On October 29th, comedian and actor John Witherspoon, best known for the film Friday, passed away. No details have been surfaced on the cause of his sudden death, but Witherspoon’s family is still heartbroken by this tragedy. The family made a statement regarding his death saying, “It is with deepest sorrow that we can confirm our beloved husband and father, John Witherspoon, one of the hardest working men in show business, died today at his home in Sherman Oaks at the age of 77”. Witherspoon lived a long life and was incredibly popular for his numerous roles in multiple comedy films and TV shows.

Witherspoon started his career in stand up comedy throughout the 70s and would appear in various television shows.  His first feature film debut was in 1980 remake of The Jazz Singer. Since then he appeared in films like The Ladies Man, Hollywood Shuffle and Boomerang to name a few. His most iconic role is in the Ice Cube comedy franchise, Friday, where he played Cube’s father Willie Jones. Outside of film, Witherspoon appeared in a ton of television shows as well, including The Tracy Morgan Show, Black Jesus and most notably the animated series The Boondocks, where he voiced the character of Gramps.

John Witherspoon was very popular for his sense of humor and was continued making a career for himself, even having standup shows scheduled up until his death. The family commented on his death stating that, “We will celebrate his life and his work together. John used to say ‘I’m no big deal’, but he was huge deal to us.” May he rest in peace.