Tommy Ford Is Dead

ORIGIN
Tommy Ford was an American actor, writer, producer, and director. He starred as “Tommy Strawn” in the sitcom Martin, and as “Mel Parker” in The Parkers. His film credits include Class Act and Harlem Nights. Ford was born Thomas Mikal Ford on September 5, 1964, in Los Angeles, California. He attended the University of Southern California.

CAREER
Ford made his acting debut in the 1985 horror short, Deathly Realities. He was cast as “Tommy Smalls” in the film Harlem Nights (1989) with Eddie Murphy and Richard Pryor. He held a small role as “Coach Walsh” in Across the Tracks (1991), and later as “Arnie” in Mr. Jones (1993). Other film appearances include Class Act (1992) with Kid ‘n Play, and Against the Law (1997) with Richard Grieco.

In 1992, Ford landed his breakthrough role as “Tommy Strawn” on the Fox sitcom, Martin. The series also stars Martin Lawrence and Tichina Arnold. Martin ran for 5 seasons from August 1992 to May 1997. Ford held a recurring role as lieutenant “Malcolm Barker” on the 4th season of New York Undercover (1998-99). He was cast as “Mel Parker” in The Parkers (1999-2001), and as “Pope of Comedy” in Who’s Got Jokes? (2006-06). Other notable television series include A Different World, The Jamie Foxx Show, and Let’s Stay Together.

Ford was the face of Tommy Ties. He worked alongside Verse 9 on a line of ties and bows. They used the slogan “For Real Men with Real Jobs!”. Ford authored a handful of children’s books including I Am Responsible For Me!, Stop The Violence!, and Be Still and Know. He was also a motivational speaker and advocate for breast cancer awareness. He produced the documentary, Through My Lens, for Aspire TV in 2016. The film exposed the world of bullying and how it relates to the African American community.

PERSONAL
Tommy Ford died on October 12, 2016, at the age of 52. He reportedly died from a ruptured aneurysm in his abdomen. He spent his last days at an Atlanta hospital surrounded by family and friends. Ford was 6ft 4in tall and had a net worth of $2 million. He was married to ‘Gina Sasso’ from 1997 to 2014. He had no children.

Tommy Ford Bio, Net Worth, Height