Howard Ellsworth Rollins Jr. (October 17, 1950 – December 8, 1996) was an American stage, film and television actor. He was best known for his role as Andrew Young in 1978's King, George Haley in the 1979 miniseries Roots: The Next Generations, Coalhouse Walker Jr. in the 1981 film Ragtime, as civil rights activist Medgar Evers in PBS' American Playhouse production of For Us the Living: The Medgar Evers Story in 1983, Captain Davenport in the 1984 film A Soldier's Story, and as Virgil Tibbs on the NBC/CBS television crime drama In the Heat of the Night (1988–1995).
Over the span of his acting career, Rollins was nominated for an Academy Award, a Golden Globe and an Emmy.
Early life and education
Born to Ruth and Howard Ellsworth Rollins Sr. on October 17, 1950, in Baltimore, Maryland, Rollins was the youngest of four children. His mother was a domestic worker and his father a steelworker who died in 1975. Rollins attended Northern High School, graduating in 1968. After his high school graduation, Rollins studied theatre at Towson University.
Career
In 1970, Rollins left college to play the role of Slick Robinson in the PBS soap opera Our Street. In 1974, Rollins moved to New York City, where he appeared in the Broadway productions of We Interrupt This Program... (1975), The Mighty Gents (1978) and G. R. Point (1979). He also appeared in the TV miniseries King and Roots: The Next Generations. After being fired from In the Heat of the Night, Rollins achieved sobriety and worked on rebuilding his career and reputation. After attending drug rehab, he returned to In the Heat of the Night as a guest star.
Death and legacy
In the fall of 1996, Rollins was diagnosed with AIDS. Six weeks later, on December 8, Rollins died at age 46 at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center in New York City from lymphoma-related complications. His funeral was held on December 13 in Baltimore. Rollins was interred at Woodlawn Cemetery in his native Baltimore. On October 25, 2006, a wax statue of Rollins was unveiled at the Senator Theatre in Baltimore. The statue is now at Baltimore's National Great Blacks in Wax Museum.
Filmography
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Film
|-
! Year
! Title
! Role
! class="unsortable" | Notes
|-
| 1981
| Ragtime
| Coalhouse Walker Jr.
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |1984
| The House of God
| Chuck Johnston
|
|-
| A Soldier's Story
| Captain Richard Davenport
|
|-
|1987
|Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam
|Private David Bowman (voice)
|
|-
| 1990
| On the Block
| Clay Beasley
|
|-
| 1995
| Drunks
| Joseph
|
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Television
|-
! Year
! Title
! Role
! class="unsortable" | Notes
|-
|1972–
1974
|Our Street
|Slick Robinson
|56 episodes
|-
|1975
|Ourstory
|Quash
|Episode: "Eliza"
|-
| rowspan="2" |1978
| King
| Andrew Young
| 2 episodes
|-
| The Trial of the Moke
|James Webster Smith
| Television movie
|-
| rowspan="2" | 1979
| Roots: The Next Generations
| George W. Haley
| Episode: "Part VII (1960-1967)"
|-
| My Old Man
| Doctor
| Television movie
|-
| rowspan="2" | 1981
| Thornwell
| Carson
| Television movie
|-
|All My Children
|FBI Agent
|Episode: "1.2979"
|-
| rowspan="4" |1982
|Fridays
|Guest Host
|Episode: "3.14"
|-
| Another World
| Ed Harding
| 139 episodes
|-
| The Neighborhood
| Allen Campbell
| Television movie
|-
| The Member of the Wedding
| Honey Brown
| Television movie
|-
| rowspan="2" | 1983
| For Us the Living: The Medgar Evers Story
| Medgar Evers
| Television movie
|-
| Moving Right Along
|Austin Berry
| 10 episodes
|-
| rowspan="3" |1984
| A Doctor's Story
| Dr. Zack Williams
| Television movie
|-
| The House of Dies Drear
| Walter Small
| Television movie
|-
| He's Fired, She's Hired
| Raoul
| Television movie
|-
| 1985
| Wildside
| Bannister Sparks
| 6 episodes
|-
| rowspan="3" | 1986
| The Boy King
| Martin Luther King Sr.
| Television movie
|-
| The Children of Times Square
| Otis Travis
| Television movie
|-
| Johnnie Mae Gibson: FBI
| T.C. Russell
| Television movie
|-
| 1988–
1994
| In the Heat of the Night
| Chief of Detectives Virgil Tibbs
| 121 episodes
|-
| 1992
| With Murder in Mind
| Samuel Carver
| Television movie
|-
| 1995
| New York Undercover
| Reverend Hundley
| Episode: "The Smoking Section"
|-
| rowspan="2" | 1996
| Remember WENN
| George Smith
| Episode: "The Emperor Smith"
|-
| Harambee!
| Chimbuko
| Television movie<br>Final film role
|}
Awards and nominations
{| class="wikitable"
|+
!Year
!Association
!Category
!Work
!Result
|-
|1981
|New York Film Critics Circle Awards
|Best Supporting Actor
| rowspan="4" |Ragtime
|
|-
| rowspan="3" |1982
|Academy Awards
|Best Supporting Actor
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |Golden Globe Awards
|Best Supporting Actor
|
|-
|New Star of the Year – Actor
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |1983
|Daytime Emmy Awards
|Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
|Another World
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |NAACP Image Awards
|Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special
|For Us the Living: The Medgar Evers Story
|
|-
|1989
|Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series
|In the Heat of the Night
|
|}
References
External links
- The Howard E. Rollins Foundation