Bill Cobbs (born June 16, 1934) is an American character actor and producer. He started his acting career in community theater. After serving in the Air Force as a radar technician, the Cleveland-born actor went to New York to audition for several TV shows. During that time he supported himself by driving a cab and doing odd jobs.
His first TV role was in Vegetable Soup and his first movie rôle was as in The Taking of Pelham One Two Three. He's also in Demolition Man and That Thing You Do!.
Throughout his career he's often been called upon to play older characters in varying degrees of Underage Casting. For example, on the latter seasons of JAG in the early 2000s, he played Captain Turner, who during World War II was a newly ordained chaplain. But Cobbs was born in 1934, so the actor was not even a teenager when that war ended.
Definitely not to be confused with the disgraced Bill Cosby.
Selected TV credits
- Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
- The Drew Carey Show
- Ed
- Empty Nest
- The Equalizer
- Good Times
- Harry's Law
- L.A. Law
- Northern Exposure
- The Outer Limits (1995)
- The Practice
- Rugrats
- Sesame Street
- Six Feet Under
- Star Trek: Enterprise
- Touched by an Angel
- Walker, Texas Ranger
- The Wayans Bros.
