Mel Stewart

Mel Stewart
Stewart as Sergeant Bryant in Roll Out, 1973.
Born	Milton Stewart (1929-09-19)September 19, 1929 Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Died	February 24, 2002(2002-02-24) (aged 72) Pacifica, California, U.S.
Cause of death	Alzheimer's disease
Other names	Melvin Stewart Melvin Stuart
Occupation	Actor, television director, musician
Years active	1959–1993
Spouse(s)	Annie Dong (m. 1976–2002)

Milton "Mel" Stewart (September 19, 1929 – February 24, 2002) was an American character actor, television director, and musician who appeared in numerous films and television shows from the 1960s to the 1990s. He is best known for playing Henry Jefferson on the popular television series All in the Family and for playing section chief Billy Melrose on the television series Scarecrow and Mrs. King. Stewart is sometimes credited as Melvin Stewart or Mel Stuart.

Mel Stewart began his acting career in 1959 with small roles in TV and films. In the early 1960s, Stewart also appeared in the Broadway shows Purlie Victorious, The Hostage, The Cool World, and Simply Heavenly.

Stewart's early career also included notable work as a voice actor. He provided the narration for "Scenes in the City", a long jazz composition with a text by Lonne Elder and Langston Hughes that appeared on Charles Mingus' 1957 album A Modern Jazz Symposium of Music and Poetry. In 1961, Stewart recorded an album of Langston Hughes' poetry on Folkways Records: Langston Hughes' The Best of Simple. He was also a member of the San Francisco-based improv group, The Committee and appeared in 1969 on The Dick Cavett Show.

Stewart went on to land roles in various television series including That Girl, Marcus Welby, M.D., The Bob Newhart Show, Good Times, and Harry O. One of his most memorable roles was as Henry Jefferson, George Jefferson's brother, in the series All in the Family. In 1973, he co-starred in the short-lived series Roll Out. The following year, Stewart directed two episodes of another short-lived series Get Christie Love!, then co-starred in On the Rocks. After On the Rocks was canceled in 1976, Stewart portrayed the role of Marvin Decker in the Bewitched spin-off series Tabitha from 1977 to 1978.