clashed with the writers of the show, due to the scripts' lack of authenticity in portraying the African-American experience. This led to his dismissal by executive producer Norman Lear at the end of season 3 in 1976. In a 2017 interview, Amos said he had told the writers, who, according to Amos, did not understand African-Americans, "That just doesn't happen in the community. We don't think that way. We don't act that way. We don't let our children do that." In 1980, he starred in the TV film '' Alcatraz: The Whole Shocking Story''. Amos played an
Archie Bunker Archie is a masculine given name, a diminutive of Archibald. It may refer to: People Given name or nickname *Archie Alexander (1888–1958), African-American mathematician, engineer and governor of the US Virgin Islands * Archie Blake (mathematici ...
-style character in the 1994 sitcom ''
704 Hauser ''704 Hauser'' is an American sitcom television series and a spin-off of ''All in the Family'' (the final of several) that aired on CBS from April 11 to May 9, 1994. The series is built around the concept of a black family, the Cumberbatch Family ...
'', a modern spin-off of ''
All In The Family ''All in the Family'' is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS for nine seasons, from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979. Afterwards, it was continued with the spin-off series '' Archie Bunker's Place'', which picked up where ''All in ...
'', but it was canceled after only five episodes (in the series he played a different character than he did in the ''All in the Family'' spin-off ''Maude''). He also portrayed Captain Dolan on the TV show ''
Hunter Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
'' from 1984 to 1985. He co-starred in the
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 ...
police drama ''
The District ''The District'' is an American crime drama and police procedural television series which aired on CBS from October 7, 2000, to May 1, 2004. The show followed the work and personal life of the chief of Washington, D.C.'s police department. Pre ...
''. Amos was a frequent guest on ''
The West Wing ''The West Wing'' is an American serial (radio and television), serial political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the ...
'', portraying Admiral
Percy Fitzwallace The television series ''The West Wing'' is a political drama series which was originally broadcast on NBC. During its seven seasons the ensemble cast of stars, recurring stars, and guest stars earned 157 acting nominations (often competing in th ...
, who serves as
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) is the presiding officer of the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The chairman is the highest-ranking and most senior military officer in the United States Armed Forces Chairman: app ...
for most of the show. He played Buzz Washington in the
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...
series ''
Men in Trees ''Men in Trees'' is an American romantic comedy-drama television series starring Anne Heche as relationship coach Marin Frist, which premiered on September 12, 2006, on ABC. The series is set in the fictional town of Elmo, Alaska, and concerns M ...
''. Amos co-starred with
Anthony Anderson Anthony Anderson (born August 15, 1970) is an American actor, comedian and game show host. He is best known for his leading roles in drama series such as Marlin Boulet on '' K-Ville'', and as NYPD Detective Kevin Bernard on the NBC crime drama ' ...
in the short-lived TV series ''
All About the Andersons ''All About the Andersons'' is an American sitcom television series that originally aired on The WB from September 12, 2003 to February 12, 2004. It was canceled after one season. Premise Anthony Anderson is a single father and struggling actor ...
'' in 2003. In 2010, Amos also appeared as recurring character Ed on ''
Two and a Half Men ''Two and a Half Men'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on CBS for twelve seasons from September 22, 2003, to February 19, 2015. Originally starring Charlie Sheen in the lead role alongside Jon Cryer and Angus T. Jones, the ...
'', and in 2016 as another recurring character, also (coincidentally) named Ed, on the
Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
sitcom ''
The Ranch ''The Ranch'' is an American streaming television sitcom series. It starred Ashton Kutcher and Danny Masterson (who previously co-starred on ''That '70s Show'') as brothers Colt and Rooster Bennett, respectively; who help run the Colorado cattle ...
''. He has guest-starred in a number of other television shows, including '' Police Story'', ''
The A-Team ''The A-Team'' is an American action-adventure television series that ran on NBC from January 1983 to March 1987 about former members of a fictitious United States Army Special Forces unit. The four members of the team were tried by court marti ...
'', ''
The Cosby Show ''The Cosby Show'' is an American television sitcom co-created by and starring Bill Cosby, which aired Thursday nights for eight seasons on NBC between September 20, 1984, until April 30, 1992. The show focuses on an upper middle-class African- ...
'', ''
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'' is an American television sitcom created by Andy and Susan Borowitz for NBC. It aired from September 10, 1990, to May 20, 1996. The series stars Will Smith as a fictionalized version of himself, a street-smart t ...
'', '' In the House'', ''
Martin Martin may refer to: Places * Martin City (disambiguation) * Martin County (disambiguation) * Martin Township (disambiguation) Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Austr ...
'' as Sgt. Hamilton Strawn (Tommy's father), ''
Touched by an Angel ''Touched by an Angel'' is an American fantasy drama television series that premiered on CBS on September 21, 1994, and ran for 211 episodes over nine seasons until its conclusion on April 27, 2003. Created by John Masius and executive produced ...
'', ''
Psych ''Psych'' is an American detective comedy-drama television series created by Steve Franks for USA Network. The series stars James Roday as Shawn Spencer, a young crime consultant for the Santa Barbara Police Department whose "heightened observ ...
'', ''
Sanford And Son ''Sanford and Son'' is an American sitcom television series that ran on the NBC television network from January 14, 1972, to March 25, 1977. It was based on the British sitcom ''Steptoe and Son'', which initially aired on BBC One in the United ...
'', ''
My Name Is Earl ''My Name Is Earl'' is an American television sitcom created by Greg Garcia that aired on the NBC television network from September 20, 2005, to May 14, 2009, in the United States. It was produced by 20th Century Fox Television and starred Jaso ...
'', ''
Lie to Me ''Lie to Me'' (stylized as ''Lie to me*'') is an American crime drama television series. It originally ran on the Fox network from January 21, 2009, to January 31, 2011. In the show, Dr. Cal Lightman (Tim Roth) and his colleagues in The Lightma ...
'', and ''
Murder, She Wrote ''Murder, She Wrote'' is an American crime drama television series, created by Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson and William Link, starring Angela Lansbury, and produced and distributed by Universal Television for the CBS network. The series f ...
''. He has also appeared as a spokesman for the Cochran Firm (a national personal injury law firm). Amos wrote and produced ''Halley's Comet'', a critically acclaimed one-man play that he has performed around the world. Amos performed in
August Wilson August Wilson ( Frederick August Kittel Jr.; April 27, 1945 – October 2, 2005) was an American playwright. He has been referred to as the "theater's poet of Black America". He is best known for a series of ten plays, collectively called ' (or ...
's ''
Gem of the Ocean ''Gem of the Ocean'' (2003) is a play by American playwright August Wilson. Although the ninth play produced, chronologically it is the first installment of his decade-by-decade, ten-play chronicle, ''The Pittsburgh Cycle'', dramatizing the Afri ...
'' on
Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
and later at the McCarther Theatre in
Princeton, New Jersey Princeton is a municipality with a borough form of government in Mercer County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It was established on January 1, 2013, through the consolidation of the Borough of Princeton and Princeton Township, both of whi ...
.


