Biography
Leonard Jackson was an American stage, film and television actor. Born in Jacksonville, Florida, he attended Fisk University and made his professional stage debut in the New York Shakespeare Festival's 1965 off-Broadway production of Troilus and Cressida. He appeared on Broadway in productions including The Great White Hope (as L. Errol Jaye), Lost in the Stars, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom and Mule Bone.
His screen roles include Earl in Car Wash (1976), Smokey in The Brother from Another Planet (1984), Pa in The Color Purple (1985), Uncle Gus in Eddie Murphy Raw (1987), a part in Boomerang (1992), Jean Michel's Father in Basquiat (1996) and the Old Man in the Book Store in Conspiracy Theory (1997). On television he had recurring roles in the PBS children's series Sesame Street, Shining Time Station and Square One TV / Mathnet, and guest appearances in series such as The Cosby Show, Law & Order and Homicide: Life on the Street. He was married to Ada Edward from 1958 until his death in Manhattan on 22 December 2013.
