<P> Robert Guillaume ( born Robert Peter Williams ; November 30 , 1927 -- October 24 , 2017 ) was an American actor , known for his role as Isaac Jaffe on Sports Night and as Benson on the TV series Soap and the spin - off Benson , as well as for voicing the mandrill Rafiki in The Lion King . In a career that spanned more than 50 years he worked extensively on stage , television and film . For his efforts he was nominated for a Tony Award for his portrayal of Nathan Detroit in Guys and Dolls , and twice won an Emmy Award for his portrayal of the character Benson DuBois , once in 1979 on Soap and in 1985 on Benson . He also won a Grammy Award in 1995 for his spoken word performance of an audiobook version of The Lion King . </P>
<P> Robert Guillaume ( born Robert Peter Williams ; November 30 , 1927 -- October 24 , 2017 ) was an American actor , known for his role as Isaac Jaffe on Sports Night and as Benson on the TV series Soap and the spin - off Benson , as well as for voicing the mandrill Rafiki in The Lion King . In a career that spanned more than 50 years he worked extensively on stage , television and film . For his efforts he was nominated for a Tony Award for his portrayal of Nathan Detroit in Guys and Dolls , and twice won an Emmy Award for his portrayal of the character Benson DuBois , once in 1979 on Soap and in 1985 on Benson . He also won a Grammy Award in 1995 for his spoken word performance of an audiobook version of The Lion King . </P>
who did rafiki voice in the lion king
who did rafiki voice in the lion king
Robert Guillaume
Robert Guillaume