---
name: "Clarence Gilyard Jr."
canonical: "https://film.one/person/clarence-gilyard-jr"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "24 December 1955"
died: "23 November 2022"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 2
average_fi1m_score: 80
updated: "2026-09-16T21:20:18.537926+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."
---

# Clarence Gilyard Jr.

Actor. Born 24 December 1955 in Moses Lake, Washington, USA. Died 23 November 2022.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 24 December 1955, Moses Lake, Washington, USA
- **Died:** 23 November 2022
- **Active:** 1986–1988
- **Also known as:** Clarence Gilyard, Jr., Clarence Darnell Gilyard Jr.

## Biography

Clarence Gilyard Jr. was an American actor and educator. He appeared in supporting roles in several 1980s films and television series, including as Lieutenant (junior grade) Marcus "Sundown" Williams in *Top Gun* (1986) and as the terrorist computer expert Theo in *Die Hard* (1988).

Gilyard also played Conrad McMasters on the legal drama series *Matlock* (1989–1993) and James "Jimmy" Trivette on *Walker, Texas Ranger* (1993–2001). He later became an associate professor of acting at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, from 2006 until his death.

Born in Moses Lake, Washington, he studied theatre at California State University, Dominguez Hills, and earned an MFA from Southern Methodist University.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com, themoviedb.org.*

## On Fi1m (2)

- *Die Hard* (1988), Fi1m 89, as Theo — [page](https://film.one/film/die-hard.md)
- *Top Gun* (1986), Fi1m 71, as Sundown — [page](https://film.one/film/top-gun.md)

## Also known for

- *The Karate Kid Part II* (1986), G.I. #1
- *Walker, Texas Ranger* (1993), Jimmy Trivette
- *Diff'rent Strokes* (1978), The Student, Frank Simpson
- *CHiPs* (1977), Benjamin Webster
- *Matlock* (1986), Conrad McMasters
- *Left Behind* (2000), Pastor Bruce Barnes
- *The Facts of Life* (1979), Matt
- *Simon & Simon* (1981), Wally Stokes

---
© 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/clarence-gilyard-jr