Veteran actor Austin Stoker dies at 92
The TV and film actor's wife of 43 years confirmed that Stoker died of renal failure on Friday — his 92nd birthday.
Veteran actor Austin Stoker, best known for his role in John Carpenter’s acclaimed thriller “Assault on Precinct 13,” has passed away.
The wife of the Trinidadian performer confirmed that he died Friday — his 92nd birthday — of renal failure at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
“His transition was beautiful,” Robin Stoker, his wife of 43 years, told the outlet. According to NBC News, she shared a tribute to her husband on her personal Facebook page, in which she called him “the love of my life.”
Stoker was born Alphonso Marshall on Oct. 7, 1930, in Trinidad. After making a local name for himself as a performer with a dance troupe, he ultimately moved to New York to pursue a career in show business. There, Stoker landed a gig on Broadway playing steel drums in Truman Capote and Harold Arlen’s “House of Flowers,” a 1954 production that starred Pearl Bailey, Alvin Ailey and Diahann Carroll.
He would go on to serve in the U.S. Army before studying acting at the HB Studio in New York. After moving to California, he made his television debut on “The Mod Squad” in 1969.
His small screen credits include playing the father of Olivia Cole‘s Mathilda character in the 1977 ABC miniseries “Roots,” as well as on episodes of “The Six Million Dollar Man,” “Lou Grant,” “Trapper John, M.D.,” and “Murder She Wrote” over the years.
In addition to “Precinct 13,” Stoker appeared in several feature films such as 1973’s “Battle for the Planet of the Apes” and 1975’s “Sheba, Baby,” playing Pam Grier’s love interest. He also starred in “The Get-Man,” “Airport ’75,” “Abby,” “Time Walker,” “Combat Cops,” and “The Zebra Killer.”
Rock star Rob Zombie tapped him to appear in his 2019 horror film “3 From Hell,” and most recently Stoker was featured in the 2022 black comedy “Give Till It Hurts.”
His performance in the stage production of “Split Second” earned him a Drama-Logue Critics award for outstanding achievement in theatre.
In a tribute post shared on Twitter, actor/director Bill Duke called Stoker “one of Hollywood’s unsung actors.”
As reported by THR, Stoker is survived by his wife, two children and two grandsons.
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