Samm-Artwork Williams, a Tony-nominated playwright, actor, director and the chief producer of NBC’s Recent Prince of Bel-Air, has died. He was 78.
Williams died peacefully in Burgaw, North Carolina on Monday, his cousin Carol Brown confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter.
“Mr. Williams’ contributions to American theater and tv will stay on however he can be enormously missed,” Brown mentioned through assertion.
For the theater neighborhood, Williams was maybe greatest referred to as the Tony-nominated playwright of Dwelling, which was first directed by Douglas Turner Ward and produced on Broadway by the Negro Ensemble Firm in 1980. The present is ready to return to Broadway on June 5, with Kenny Leon directing this time.
Williams additionally wrote stage works corresponding to Welcome To Black River, Buddies, and different performs produced in New York, Los Angeles and past. Along with its Tony nod for greatest Broadway play, Dwelling received the Outer Critics Circle Award, a Drama Desk nomination, the NAACP Picture Award and the North Carolina Governor’s Award.
Over the course of his profession, Williams obtained the Guggenheim Fellowship, The Nationwide Endowment for the Arts Fellowship for Playwriting, and different awards for his writing.
On display, Williams wrote episodes for Cagney and Lacey, The New Mike Hammer, Miami Vice and The Debbie Allen Particular. He was nominated for 2 Emmy awards, as a producer for Frank’s Place (1988) and Motown Returns to the Apollo (1985).
From 1990 to 1993, he served as govt producer of the Will Smith-led Recent Prince of Bel-Air, which stays thought of one of the vital impactful sitcoms of all time.
Williams was born Jan. 20, 1946 in Philadelphia. He studied at Morgan State College in Baltimore. He had no partner or kids.