Charlie Robinson, ‘Night Court’ Actor, Dead at 75

Charlie Robinson, who starred as Mac the desk clerk in Night Court, died on Sunday in Los Angeles from cancer. He was 75. Robinson’s career began in the early 1970s, and he continued working up until his death. Last year, he appeared in the Freeform limited series Love in the Time of Corona and two episodes of Disney’s Raven’s Home.

Robinson died at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center from cardiac arrest with multisystem organ failure due to septic shock and metastatic adenocarcinoma, his representative told The Wrap Monday. He is survived by his wife Dolorita; his children Luca, Charlie, Christian, and Byron; his grandchildren; great-grandchildren; and daughters-in-law.

The actor was born in Houston. As a teenager, he sang with the groups Archie Bell and the Drells and Southern Clouds of Joy. In the late 1960s, he began studying acting before moving to Hollywood. He made his first film in 1971, starring in Jack Nicholson’s basketball movie Drive, He Said. Robinson acted on television and in films continuously before finally scoring his breakthrough role as Macintosh “Mac” Robertson during Night Court‘s second season. He remained a fixture on the sitcom until it ended in 1992, appearing in 180 episodes.

After Night Court, Robinson scored another starring role in Love & War, a three-season sitcom that ran on CBS from 1992 to 1995. Robinson went on to appear in episodes of Home Improvement, Malcolm & Eddie, How I Met Your Mother, The Game, 30 Rock, The Secret Life of the American Teenager, Harry’s Law, Key & Peele, Mom, Grey’s Anatomy, This Is Us, NCIS, Better Things, and Raven’s Home.

Robinson also won awards for his stage work, Variety reports. He won an Image Theatre Award and FRED Award for The Whipping Man. He won the Best Actor Ovation Award for his performance in a production of Fences. His last stage role was in James Tyler’s Some Old Black Man.

“Oh, no! I’m so sorry to read this,” Marsha Warfield, who played Rosalind “Roz” Russell on Night Court, tweeted Monday. “Charlie Robinson was one of the great ones. My heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, fans, and all whose lives he touched. Rest well, Charlie, I thought you’d live forever.”

Night Court is experiencing a revival in interest, as a revival is now in the works. The Big Bang Theory star Melissa Rauch is the driving force behind the revival and agreed to take a lead role in the series after NBC granted the project a pilot order. She will star as Judge Abby Stone, the daughter of the late Harry Anderson’s character. John Larroquette will also reprise his role as prosecutor Dan Fielding.