Lynn Hamilton, a seasoned theater actress renowned for her portrayal of Redd Foxx's love interest in "Sanford and Son" and the endearing Miss Verdie in "The Waltons," has passed away at the age of 95. Her former manager and publicist, Rev. Calvin Carson, confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that Hamilton peacefully succumbed to natural causes at her Chicago residence on Thursday.
Hamilton shone brightly as Vivian Potter, the matriarch in the 1989-91 NBC daytime soap "Generations," which, unfortunately, faced stiff competition from CBS's ratings powerhouse "The Young and the Restless." She also starred as Cissie Johnson, one of the ex-convicts featured in the 1991-92 syndicated nighttime serial "Dangerous Women."
Her impressive resume also includes her role as Cousin Georgia Anderson in the 1979 miniseries "Roots: The Next Generations" and recurring stints as the sharp-tongued Emma Johnson in NBC's "227" and as a judge in ABC's "The Practice."
Raised in Chicago, Hamilton made her cinematic debut in John Cassavetes' "Shadows" (1959) and went on to grace the silver screen in films like "Brother John" (1971), "Buck and the Preacher" (1972), both starring Sidney Poitier, "Lady Sings the Blues" (1972), "Leadbelly" (1976), and "Legal Eagles" (1986).
Hamilton's debut on NBC's "Sanford and Son" came in February 1972, during its seventh episode, where she played a stern landlady giving Demond Wilson's Lamont Sanford a rough time after he moved into his own bachelor pad following a spat with his father Fred (Foxx). So impressed were the producers with her performance in that single scene that they soon decided to introduce Fred Sanford's girlfriend. Hired to play registered nurse Donna Harris, Hamilton recalled Foxx telling her that the show needed "somebody dignified opposite him; he was aware of his earthliness."
She remained a part of the sitcom until 1977, with Donna and Fred getting engaged but never tying the knot, much to Lamont's amusement, who nicknamed her "The Barracuda." While she was a recurring face on "Sanford and Son," Hamilton made her debut on "The Waltons" in February 1973, during the 21st episode of the CBS drama. In the episode titled "The Scholar," John-Boy (Richard Thomas) gives Verdie reading and writing lessons as her daughter prepares to graduate from college. Notably, this episode won a screenwriting Emmy for John McGreevey.
She made a recurring appearance across sixteen episodes of the series spanning until 1981, where Verdie ultimately tied the knot with Harley Foster, portrayed by Hal Williams, a fellow actor from "Sanford and Son" and "227". Additionally, she graced the screens of "The Waltons" holiday specials in 1993 and 1997. Born on April 25, 1930, in Yazoo City, Mississippi, Alzenia Lynn Hamilton's journey began when her parents, Nancy and Louis, relocated the family to Chicago when she was just four years old. She went on to attend Bloom High School in Chicago Heights.
Hamilton ventured into modeling and graduated from the prestigious Goodman School of Drama Theater, yet she found herself as "the sole Black actor in my class, with no roles tailored for me," she reminisced. Undeterred, she honed her acting chops with a theater company on Chicago's South Side. Upon relocating to New York in 1956, she starred in "Shadows" and graced Broadway with four fleeting plays: "Only in America" (1959), "The Cool World" and "Face of a Hero" (both 1960), and "Tambourines to Glory" (1963).
Hamilton delved into Shakespearean theater under producer Joseph Papp and embarked on a global tour with "The Miracle Worker" and "The Skin of Our Teeth" as part of President Kennedy's cultural exchange program. In 1966, she joined the Seattle Repertory Theatre. Though she auditioned for a role in "Funny Girl" (1968) to no avail, she opted to stay in Los Angeles, where she landed roles in numerous TV shows, including "Room 222," "Mannix," "Gunsmoke," "The Rockford Files," "Quincy M.E.," "The Golden Girls," "NYPD Blue," "Judging Amy," and "Cold Case."
From 1964 until his passing in 2014 at the age of 89, Hamilton was married to poet and playwright Frank Jenkins, known for "Driving While Black in Beverly Hills." Together, they collaborated on numerous stage productions. That fateful year, she returned to her roots in Chicago.
