Occupational Inheritance: No
Social Class: single mother, union organizer; stepfather, trash collector
Race/Ethnicity/Religion: Black
Family:
Education:
Training:
Teacher/Inspirational Figure:
Radio Debut:
TV Debut:
Stage Debut:
Broadway Debut:
Film Debut: 1967, aged 28
Breakthrough Role:
Oscar Role: Sounder; 1972; aged 34
Other Noms:
Other Awards:
Frequent Collaborator:
Screen Image: character actor
Last Film:
Career Output:
Film Career Span:
Marriage:
Politics:
Death: 64; heart attack
Paul Edward Winfield (May 22, 1939 – March 7, 2004) was an American television, film and stage actor.
He was known for his portrayal of a Louisiana sharecropper who struggles to support his family during the Great Depression in the landmark film Sounder (1972), which earned him Best Actor Oscar nomination.
He portrayed Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1978 TV miniseries King, for which he was nominated for an Emmy Award.
Winfield was also known for his roles in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, The Terminator, L.A. Law, and 24 episodes of the sitcom 227.
He received five Emmy nominations overall, winning for his 1994 guest role in Picket Fences.
Winfield was the son of Lois Beatrice Edwards, a single mother- union organizer in the garment industry. Though published obituaries stated he was born in Los Angeles on May 22, 1941, some primary sources indicate he was born May 22, 1939 in Dallas, Texas.
His stepfather from the age of 8 was Clarence Winfield, a city trash collector and construction worker.
He graduated from Manual Arts High School in Los Angeles. He then attended the University of Portland, 1957–59; Stanford University, 1959; Los Angeles City College, 1959–63; University of California, Los Angeles, 1962–64; University of Hawaii, 1965 and the University of California, Santa Barbara, 1970-71.
A lifetime member of Actors Studio, Winfield carved out a diverse career in film, television, theater and voiceovers by taking groundbreaking roles at a time when black actors were rarely cast. He first appeared in the 1965 Perry Mason episode, “The Case of the Runaway Racer,” as Mitch, a race car mechanic. His first major feature film role was in the 1969 film The Lost Man starring Sidney Poitier. Winfield first became well known to television audiences when he appeared for several years opposite Diahann Carroll on the groundbreaking television series Julia. Filmed during a high point of racial tensions in the United States, the show was unique in featuring a black female as the central character. He also starred as Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1978 miniseries King.
In 1973, Winfield was nominated for the Best Actor for Sounder, and his co-star in that film, Cicely Tyson, was nominated for Best Actress. Prior to their nominations and Diana Ross’s for Lady Sings the Blues the same year, only three other black Americans – Dorothy Dandridge, Sidney Poitier and James Earl Jones – had ever been nominated for a leading role.
He also appeared, in a different role, in the 2003 Disney-produced TV remake of Sounder, which was directed by Kevin Hooks, his co-star from the original. Winfield played the part of “Jim the Slave” in Huckleberry Finn (1974) which was a musical based on the novel by Mark Twain. Winfield would recall late in his career that as a young actor he had played one of the two leads in Of Mice and Men in local repertory, made up in whiteface, since a black actor playing it would have been unthinkable. Winfield also starred in miniseries, including Scarlett, and two based on the works of novelist Alex Haley: Roots: The Next Generations and Queen: The Story of an American Family.
Winfield gained new fans for his brief but memorable roles in several science fiction television series and movies. He portrayed starship Starfleet Captain Terrell, an unwilling minion of the villain Khan, in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, and Lieutenant Ed Traxler, a friendly but crusty cop partnered with Lance Henriksen in The Terminator. In 1996, he was part of the ‘name’ ensemble cast in Tim Burton’s comic homage to 1950s science fiction Mars Attacks!, playing the complacently self-satisfied Lt. General Casey. On the small screen he appeared as Dathon, an alien captain who communicates in metaphor, in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode “Darmok”.