Film roles, music

Amos starred in the TV Miniseries Roots, as the adult Kunta Kinte, based on the book and real life family history of author Alex Haley. Amos was featured in Disney's ''
The World's Greatest Athlete ''The World's Greatest Athlete'' is a 1973 American sports comedy film directed by Robert Scheerer and starring John Amos, Roscoe Lee Browne, Tim Conway, Dayle Haddon, and Jan-Michael Vincent. Released by Walt Disney Productions, it is one of t ...
'' (1973) with
Tim Conway Thomas Daniel "Tim" Conway (December 15, 1933 – May 14, 2019) was an American actor, comedian, writer, and director. From 1966 to 2012 he appeared in more than 100 TV shows, TV series and films. Among his more notable roles, he portrayed the ...
and
Jan-Michael Vincent Jan-Michael Vincent (July 15, 1944 – February 10, 2019) was an American actor known for portraying helicopter pilot Stringfellow Hawke in the TV series ''Airwolf'' (1984–1987) and the protagonist, Matt Johnson, in the 1978 film ''Big W ...
, and also starred as Kansas City Mack in '' Let's Do It Again'' (1975) with
Bill Cosby William Henry Cosby Jr. ( ; born July 12, 1937) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and media personality. He made significant contributions to American and African-American culture, and is well known in the United States for his eccentric ...
and
Sidney Poitier Sidney Poitier ( ; February 20, 1927 – January 6, 2022) was an American actor, film director, and diplomat. In 1964, he was the first black actor and first Bahamian to win the Academy Award for Best Actor. He received two competitive ...
. His other film appearances include ''
Vanishing Point A vanishing point is a point on the image plane of a perspective drawing where the two-dimensional perspective projections of mutually parallel lines in three-dimensional space appear to converge. When the set of parallel lines is perpendicul ...
'' (1971), '' The President's Plane Is Missing'' (1973), ''
Touched by Love ''Touched by Love'' (also called ''To Elvis, with Love'') is a 1980 American drama film directed by Gus Trikonis and starring Diane Lane and Deborah Raffin. The screenplay concerns a therapist who tries a novel approach with a girl afflicted wit ...
'' (1980), ''
The Beastmaster ''The Beastmaster'' is a 1982 sword and sorcery film directed by Don Coscarelli and starring Marc Singer, Tanya Roberts, John Amos and Rip Torn. Loosely based on the 1959 novel ''The Beast Master'' by Andre Norton, the film is about a man wh ...
'' (1982), '' Dance of the Dwarfs'' (1983), '' American Flyers'' (1985), ''
Coming to America ''Coming to America'' is a 1988 American romantic comedy film directed by John Landis and based on a story originally created by Eddie Murphy, who also stars in the lead role. The film also co-stars Arsenio Hall, James Earl Jones, Shari Head ...
'' (1988), '' Lock Up'' (1989), ''
Two Evil Eyes ''Two Evil Eyes'' (Italian: ''Due occhi diabolici'') is a 1990 anthology horror film written and directed by George A. Romero and Dario Argento. An international co-production of Italy and the United States, ''Two Evil Eyes'' is split into two se ...
'' (1989), ''
Die Hard 2 ''Die Hard 2'' (also known by its tagline ''Die Harder'')The film's onscreen title is ''Die Hard 2'', as also given at the initial home-video release'official website The film's original advertising used "Die Harder" as a tagline, and many rele ...
'' (1990), and ''
Ricochet A ricochet ( ; ) is a rebound, bounce, or skip off a surface, particularly in the case of a projectile. Most ricochets are caused by accident and while the force of the deflection decelerates the projectile, it can still be energetic and almost ...
'' (1991). He appeared in the 1995 film '' For Better or Worse'' and played a police officer in ''
The Players Club ''The Players Club'' is a 1998 American comedy drama thriller film written and directed by Ice Cube in his feature film directorial debut. In addition to Ice Cube, the film stars Bernie Mac, Monica Calhoun, Jamie Foxx, John Amos, A. J. Johns ...
'' (1998). He played Uncle Virgil in ''
My Baby's Daddy ''My Baby's Daddy'' is a 2004 American comedy film, directed by Cheryl Dunye. Plot Childhood friends Lonnie, G, and Dominic have a rude awakening when they find out their girlfriends are pregnant. Lonnie and G have sons names Carver and Bruce-Ler ...
'' (2004), and starred as Jud in '' Dr. Dolittle 3'' (2006). In 2012, Amos had a role in the movie ''
Madea's Witness Protection ''Madea's Witness Protection'' is a 2012 American comedy film directed, written and produced by Tyler Perry. The film stars Perry, Eugene Levy, Denise Richards, Doris Roberts, Romeo Miller, Tom Arnold, John Amos, and Marla Gibbs. It is the fourtee ...
'', as Jake's father. He also appeared in
Ice Cube An ice cube is a small piece of ice, which is typically rectangular as viewed from above and trapezoidal as viewed from the side. Ice cubes are products of mechanical refrigeration and are usually produced to cool beverages. They may be produc ...
and
Dr. Dre Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and ...
's 1994 video for "
Natural Born Killaz "Natural Born Killaz" is a collaborative single released by Dr. Dre and Ice Cube for the soundtrack of the film ''Murder Was the Case''. It was originally intended for the scrapped album ''Heltah Skeltah''. It would later be used by professional ...
." In 2009, he released ''We Were Hippies,'' an album of original country songs by Gene and Eric Cash. In 2021, Amos starred in ''Because of Charley,'' as the patriarch of an estranged step-family riding out the hurricane that tore through Florida in 2004.


