January 8, 2007. External links 1949 births 2006 deaths 20th-century American male actors African-American male actors American male television actors American television writers Deaths from esophageal cancer Deaths from cancer in California Los Angeles City College alumni Los Angeles High School alumni Male actors from North Carolina American male television writers People from Salisbury, North Carolina People from San Bernardino County, California Screenwriters from California Screenwriters from North Carolina 20th-century American screenwriters 20th-century American male writers 20th-century African-American writers 21st-century African-American people African-American male writers