Clarence Gilyard
| Clarence Gilyard | |
|---|---|
| File:ClarenceGilyard.jpg
Gilyard in 2018
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| Born | Clarence Darnell Gilyard Jr. December 24, 1955 Moses Lake, Washington, U.S. |
| Died | c. November 28, 2022 (aged 66) |
| Other names | Clarence A. Gilyard |
| Education | California State University, Dominguez Hills (BA) Southern Methodist University (MFA) |
| Occupation | University professor, actor, author |
| Years active | 1980–2022 |
| Spouse(s) | Catherine Dutko (m. 2024) Elena (m. 2001) |
| Children | 6 |
Clarence Darnell Gilyard Jr.[1] (December 24, 1955 – c. November 28, 2022) was an American university professor, actor, and author. As a performer, he appeared in film, television, and stage productions, sometimes credited as Clarence A. Gilyard.
Gilyard was known for his roles as second private investigator and right-hand man Conrad McMasters to Ben Matlock (played by Andy Griffith) on the legal drama series Matlock from 1989 to 1993; Pastor Bruce Barnes in the Left Behind movie trilogy; Cordell Walker's (played by Chuck Norris) Texas Ranger partner, James "Jimmy" Trivette, in the 1990s crime drama Walker, Texas Ranger; Theo, the terrorist computer expert in Die Hard; and Lieutenant (junior grade) Marcus "Sundown" Williams in Top Gun.
Contents
Early life and education
Gilyard was born into a military family in Moses Lake, Washington, on Christmas Eve, in 1955,[1] the son of Barbara and Clarence Gilyard Sr., a U.S. Air Force officer. Gilyard is the second of six children.[1] His family was originally from New Orleans, Louisiana, but Gilyard grew up on Air Force bases in Hawaii, Texas, and Florida. Raised primarily as a Lutheran, he became Catholic in the 1990s.[1][2][3]
During his young adulthood, Gilyard lived in the San Bernardino suburb of Rialto, California, and attended Eisenhower High School. He was an excellent student, graduating in 1974, and afterward spent a year as an Air Force Academy cadet before leaving the service to attend Sterling College.[4] In college, he played football, and became a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity. He also received a tennis scholarship, but dropped out of school before completing his studies.
While living with his parents in high school, Gilyard was preoccupied with women, alcohol, and occasionally, drugs.[1] His parents urged him to move out, so he relocated to Long Beach, California, with a friend. He attended California State University, Long Beach, majoring in acting, and worked as a waiter while seeking acting opportunities. He completed his bachelor's degree at California State University, Dominguez Hills.[5][6]
Gilyard worked with a housemate at a clothing store, where he was promoted to manager. He left this to work briefly selling industrial chemicals.[1] In 2003, Gilyard returned to school, receiving a master of fine arts in theatre performance at Southern Methodist University.
Career
In 1979, Gilyard moved to Los Angeles to become an actor. Among other work, a role in the play Bleacher Bums made him what one magazine called "the first black actor to play a cheerleader",[1] before he segued into television roles. As a character actor, Gilyard has made guest appearances on TV shows such as Diff'rent Strokes, The Facts of Life, 227, Simon & Simon, and Riptide. In 1982–1983, Gilyard was cast in the final season of the NBC TV series CHiPs as Officer Benjamin Webster, opposite Erik Estrada. He co-starred with Jim Carrey in the 1984 NBC sitcom The Duck Factory. He appeared in a commercial for McDonald's in 1987.[citation needed]
Gilyard's movie debut in 1986 was as an F-14 Tomcat radar intercept officer, Lt. (jg) Marcus "Sundown" Williams, in Top Gun. He was also a military man in the 1986 film The Karate Kid Part II. He appeared in the 1988 action film Die Hard as Theo, a criminal computer expert who is the film's only surviving villain. He also appeared as Reverend Bruce Barnes Left Behind: The Movie and its sequel, Left Behind II: Tribulation Force.
Gilyard played the role of Ben Matlock's private investigator, Conrad McMasters, on Matlock, opposite Andy Griffith, from 1989 to 1993. He replaced Kene Holliday, who was fired for his dependency on drugs and alcohol. Gilyard appeared in almost every Matlock episode starting in season 3 of the show. When the show moved from NBC to ABC for the series' seventh season, production moved from Los Angeles to Wilmington, North Carolina. Andy Griffith suggested to Gilyard that he move there, too, which he did, before departing to work on a pilot for another series at CBS the following year.
In 1993, he began another long-time co-starring role opposite Chuck Norris on Walker, Texas Ranger. Gilyard portrayed fellow Texas Ranger and best friend of Walker, James "Jimmy" Trivette. Near the end of the series, Norris' character married his longtime girlfriend, an assistant district attorney, while Gilyard's character was given a girlfriend. Gilyard had a cameo appearance in the 2005 television movie, Walker, Texas Ranger: Trial by Fire.
