Paul Benjamin
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- Feb 4, 1935
- Died
- Jun 28, 2019 (aged 84)
- Place of birth
- Pelion, South Carolina, USA
- Credits
- 53
Paul Benjamin (February 4, 1935 – June 28, 2019) was an American actor. is an American actor.
Benjamin was born in Pelion, South Carolina. He made his film debut in 1969 as a bartender in Midnight Cowboy. After a small role in Sidney Lumet's The Anderson Tapes, he primarily did television work in the 1970s. A few notable exceptions were a major role in Barry Shear's Across 110th Street, and smaller parts in Gordon Parks' biopic Leadbelly, Arthur Marks' Friday Foster, and Don Siegel's prison film Escape from Alcatraz. He gave exceptional performances in the TV adaptations of I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings and Gideon's Trumpet. He later starred in the HBO movie The Man Who Broke 1,000 Chains, based on the novel by Robert E. Burns.
On the big screen in the 1990s, Benjamin worked with some well known directors. He appeared in Spike Lee's Do The Right Thing, Robert Townsend's The Five Heartbeats, Bill Duke's Hoodlum, and John Singleton's Rosewood.
On television, he appeared in the 1994 pilot episode of ER, which led to his recurring role of homeless man Al Ervin during the next few seasons. Benjamin also worked on the American Masters documentary of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Ralph Ellison, which aired on PBS.
After 2000, he appeared primarily in small independent films like Stanley's Gig, The Station Agent, Deacons For Defense, and James Hunter's 2004 drama Back in the Day.
He recently made a special appearance in the independent film The Talk Man, directed by Gene Gallerano.
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Known for
Filmography
Occupy, Texas
2016Movie
Mr. Goodman
Ascension Day
2007Movie
Sam
Back in the Day
2005Movie
Cody
Deacons for Defense
2005Movie
Otis
The Station Agent
2003Movie
Henry Styles
The Shield
2002TV
Perry
DMX: Angel
2001Movie
Minister
Stanley's Gig
2000Movie
Teddy Branson
Angel
1999TV
Fellow Resident
Last Rites
1999Movie
Fez
The Breaks
1999Movie
Clerk
Hoodlum
1997Movie
Whispers
Rosewood
1997Movie
James Carrier
Vanishing Point
1997Movie
Mose, Snake Wrangler
Drop Squad
1994Movie
Wellington Cosbie
ER
1994TV
Al Ervin
The Fence
1994Movie
Del Reston
Back to the Streets of San Francisco
1992Movie
Henry Brown
The Super
1991Movie
Gilliam
The Five Heartbeats
1991Movie
Mr. King
Law & Order
1990TV
Lonnie Jackson
Do the Right Thing
1989Movie
ML
The Meeting
1989Movie
Rashad
Nuts
1987Movie
Harry Harrison
The Man Who Broke 1,000 Chains
1987Movie
Big Sam
A Stranger Waits
1987Movie
Cooper
The Atlanta Child Murders
1985TV
Homer Williams
Night Heat
1985TV
Deadly Force
1983Movie
Lester
Some Kind of Hero
1982Movie
Leon
American Playhouse
1982TV
Rashad
Gideon's Trumpet
1980Movie
Artis
Knots Landing
1979TV
Mr. Carter
Escape from Alcatraz
1979Movie
English
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
1979Movie
Freeman
One in a Million: The Ron LeFlore Story
1978Movie
John LeFlore
Leadbelly
1976Movie
Wes Ledbetter
Judge Horton and the Scottsboro Boys
1976Movie
Ramsey
Friday Foster
1975Movie
Senator David Lee Hart
Distance
1975Movie
Sgt. Elwood Horne
Starsky & Hutch
1975TV
Friendly Persuasion
1975Movie
Swan Stebeney
Police Woman
1974TV
The Education of Sonny Carson
1974Movie
Pops
The Deadly Trackers
1973Movie
Jacob
Kojak
1973TV
Willie Daniels
Police Story
1973TV
Mr. Inside/Mr. Outside
1973Movie
Lt. Valentine
Across 110th Street
1972Movie
Jim Harris
Born to Win
1971Movie
Fixer
The Anderson Tapes
1971Movie
Jimmy
Midnight Cowboy
1969Movie
Bartender
Hallmark Hall of Fame
1951TV
Arlis