What Happened to Mike Evans and Berlinda Tolbert From “The Jeffersons”?
What Happened to Berlinda Tolbert?
Berlinda Tolbert is alive and well, but she isn’t very active in the acting community. Before The Jeffersons, Tolbert had guest-starring roles on popular television shows of the day like Sanford and Son, That’s My Mama, Mannix, and Fantasy Island.
After The Jeffersons ended, she continued her guest-starring stint on shows like Amen, Jake and the Fatman, 7th Heaven, ER, and Six Feet Under. She also had roles in the films Goodfellas (1990) alongside Samuel Jackson, and Harlem Nights (1989) with Eddie Murphy.
Berlinda Tolbert also appeared in Just Another Man’s Wife in 2013. At over 70 years old, she still looks great!
What Happened to Mike Evans?
Michael Jonas Evans was an unknown actor at the time he was cast on The Jeffersons.
Iconic TV producer Norman Lear initially wanted famed black actor Cleavon Little to play the role, but the director wanted to go with an actor who wouldn’t steal so much of the spotlight from the two veteran lead actors. The character of Lionel was a supporting role, and Cleavon Little was already a bona fide Hollywood star.
A little-known fact about Mike Evans is that he was one of the writers and creators of Good Times. In fact, the character Michael Evans, played by actor Ralph Carter, is loosely based off of Mike Evans’ real life. You can clearly see that he and the character share the same name.
After The Jeffersons
After The Jeffersons left the air, Evans retired from acting, and he pursued a career as a real estate investor. He lost his wife Helena to cancer after more than two decades of marriage in 2002.
On December 14, 2006, Mike Evans lost his own battle with cancer as well. The actor left behind two daughters and legions of fans who will always remember him as “The Original & Best Lionel.”
Damon Evans
Damon Evans is the actor who temporarily replaced Mike Evans in the role of Lionel Jefferson. Just about everyone who watched the show will tell you that there was a dark period on the show when the original Lionel was replaced with a second Lionel.
Much like the second Darren and original Darren from Bewitched, no one liked this change of actors. It’s a shame because I’m sure Damon Evans was a nice guy. It’s just that viewers were used to and loved Mike Evans as Lionel Jefferson, and we never even tried to like Damon Evans.
