---
name: "Adolph Caesar"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/adolph-caesar"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "5 December 1933"
died: "6 March 1986"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 2
average_fi1m_score: 70
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 2
updated: "2026-09-20T06:44:50.055444+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Adolph Caesar

Actor. Born 5 December 1933 in New York City, New York, USA. Died 6 March 1986.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 5 December 1933, New York City, New York, USA
- **Died:** 6 March 1986
- **Active:** 1984–1985
- **Academy Awards:** 1 Oscar nomination
- **Average Fi1m score:** 70, as actor, over 2 titles
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolph_Caesar, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q365292, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0128360/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/13313

## Streaming the US now

- **Amazon Prime Video:** [*A Soldier's Story*](https://film.one/film/a-soldiers-story.md) (76)
- **Tubi:** [*The Color Purple*](https://film.one/film/the-color-purple.md) (64)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Biography

Adolph Caesar was an American actor known for his deep voice and work in theatre and film. Born in Harlem, New York City, he served in the US Navy before studying dramatic arts at New York University. He performed extensively with the Negro Ensemble Company and worked as a voice-over artist for commercials and film trailers.

Caesar gained widespread recognition for his stage role as Sergeant Vernon Waters in Charles Fuller's *A Soldier's Play*. He reprised the part in the 1984 film adaptation *A Soldier's Story*, directed by Norman Jewison, earning Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for Best Supporting Actor, as well as an NAACP Image Award. He appeared as Old Mister in Steven Spielberg's *The Color Purple* (1985).

Caesar died of a heart attack in Los Angeles on 6 March 1986, aged 52, while working on the film *Tough Guys*.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, nytimes.com.*

## On Fi1m (2)

- *The Color Purple* (1985), Fi1m 64, as Old Mr. — [page](https://film.one/film/the-color-purple.md)
- *A Soldier's Story* (1984), Fi1m 76, as Sergeant Waters — [page](https://film.one/film/a-soldiers-story.md)

## Complete filmography (18)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *SilverHawks* (1986), series, as Seymour / Hotwing (voice)
- *Club Paradise* (1986), as Solomon Grundy
- *SilverHawks: The Origin Story* (1986), Actor
- *Getting Even: A Wimp's Revenge* (1986), as Dr. Rancid
- *Fortune Dane* (1986), as Charles Dane
- *The Color Purple* (1985), as Old Mr. — Fi1m 64, [page](https://film.one/film/the-color-purple.md)
- *The Twilight Zone* (1985), series, as (segment "A Matter of Minutes")
- *Tales from the Darkside* (1984), series, as Mars Gillis
- *A Soldier's Story* (1984), as Sergeant Waters — Fi1m 76, [page](https://film.one/film/a-soldiers-story.md)
- *I Remember Harlem* (1981), series, as narrator
- *Fist of Fear, Touch of Death* (1980), as TV Anchorman
- *The Hitter* (1979), as Nathan
- *Dawn of the Dead* (1978), as Narrator of Theatrical Trailer — Fi1m 86, [page](https://film.one/film/dawn-of-the-dead.md)
- *Blacula* (1972), as Narrator of Theatrical Trailer (voice)
- *Hammer* (1972), as Narrator of Theatrical Trailer (voice) (uncredited)
- *The Challenge* (1970), as Clarence Opano
- *Che!* (1969), as Juan Almeida
- *The Wild Wild West* (1965), series, as Vidoq

## Awards

### Academy Awards — 0 won, 1 nominated

- 1985: Best Supporting Actor (nominated), for *A Soldier's Story*

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/adolph-caesar