Nathaniel Taylor, ‘Sanford and Son’ Actor, Is Dead at 80

Nathaniel Taylor as Rollo in an episode of “Sanford and Son.” “It was an honor for people to remember him” as his fast-talking but good-hearted character, his son said.

Credit...NBC, via Getty Images

Nathaniel Taylor, best known for his recurring role as Rollo on the 1970s sitcom “Sanford and Son,” died on Feb. 27 in Los Angeles. He was 80.

His son Kaedi said he died in a hospital after a heart attack.

Mr. Taylor’s character on “Sanford and Son,” the long-running NBC series that starred Redd Foxx as the irascible junk dealer Fred Sanford, was the friend and sidekick of Fred’s son, Lamont, played by Demond Wilson. The fast-talking but good-hearted Rollo affectionately called Fred “Pops,” but Fred viewed him with skepticism and sometimes hostility because he thought Rollo, who had spent time in jail, was a bad influence on Lamont. Mr. Taylor appeared in 32 episodes between 1972 and 1977.

Mr. Taylor went on to appear on other TV shows and in movies, and later opened a performing arts studio and taught acting. But his son Kaedi, who works behind the scenes in the television and film industry, said he never tired of people recognizing him as Rollo.

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