George Jefferson From ‘The Jeffersons’, Sherman Hemsley Dead at 74

Sherman Hemsley who played one of the most famous dads in TV history, died today at 74. Hemsley played the cheap skate owner of a chain of dry cleaning stores George Jefferson who moved to the "deluxe apartment in the sky" in the TV series 'The Jeffersons' from 1975 - 1985, it remains the longest-running sitcom with a predominantly Black cast in the history of American television.

'The Jeffersons' was the second spin off from the popular 'All in the Family' TV series, on which the Jeffersons had been the neighbors of Archie and Edith Bunker.

After 'The Jeffersons' Hemsley did a little Broadway and also starred in the NBC show 'Amen' for five seasons, that ended in 1991. He largely retired from acting after that only making small appearances from time to time on TV shows and commercials.

RIP Mr. Jefferson, loved the theme song, let's all sing: