| Charles Robinson | |
|---|---|
 Charles Robinson played the role of Court Clerk Mac Robinson on "Night Court". | |
| General Actor Information | |
| Gender: | Male |
| Born: | November 9, 1945 |
| Birthplace | Houston Texas, U.S. |
| Died | July 12, 2021 (aged 75) |
| Occupation/ Career: |
Actor |
| Appearances/Series information | |
| Appeared on: | Night Court |
| Appears as: | Mac Robinson |
Charles "Charlie" Robinson (November 9, 1945-July 12, 2021) was cast as court clerk Mac Robinson on Night Court, after the first season in 1984, when Karen Austin, who played the original court clerk, Lana Wagner, left the cast. Charles played the role on Night Court from 1984 until its end in 1992. He also directed three episodes of the series.
Career[]
Charles, who had been performing since the 1960s, was a member of the Actors Studio, and was considered by Playwright Lyle Kessler to be "one of the great American Actors."
In his early career, he was a singer; as a teenager with the R&B/doo-wop group Archie Bell and the Drells, and later with a group called Southern Clouds of Joy.
Robinson's credits included appearances in the 1975 blaxplotation flick Black Gestapo, and the 2008 Denzel Washington film Antwone Fisher, and TV series guest appearances in The White Shadow, Flamingo Road, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, and Touched by an Angel. Robinson was cast in the role on Newdell in the NBC-TV comedy series Buffalo Bill, which starred Dabney Coleman.
Not the hit that NBC executives expected to be, Buffalo Bill was canceled after one season and replaced by Night Court, which assumed its time slot, and on which he appeared in the role of court clerk Macintosh "Mac" Robinson when he joined the cast in Season 2 and which he continued to appear in for the remainder of the show's network run.
Just months after the end of Night Court, Charles was cast in the CBS sitcom Love & War, replacing the late John Hancock. Hancock died after playing Ike the bartender for only 9 episodes. Charles came in as Ike's brother Abe, who co-owned the restaurant and took over tending bar. The show ran for three seasons until CBS cancelled half of its prime-time shows in the spring of 1995.
Charles played recurrent character Bud Harper on the ABC-TV sitcom series Home Improvement, and continued to appear on shows including House, The Bernie Mac Show, My Wife and Kids, Soul Food, Charmed, How I Met Your Mother and My Name Is Earl.
Illness and death[]
Robinson died on July 11, 2021, at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles, CA, from cardiac arrest with multisystem organ failure due to septic shock and metastatic adenocarcinoma, a type of glandular cancer.[1][2][3][4] He was 75.
Awards and nominations[]
For his role as "Mac" Robinson on Night Court, Robinson received the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series.
References[]
- ↑ Perez, Lexy (July 12, 2021). Charlie Robinson, 'Night Court' Star, Dies at 75. The Hollywood Reporter(.com).
- ↑ Legaspi, Althea (July 12, 2021). Charlie Robinson, 'Night Court' Actor, Dead at 75. Rolling Stone.
- ↑ Pedersen, Erik (July 12, 2021). Charlie Robinson Dies: 'Night Court' & 'Buffalo Bill' Actor Was 75. Deadline Hollywood.
- ↑ Shanfeld, Ethan (July 12, 2021). Charlie Robinson, Who Played Mac on 'Night Court,' Dies at 75. Variety.
External links[]
Charles Robinson at the Internet Movie Database- Charles Robinson article at Wikipedia
