Lynn Hamilton, Sanford and Son & The Waltons Actress, Dies at 95

Lynn Hamilton, known in part for her roles in the classic TV shows The Waltons and Sanford and Son, has passed away.

Per The Hollywood Reporter, it has been reported that Hamilton died on Thursday at her home in Chicago, Illinois. According to her publicist, Rev. Calvin Carson, Hamilton died of natural causes. She was 95 years old.

Hamilton was born on April 25, 1930, in Yazoo City, Mississippi, to parents Nancy and Louis. Raised in Chicago, she graduated from the Goodman School of Drama Theater, but as the only Black performer in her class, she said “there weren’t any roles” for her at the time. However, she continued to perform and gain experience after moving to New York in 1956. She would act on Broadway in the late 1950s and early 60s.

Hamilton made her feature film debut in 1959 with a role in the movie Shadows. She would later appear in the Sidney Poitier films Brother John and Buck and the Preacher, along with other movies like Lady Sings the Blues, Leadbelly, and Legal Eagles.

In 1972, Hamilton debuted on Sanford and Son in the show’s first season as a landlady for a one-off appearance. She had impressed the producers so much, however, that they later decided to cast Hamilton as Donna Harris, the girlfriend of Fred Sanford (Redd Foxx). While the two characters never did get married, Hamilton played Donna until 1977, making the role one of her most well-known.

Following her casting in Sanford and Son, Hamilton would also join The Waltons in 1973. She played the role of Miss Verdie, a Walton family neighbor whom John-Boy (Richard Thomas) gives reading and writing lessons. The acclaimed episode, titled “The Scholar,” won writer John McGreevey a screenwriting Emmy. Hamilton reprised the role in 16 additional episodes through 1981, with the character eventually marrying Hal Williams’ Harley Foster. She also appeared in the holiday reunion specials, A Walton Thanksgiving Reunion and A Walton Easter.

Hamilton also had recurring roles as a judge on ABC’s The Practice and Emma Johnson on NBC’s 227. She played Cousin Georgia Anderson in the hit miniseries Roots: The Next Generation. Hamilton’s other TV roles include Hawaii Five-0, Ironside, Barnaby Jones, The Young and the Restless, Good Times, Starsky and Hutch, The Rockford Files, Knight Rider, Quincy M.E., The New Leave It to Beaver, Days of Our Lives, The Golden Girls, Sister, Sister, Moesha, and Curb Your Enthusiasm. Her final acting credit was for an appearance in an episode of Cold Case in 2009.

Hamilton was previously married to poet and playwright Frank Jenkins from 1964 until his death at the age of 89 in 2014. That year, she moved back to Chicago.