John Amos, the actor best known for his role as family patriarch James Evans Sr. on the sitcom “Good Times,” has died, his publicist told ABC News in a statement. He was 84.

According to publicist Belinda Foster, the actor died of natural causes on August 21 in Los Angeles.

“It is with deep sadness that I inform you that my father has made the transition,” Amos’ son Kelly Christopher Amos said in a statement. “He was a man with the kindest heart and a heart of gold… and he was loved around the world. Many fans consider him to be their TV father. He lived a good life. His legacy will live on in his outstanding work on television and film as an actor.

Amos received an Emmy nomination for his role as the elderly Kunta Kinte in the groundbreaking miniseries “Roots.”

Born on December 27, 1939 in Newark, New Jersey, Amos initially tried to make it as a professional football player, playing for Colorado State University and briefly for the Kansas City Chiefs. He also served as a member of the New Jersey National Coast Guard.

Amos is best known for his role as James Evans in the Norman Lear-created series Good Times alongside Esther Rolle’s Florida Evans. The sitcom is about a black family in Chicago and deals with themes such as poverty, drug use and inner-city crime. It ran for six seasons between 1974 and 1979 – although Amos only appeared in the series for the first half of its run.

On television, Amos played weatherman Gordy on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” enslaved protagonist Kunta Kinte in the 1977 miniseries “Roots” — which earned him an Emmy nomination — and recurring character Admiral Percy Fitzwallace on “The West Wing.”

Other small screen appearances include roles in “Maude,” “Hunter,” “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” “In the House,” “The District,” “All About the Andersons,” “Men in Trees,” “Two and a Half Men” and “The Ranch” to name a few.

The actor also appeared in numerous films, including Let’s Do It Again (1975), The Beastmaster (1982), Coming to America (1988), Die Hard 2 (1990) and Madea’s Witness Protection . ” (2012) and “Coming 2 America” ​​(2021). He even played himself in a small cameo in 2019’s Uncut Gems.

Amos, a member of the New Jersey Hall of Fame, was married twice. He is survived by his daughter Shannon and son Kelly Christopher, both of whom he shared with his first wife, Noel Mickelson.