It’s been nearly two decades since character actor Franklin Cover died of pneumonia. Cover found fame on TV’s The Jeffersons (CBS, 1975-1985) in the groundbreaking role of Tom Willis, who was married on-screen to Helen Willis, played by acclaimed African-American actress Roxie Roker. Together, Cover and Roker became the first actors to portray an interracial couple on television. Cover was only 77 years old when he died, and this is his story.
A Closer Look
In almost sixty years in the entertainment industry, Franklin Cover made several TV appearances on programs such as The Jackie Gleason Show, All in the Family, Will & Grace, Living Single, Mad About You, and ER.
Clover’s career began in the live theatre, performing Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Henry IV, and later in several Broadway productions like Any Wednesday, Wild Honey, and Born Yesterday.
Then Came Tom Willis and The Jeffersons
In January 1975, Franklin Clover received his big break as Tom Willis, comic foil to Sherman Hemsley’s George Jefferson on The Jeffersons, a spin-off from All in the Family.
Willis and his wife resided in the same “deluxe apartment in the sky” that the overtly bold George and his sweet understanding wife Louise, played by Isabel Sanford lived after hitting the jackpot with a successful dry-cleaning business.
The main contention between Tom Willis and George Jefferson, on George’s part, was the fact that their children, Lionel (son of George and Louise) was in love with and eventually married Jenny (daughter of Tom and Helen). [Mike Evans and Damon Evans, no relation, shared the role of Lionel. Jenny was played by Belinda Tolbert.]
Beyond The Jeffersons and onto the Big Screen
In addition to The Jeffersons on TV, Franklin Clover also appeared in many big-screen movies such as The Great Gatsby, The Stepford Wives, and Wall Street.
His Final Days
Franklin Cover died of pneumonia on February 5, 2006, at the Lillian Booth Actor’s Fund of America home in Englewood, New Jersey. He had been residing there since December 2005 while recuperating from a heart condition.
In real life, Cover was married to Mary Bradford Stone from 1965 to his demise. They had two children: Bradford Cover and Susan Cover