He also appeared in the second season Babylon 5 episode “Gropos” as General Richard Franklin, the father of regular character Dr. Stephen Franklin, and on the fairy tale sitcom The Charmings as The Evil Queen’s wise-cracking Magic Mirror. He also portrayed the character of Julian Barlow in the television series 227 during its last two seasons.
Gay Roles
Winfield also took on roles as gay characters in the films Mike’s Murder in 1984 and again in 1998 in Relax…It’s Just Sex.
He found success off-camera due to his unique voice. He provided voices on the cartoons Spider-Man, The Magic School Bus, Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child, Batman Beyond, Gargoyles, K10C, and The Simpsons, on the latter voicing the Don King parody Lucius Sweet. In his voiceover career, he is perhaps best known as the narrator for the A&E true crime series City Confidential, a role he began in 1998 and continued with until his death in 2004.
Winfield also performed in the theater. His only Broadway production, Checkmates, in 1988, co-starring Ruby Dee, was also the Broadway debut of Denzel Washington.
He appeared in productions at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles, and The Shakespeare Theatre in Washington, D.C.
Winfield was nominated for an Emmy Award for his performances in King and Roots: The Next Generations. He won an Emmy Award, in 1995, for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series, for his appearance as Judge Harold Nance in an episode of the CBS drama Picket Fences.
Gay
Winfield was gay, but remained discreet about it in the public eye. Prior to realizing his sexuality, he had relationship with Sounder co-star Cicely Tyson for 18 months. His partner of 30 years, architect Charles Gillan Jr., died on March 5, 2002, of bone cancer.
Winfield long battled obesity and diabetes. He died of a heart attack in 2004 at age 64, at Queen of Angels – Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center in Los Angeles. Winfield and Gillan are interred together at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Los Angeles.
Filmography
1967 The Perils of Pauline African Servant Uncredited
1967 Who’s Minding the Mint? Garbage man Uncredited
1969 The Lost Man Orville Turner
1970 R. P. M. Steve Dempsey
1971 Brother John Henry Birkart
1972 Sounder Nathan Lee Morgan
1972 Trouble Man Chalky Price
1973 Gordon’s War Gordon Hudson
1974 Conrack Mad Billy
1974 Huckleberry Finn Jim
1975 Hustle Sergeant Louis Belgrave
1976 High Velocity Watson
1977 Green Eyes Lloyd Dubeck
1977 Twilight’s Last Gleaming Willis Powell
1977 The Greatest Lawyer
1977 Damnation Alley Keegan
1978 A Hero Ain’t Nothin’ but a Sandwich Butler
1981 Carbon Copy Bob Garvey
1982 Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan Captain Clark Terrell