Awards

In addition to his Emmy nomination for ''
Roots A root is the part of a plant, generally underground, that anchors the plant body, and absorbs and stores water and nutrients. Root or roots may also refer to: Art, entertainment, and media * ''The Root'' (magazine), an online magazine focusing ...
'', Amos has also been nominated for a CableACE award, an NAACP Image Award, and a DVD Exclusive Award. Amos has won three
TV Land Awards The TV Land Icon Awards was an American television awards ceremony that generally commemorates shows now off the air, rather than in current production as with the Emmys. Created by Executive Producer Michael Levitt, the awards were hosted and broa ...
, taking home trophies for his roles on ''
The Mary Tyler Moore Show ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' (also known simply as ''Mary Tyler Moore'') is an American television sitcom created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns and starring actress Mary Tyler Moore. The show originally aired on CBS from 1970 to 1977. Moor ...
'', ''
Good Times ''Good Times'' is an American television sitcom that aired for six seasons on CBS, from February 8, 1974, to August 1, 1979. Created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans and developed by executive producer Norman Lear, it was television's first African ...
'' and the TV miniseries ''
Roots A root is the part of a plant, generally underground, that anchors the plant body, and absorbs and stores water and nutrients. Root or roots may also refer to: Art, entertainment, and media * ''The Root'' (magazine), an online magazine focusing ...
''. In 2020, Amos was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame.


Personal life

Amos is a veteran of the 50th Armored Division of the
New Jersey National Guard The New Jersey Army National Guard consists of more than 6,000 Citizen-Soldiers. The New Jersey Army National Guard is currently engaged in multiple worldwide and homeland missions. Units have deployed to Iraq, Guantanamo Bay, Afghanistan, Germ ...
and Honorary Master Chief of the
United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mult ...
. Amos has been married twice. His first marriage, from 1965 to 1975, was to artist and equestrian Noel Mickelson, with whom he has two children: Shannon Amos, a writer/producer and founder of Afterglow Multimedia, LLC, and Grammy-nominated director K.C. Amos. His second marriage, from 1978 to 1979, was to actress
Lillian Lehman Lillian Lehman is an American actress. The daughter of a Lutheran minister, Lehman was born in Oak Hill, Alabama, but moved with her family to Buffalo, New York, when she was five years old. She was named actress of the year while she attended K ...
. Amos lived for many years in
Tewksbury Township, New Jersey Tewksbury Township is a township located in Hunterdon County, New Jersey and is located within the New York Metropolitan Areabr>As of the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 5,993, reflecting an increase of 452 (+8.2%) from ...
. , he resides in
Westcliffe, Colorado Westcliffe is a statutory town that is the county seat of Custer County, Colorado, United States. At the 2010 U.S. Census, the population was 568, up from 417 in 2000. History Westcliffe had its start in 1881 when the Denver and Rio Grande Wes ...
.


Filmography


Film


Television


References


External links

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Amos, John 1939 births 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors 20th-century African-American sportspeople 21st-century African-American people Actors from East Orange, New Jersey African-American male actors African-American players of American football American male film actors American male stage actors American football running backs American male television actors Colorado Democrats Colorado State Rams football players Continental Football League players East Orange High School alumni Kansas City Chiefs players Living people Long Beach City College alumni Male actors from Newark, New Jersey New Jersey National Guard personnel New Jersey Democrats People from Tewksbury Township, New Jersey Players of American football from Newark, New Jersey United Football League (1961–1964) players United States Army soldiers