Earle Hyman, Who Played Russell Huxtable on Cosby Show, Dead at 91

RadioOnFire.com - It is being reported that Earle Hyman the prominent American stage, television, and film actor has passed away at the age of 91 sometime on Thursday (Nov. 17th). Hyman born in North Carolina in 1926, moved to Brooklyn as a child with his family where he developed his acting skills in the theater scene of New York City.

He is most known in the hip-hop world for his portrayal of Russell Huxtable, the father of Heathcliffe Huxtable on Bill Cosby's The Cosby Show, where he depicted positive imagery of Black fatherhood, earning himself an Emmy nomination for the role in 1986. Hyman became central to the grandfather role despite being only 11 years older than Bill. He also was a recurring character on the show's spinoff A Different World, for the time that Lisa Bonet (Denise Huxtable) was on the show as the second eldest daughter of the Cosby who was attending Hillman College.

Hyman also voiced Panthro on the 1985 animated series Thundercats until 1990. Earle is a Tony Award winner, with more than 15 Broadway credits to his name with a broader list of other roles off the stage.

He is first cousins with another great talent Phyllis Hyman.The cause of death has not been revealed as of this time. RadioOnFire offers condolences to the family of Earle Hyman and all his fans and supporters.