# Theodore Wilson
**Theodore Wilson** (full name Theodore Rosevelt Wilson, known professionally as Teddy Wilson; 1943–1991) was an American character actor whose easygoing manner and warm voice made him a familiar supporting presence in 1970s American television sitcoms. He was best known for playing Earl Chambers, the postman, on *That's My Mama* and the recurring character Sweet Daddy Williams on *Good Times*, and he headed the cast of *The Sanford Arms*, a short-lived spin-off of *Sanford and Son*.[1](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-07-25-mn-199-story.html) • [2](https://www.nndb.com/people/620/000351564/) He should not be confused with the jazz pianist Teddy Wilson.[3](https://www.ontvtonight.com/guide/cast/15929088/theodore-wilson/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born / died | 1943, New York City; July 21, 1991, Los Angeles, of a stroke at age 47[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0934209/bio/) |
| Signature TV roles | Earl Chambers on *That's My Mama* (1974–75); Sweet Daddy Williams on *Good Times*; Phil Wheeler on *The Sanford Arms* (1977)[1](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-07-25-mn-199-story.html) • [2](https://www.nndb.com/people/620/000351564/) |
| Stage training | Negro Ensemble Company in New York, then the Arena Stage Repertory Company in Washington, before moving to Los Angeles in 1970[1](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-07-25-mn-199-story.html) |
| Film debut | *Cotton Comes to Harlem* (1970), in which he played Barry[5](https://time.com/6232703/is-that-black-enough-for-you-films/) |
| Later films | *Carny* (1980), *A Fine Mess* (1986), *Life Stinks* (1991), *The Vagrant* (1992), and *Blood In, Blood Out* (1993)[6](https://travsd.wordpress.com/2020/02/18/teddy-wilson-supported-sitcoms-in-the-70s/) |
| Marriage | Married actress Joan Pringle on January 11, 1980[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0934209/bio/) |
## Early life and stage work
Wilson was born in 1943 in New York City; one profile describes him as Harlem-born.[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0934209/bio/) • [6](https://travsd.wordpress.com/2020/02/18/teddy-wilson-supported-sitcoms-in-the-70s/) He began acting with New York's Negro Ensemble Company, moved to the Arena Stage Repertory Company in Washington, and came to Los Angeles in 1970.[1](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-07-25-mn-199-story.html) His screen debut came in the blaxploitation film *[Cotton Comes to Harlem](https://www.edgepedia.org/cotton-comes-to-harlem)* (1970), appearing alongside [Redd Foxx](https://www.edgepedia.org/redd-foxx), who starred in the *Sanford and Son* series Wilson would later join through its spin-off.[7](https://sanfordandson.fandom.com/wiki/Theodore_Wilson) In the film, his character Barry asks scavenger Uncle Budd (Foxx) "Is that Black enough for you?" with a wink.[5](https://time.com/6232703/is-that-black-enough-for-you-films/)
## Television career
**The 1970s.** Wilson's early television work included parts on *The Waltons* and *The Partridge Family*.[6](https://travsd.wordpress.com/2020/02/18/teddy-wilson-supported-sitcoms-in-the-70s/) His first recurring role was as High Strung on *Roll Out* (1973), a World War II sitcom about an all-[Black Army](https://www.edgepedia.org/black-army) supply outfit.[3](https://www.ontvtonight.com/guide/cast/15929088/theodore-wilson/) In 1974 he took the role for which he was long identified, mail carrier Earl Chambers on *That's My Mama*, a comedy that lasted two seasons; he appeared in 36 episodes.[1](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-07-25-mn-199-story.html) • [8](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/96288/teddy-wilson) He met the actress Joan Pringle on the show's set, when she replaced [Lynne Moody](https://www.edgepedia.org/lynne-moody) in the role of Tracy during the 1975 season; they married in 1980.[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0934209/bio/)
In 1977, after *Sanford and Son* went off the air, Wilson starred as Phil Wheeler in *The Sanford Arms*, NBC's attempt to continue the franchise without its stars, Redd Foxx and [Demond Wilson](https://www.edgepedia.org/demond-wilson). His character, an old army buddy of Fred Sanford's, bought the Sanford junkyard and tried to convert the property into a hotel; the series was canceled quickly.[1](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-07-25-mn-199-story.html) • [3](https://www.ontvtonight.com/guide/cast/15929088/theodore-wilson/) During the same years he played the flashy Sweet Daddy Williams on CBS's *Good Times*, appearing in six episodes between 1976 and 1979, and he also played Stanley Byrd on the series.[2](https://www.nndb.com/people/620/000351564/) • [8](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/96288/teddy-wilson) • [9](https://interviews.televisionacademy.com/shows/good-times) On *What's Happening!!* he played several characters, including Al Dunbar in a two-part episode in which the character is arrested for bootlegging a Doobie Brothers concert.[7](https://sanfordandson.fandom.com/wiki/Theodore_Wilson) His guest appearances in the decade also included *M*A*S*H*, *Baretta*, *Phyllis*, *The Bionic Woman*, *Kojak*, *Police Woman*, and *[The White Shadow](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-white-shadow-tv-series)*.[6](https://travsd.wordpress.com/2020/02/18/teddy-wilson-supported-sitcoms-in-the-70s/)
