'To Kill a Mockingbird' star Brock Peters dies

The acclaimed actor, most famous for his role as Tom Robinson in the Oscar-winning film, passes away.

Aug 24 2005

Brock Peters, star of 'To Kill a Mockingbird', 'Soylent Green' and 'The Pawnbroker', has died following a battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 78.

The versatile actor, who regularly appeared on both stage and screen, first came to prominence when he appeared in the popular film versions of the musicals 'Porgy and Bess' and 'Carmen Jones'.

However, his most famous role was as Tom Robinson, the young man accused of rape in the Oscar-winning 1962 classic 'To Kill a Mockingbird'.

Starring opposite Gregory Peck and Robert Duvall, Peters won critical acclaim for the performance and received the All-American Press Association Award for best supporting actor.

Other notable roles came in 'The L-Shaped Room', 'Heavens Above!' and as Admiral Cartwright in 'Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home' and 'Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country'.

Peters was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame in 1976 and also won a lifetime achievement award from the Screen Actors Guild in 1991.