Comedian and actor Johnny Brown, best known for his role as building superintendent Nathan Bookman on the CBS hit 70s television show "Good Times," died of cardiac arrest on March 2 at the age of 84, TMZ reported Saturday.
Brown’s daughter, Sharon Catherine Brown, told the publication that her father was at a Los Angeles, California, doctor’s appointment on Wednesday to check out his pacemaker, but collapsed in cardiac arrest shortly after and was taken to a nearby hospital where he died.
She said the death came as a shock and the appointment was routine.
"Our family is devastated. Devastated. Devastated. Beyond heartbroken. Barely able to breathe," Brown said in an Instagram post Friday.
"We respectfully ask for privacy at this time because we need a minute to process the unthinkable. To articulate the depths of profound sadness. This is my mom’s husband for 61 years, mine and JJ’s dad, Elijah and Levi’s Pop Pop, older brother to George and brother-in-law to Pat and extended family to Chris, Hihat, Damian and Derell. It’s too terrible. It will never not be. It’s a shock. He was literally snatched out of our lives. It’s not real for us yet. So, there will be more to say but not now. Dad was the absolute best. We love him so very much."
Brown's career spanned six decades, starting with a role in the 1966 movie "A Man Called Adam," starring the legendary Sammy Davis Jr., and continuing until his last role as "Grandad" in 2013’s “In Da Cut,” according to the IMDB.
While Brown did have big screen roles, including 1970s "The Out of Towners" with Jack Lemon and Sandy Dennis, he played many more roles on television, including his most famous run on "Good Times."
His other television credits included "Night Gallery," Gimme a Break," "Rowan and Martin’s Laugh In," "The Jeffersons," “Punky Brewster," "Moonlighting," and "Sister, Sister," among many others.
"I was just blessed," Brown said during one interview. "I knew exactly what I wanted to do."
Brown said he learned a great deal from his 30-year friendship and the mentoring from Sammy Davis.
"The whole time I worked with him, I was in awe of him," Brown said. "He was an inspiration. He was an idol (of mine)."
In addition to movies and television, Brown also appeared on Broadway, and was also known for his impersonations, according to his IMDB profile.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.