1982 White Dog Keys
1983 On the Run Harry
1984 Mike’s Murder Philip Green
1984 The Terminator Lt. Ed Traxler
1986 Blue City Luther Reynolds
1987 Death Before Dishonor Ambassador
1987 Big Shots Johnnie Red
1988 The Serpent and the Rainbow Lucien Celine
1990 Presumed Innocent Judge Larren Lyttle
1993 Cliffhanger Walter Wright
1993 Dennis the Menace Chief of Police
1994 The Killing Jar Judge Alternative title: Trapped
1995 In the Kingdom of the Blind, the Man with One Eye Is King Papa Joe
1995 In the Flesh [de] William Stone
1996 Original Gangstas, Reverend Dorsey (aka Hot City)
1996 Mars Attacks! Lt. General Casey
1996 Dead of Night Vernon
1996 The Legend of Gator Face Bob
1997 Strategic Command Rowan
1998 Relax…It’s Just Sex Auntie Mahalia
1998 Assignment Berlin Al Spector
1999 Catfish in Black Bean Sauce Harold Williams
2000 Knockout Ron Regent
2001 Vegas, City of Dreams Edgar Jones
2002 Second to Die Detective Grady
Television
1965 Perry Mason Mitch 1 episode
1966 The Man from U.N.C.L.E. Military M.P. Episode: “The Minus x Affair”
1966 Daktari Roy Kimba 2 episodes
1967 Cowboy in Africa Kabutu 1 episode
1968 Death Valley Days Bart 1 episode
1968 Mission: Impossible Klaus 1 episode
1969 Mannix Walter Lucas 1 episode
1969 The High Chaparral Graham Jessup 1 episode
1969–1970 Julia Paul Cameron 4 episodes
1970 The Young Rebels Pompey 1 episode
1973 The Horror at 37,000 Feet Dr. Enkalla Television movie
1974 It’s Good to Be Alive Roy Campanella Television movie
1977 Green Eyes Lloyd Dubeck Television movie
1978 King Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Miniseries
1979 Backstairs at the White House Emmett Rogers Sr.
Miniseries
1979 Roots: The Next Generations Dr. Horace Huguley Episode #1.5
1980 Angel City Cy Television movie
1981 The Sophisticated Gents Richard “Bubbles” Wiggins Television movie
1982 Dreams Don’t Die Officer Charles “Charlie” Banks Television movie
1982 The Blue and the Gray Jonathan Henry Miniseries
1983 For Us the Living: The Medgar Evers Story Sampson Television movie
1984 The Fall Guy Bert Perkins 1 episode
1985 Go Tell It on the Mountain Gabriel Grimes, TV movie
1985 Murder, She Wrote Det. Lieutenant Starkey 1 episode
1986 Under Siege Andrew Simon Television movie
1987 Mighty Pawns Mr. Wright Television movie
1987–1988 The Charmings The Magic Mirror 19 episodes
1988–1990 227 Julian C. Barlow 24 episodes
1989 The Women of Brewster Place Sam Michael Miniseries
1989 Wiseguy Isaac Twine 6 episodes
1990 L.A. Law Derron Holloway 4 episodes
1991 Family Matters Jimmy Baines 1 episode
1991 Star Trek: The Next Generation Captain Dathon 1 episode, “Darmok”
1993 Irresistible Force Commander Toole Television movie
1994 Scarlett Big Sam Miniseries
1994 Picket Fences Judge Harold Nance 2 episodes
1995 Tyson Don King Television movie
1995 Babylon 5 General Richard Franklin 1 episode
1995 White Dwarf Dr. Akada Television movie
1995–1996 Gargoyles Jeffrey Robbins Voice, 3 episodes
1995–2003 Touched by an Angel Sam 13 episodes, (final appearance)
1996 Second Noah Ramses 1 episode
1996–1997 The Magic School Bus Mr. Ruhle Voice, 4 episodes
1996–1998 The Simpsons Lucius Sweet Voice, 2 episodes
1997 Spider-Man Omar Mosely / Black Marvel Voice, 3 episodes
1998 Walker, Texas Ranger Pastor Roscoe Jones 1 episode
1999–2000 Batman Beyond Sam Young Voice, 3 episodes
1999–2004 City Confidential Narrator 94 episodes
1999 Strange Justice Thurgood Marshall Television movie
2002 Crossing Jordan Dr. Phillip Sanders 1 episode
2003 Sounder The Teacher Television movie
Awards and nominations
Year Award Result Category Film or series
1973 Academy Award Nominated Best Actor in a Leading Role Sounder
1978 Primetime Emmy Award Nominated Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or a Special King
1979 Roots: The Next Generations
(For episode V)
1982 NAACP Image Awards Won Best Performance by an Actor in a Dramatic Series or Miniseries or Television Movie The Sophisticated Gents
1995 Primetime Emmy Award Won Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series Picket Fences
(For episode “Enemy Lines”)
1997 Daytime Emmy Award Nominated Outstanding Performer in a Children’s Special The Legend of Gator Face
1999 St. Louis Film Festival Won Lifetime Achievement Award