**The 1980s.** As a new generation of African American comic performers arrived and styles changed, Wilson worked steadily but was no longer as prominent a supporting actor as he had been in the 1970s.[6](https://travsd.wordpress.com/2020/02/18/teddy-wilson-supported-sitcoms-in-the-70s/) He succeeded [Nathaniel Taylor](https://www.edgepedia.org/nathaniel-taylor-actor) in the role of Jim-Jam on the short-lived *The Redd Foxx Show* (1986), and his final regular sitcom stint was on the syndicated *You Can't Take It with You* (1987), playing Mr. Pinner, a character combining two figures from the original Kaufman and Hart play.[3](https://www.ontvtonight.com/guide/cast/15929088/theodore-wilson/) Guest credits in this period included *227*, *The Golden Girls*, *Cagney & Lacey*, *Family Matters*, *Alien Nation*, *Tales from the Crypt*, *Quantum Leap*, *L.A. Law*, and *Doogie Howser, M.D.*[6](https://travsd.wordpress.com/2020/02/18/teddy-wilson-supported-sitcoms-in-the-70s/) • [8](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/96288/teddy-wilson)
## Film work and writing
Wilson's film credits ran from the blaxploitation era through the early 1990s: *Come Back, Charleston Blue* (1972), *Cleopatra Jones* (1973), *Black Eye* (1974), *Newman's Law* (1974) with [George Peppard](https://www.edgepedia.org/george-peppard), *Gang Wars* (1976), the [Negro Ensemble Company](https://www.edgepedia.org/negro-ensemble-company)'s screen version of *The River Niger* (1976), *The Greatest* (1977), *Carny* (1980) with [Jodie Foster](https://www.edgepedia.org/jodie-foster), *The Hunter* (1980), *A Fine Mess* (1986) for Blake Edwards, *Maid to Order* (1987), and John Cassavetes's last film *Big Trouble* (1986).[6](https://travsd.wordpress.com/2020/02/18/teddy-wilson-supported-sitcoms-in-the-70s/) • [2](https://www.nndb.com/people/620/000351564/) He appeared in two Mel Brooks films near the end of his life, *Life Stinks* (1991) and *The Vagrant* (1992), and posthumously in *Blood In, Blood Out* (1993).[6](https://travsd.wordpress.com/2020/02/18/teddy-wilson-supported-sitcoms-in-the-70s/) • [1](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-07-25-mn-199-story.html)
He also worked as a writer and director. In 1986 he staged *The Book of the Crazy African* in Los Angeles, a collection of songs, dances, and recitations.[1](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-07-25-mn-199-story.html)
## Death
Wilson died of a stroke on July 21, 1991, at [Cedars-Sinai Medical Center](https://www.edgepedia.org/cedars-sinai-medical-center) in Los Angeles, at age 47. He had undergone open-heart surgery several years earlier. His survivors included two sons and a daughter.[1](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-07-25-mn-199-story.html) • [4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0934209/bio/)
## References
1. [Theodore R. Wilson; Actor in Many TV Comedies, Movies, Los Angeles Times (July 25, 1991)](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-07-25-mn-199-story.html)
2. [Teddy Wilson, NNDB](https://www.nndb.com/people/620/000351564/)
3. [Theodore Wilson TV Schedule, Movies & Shows, On TV Tonight](https://www.ontvtonight.com/guide/cast/15929088/theodore-wilson/)
4. [Teddy Wilson – Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0934209/bio/)
5. [6 Black Films That Changed the Course of Cinema, TIME](https://time.com/6232703/is-that-black-enough-for-you-films/)
6. [Teddy Wilson: Supported Sitcoms in the '70s, Travalanche](https://travsd.wordpress.com/2020/02/18/teddy-wilson-supported-sitcoms-in-the-70s/)
7. [Theodore Wilson, Sanford and Son Wiki](https://sanfordandson.fandom.com/wiki/Theodore_Wilson)
8. [Teddy Wilson, TVmaze](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/96288/teddy-wilson)
9. [Good Times, Television Academy Interviews](https://interviews.televisionacademy.com/shows/good-times)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 1970s to 1990s › Surnames Wh to W*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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