‘Good Times’ actor dies

An actor who appeared on the long-running sitcom “Good Times” has died. Ben Powers played the character of Thelma’s husband Keith in the show’s sixth and final season between 1978-1979. He passed away at his New Bedford, Massachusetts home on April 6 at the age of 64. His family has not revealed the cause of his death.

Powers’ on-screen wife Bern Nadette Stanis wrote an emotional message on Facebook on Thursday to mark the actor’s death.

“My condolences goes out to the family of Ben Powers who passed away a few days ago. He was a great actor and great friend who is gone too soon. He will be missed by many. Until next lifetime my friend,” Stanis wrote.

“Good Times” focused on the family of Florida and James Evans and their children JJ, Thelma and Michael, living in a Chicago housing project.

The show was a spin-off of another series, “Maude”, which was also spin-off of “All In The Family”.

In the third episode of the final season, Thelma gets married to a professional football player named Keith (played by Powers) but their marriage runs into problems when he gets injured.

Powers was born in Brooklyn and raised by his grandparents in Providence, Rhode Island. Before getting into acting, he studied painting and sketching at the Rhode Island School of Design. He was discovered while performing stand-up routines in Providence.

In addition to his work on “Good Times”, Powers also played the character of Moochie on CBS detective drama “Mickey Spillane’s Mike Hammer” between 1984 and 1985.

He also had guest appearances on shows like “Gimme a Break”, “Flamingo Road”, “The Greatest American Hero” and “Laverne & Shirley”.

Some of his film credits include “Cheech & Chong’s Next Movie” in 1980, “Things Are Tough All Over in 1982”, and “The Man Who loved Women” in 1983 which starred Burt Reynolds.

Powers is survived by his mother and two sisters. – BBC.

You Might Also Like

Comments