In 2012, after taking time off to teach, Gilyard began appearing onscreen again, mostly in independent projects. In 2014, he appeared in the religious film A Matter of Faith.
On January 17, 2016, Gilyard performed the role of Hoak Colburn onstage at the University of New Mexico's Popejoy Hall in the Neil Simon Festival's Driving Miss Daisy, opposite his former Walker, Texas Ranger co-star, Sheree J. Wilson.[7]
In the 2018 edition of the football video game Madden NFL, Gilyard plays high-school coach Devin Wade in the "Longshot" section of the game. Two years later, Gilyard reprised his role as criminal gang-member Theo from Die Hard, alongside star Bruce Willis, in a commercial for Advance Auto Parts' DieHard brand of car batteries.[8]
Gilyard was an associate professor in the College of Fine Arts – Department of Theatre at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.[5]
Personal life and death
Gilyard was married twice and had six children. His first marriage, to Catherine Dutko, ended in divorce, and he married his second wife, Elena, in 2001.[1][9] He served as the consultant of the communications committee of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.[1]
On November 28, 2022, it was announced that Gilyard had died after a long illness, at the age of 66.[10]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Top Gun | Lieutenant Junior Grade Marcus 'Sundown' Williams | |
| The Karate Kid Part II | G.I. #1 | ||
| 1987 | Off the Mark | James B. White | |
| 1988 | Die Hard | Theo | |
| 2000 | Left Behind: The Movie | Bruce Barnes | |
| 2002 | Left Behind II: Tribulation Force | ||
| 2012 | Little Monsters | Ben Foreman | |
| 2013 | From Above | Jeremiah Ward | |
| 2014 | A Matter of Faith | Professor Portland | |
| 2015 | The Track | Psychiatrist | |
| 2016 | The Beast | Auguste Porter | |
| The Sector | Reverend Raines | ||
| 2019 | The Perfect Race | Coach Michaels | |
| TBA | The Driver | Lee Staples | Filming |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Diff'rent Strokes | Frank Simpson / The Student | 2 episodes |
| 1982 | Making the Grade | Unknown | Episode: Teach Me Tonight |
| 1982–1983 | CHiPs | Officer Benjamin Webster | 20 episodes |
| 1983 | The Kid with the 200 I.Q. | Unknown | TV Movie |
| 1984 | Things Are Looking Up | Clement McCallister | |
| The Duck Factory | Roland Culp | 13 episodes | |
| Riptide | William Collins | Episode: It's a Vial Sort of Business | |
| 1985 | Solomon's Universe | Casey | TV Movie |
| 1986 | Simon & Simon | Wally Stokes | Episode: A.W.O.L. |
| 1987 | 227 | Harold Bailey | Episode: Matchmakers |
| The Facts of Life | Matt | Episode: The More the Marrier | |
| 1989 | L.A. Takedown | Mustafa Jackson | TV Movie |
| 1989–1993 | Matlock | Conrad McMasters | 85 episodes |
| 1990 | The Great Los Angeles Earthquake | Roy Bryant | TV Movie |
| 1993–2001 | Walker, Texas Ranger | Ranger James Trivette | 196 episodes |
| 1994 | Walker Texas Ranger 3: Deadly Reunion | TV Movie | |
| 1999 | Sons of Thunder | Episode: Flighting Back | |
| 2005 | Walker, Texas Ranger: Trial by Fire | TV Movie | |
| 2018 | Christmas on the Coast | Fletcher Reese | TV Movie |
| TBA | Eleanor's Bench | Reginald | TV Movie; Filming |
Bibliography
- The Dance of the Star (1990)
- Instructors and Students (1992)
- Eagle in a Cage (1996)
- Perfume at Night (1997)
- Melancholy in the Mirror (2002)
- Past and Present: My Story (2005)
- The Game of Venus (2006)
- Memories of a Stranger Wanderer (2008)
- Cry of the Cat (2010)
- Red Lights (2011)[ISBN missing]
References
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External links
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- Use mdy dates from November 2022
- Articles with short description
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- Articles with unsourced statements from October 2020
- 1955 births
- 2022 deaths
- 20th-century American male actors
- 21st-century American male actors
- African-American Catholics
- African-American male actors
- American male film actors
- American male television actors
- California State University, Dominguez Hills alumni
- Catholics from California
- Catholics from Washington (state)
- Male actors from Washington (state)
- People from Moses Lake, Washington
- People from Rialto, California
- Southern Methodist University alumni
- University of Nevada, Las Vegas faculty
- 20th-century African-American people
- 21st-century African-American people
- American male stage actors
