TWENTYNINE PALMS, Calif., Dec. 22 (AP) — Mike Evans, an actor best known for playing Lionel Jefferson on the 1970s sitcom “All in the Family” and its popular spinoff “The Jeffersons,” died at his mother’s home here on Dec. 14. 2006 He was 57.
The cause was throat cancer, said a niece, Chrystal Evans.
Mr. Evans, along with Eric Monte, also created and wrote for “Good Times,” one of the first sitcoms to feature a primarily black cast.
He had studied acting at Los Angeles City College before getting the role of Lionel Jefferson on “All in the Family,” which had its premiere in 1971. Lionel was the son of black neighbors of the bigoted Archie Bunker in Queens.
He kept the role when “The Jeffersons” made its debut in 1975. In that show, the Jeffersons were “movin’ on up” to the East Side of Manhattan after striking it rich in the dry-cleaning business.
