Stage-trained African-American comic actor who garnered international acclaim for his portrayal of Black Bart, the unlikely sheriff, in Mel Brooks' Western spoof "Blazing Saddles" (1974). Little's big break came with a turn in Peter Yates' "John and Mary" (1969), alongside Dustin Hoffman and Mia Farrow. In 1970, he starred on stage in Ossie Davis' musical "Purlie", for which he won a Tony and a Drama Desk Award, and appeared in Davis' landmark black independent film, "Cotton Comes to Harlem". Throughout his career, Little displayed a manic, live wire comic energy and a flamboyant, streetwise style of line delivery.
Milestones
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1969 Film debut in "John and Mary"
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1971 Regular on "The David Frost Revue"
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1971 TV movie debut with "The Homecoming", writer Earl Hamner Jr's forerunner to "The Waltons"
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1972 TV series debut in "Temperatures Rising"
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1979 Played title role in the series "Mr. Dugan"
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1986 Notable Broadway success as an elderly man in the comedy-drama "I'm Not Rappaport", opposite Judd Hirsch
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1990 Final film role in "Murder by Numbers"
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1992 Final TV role for the HBO series "Tales From the Crypt" episode "None but the Lonely Heart"
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Recurring character on the NBC series, "Dear John"
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Regular on the short-lived series, "Bagdad Cafe"
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Replaced the father on the Fox sitcom "True Colors"
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TV debut in an episode of "All in the Family"