“Sanford and Son” actor Hal Williams died on Wednesday. He was 91.

He passed away in his Rancho Mirage, California home, the actor’s representative told Deadline on Thursday.

He died of natural causes, per TMZ.

Hal Williams (pictured above in September 2016) died Wednesday. WireImage The actor (pictured above in “Private Benjamin” in September 1982) was 91. CBS via Getty Images Explore More

Williams’ rep did not immediately respond to Page Six’s request for comment.

The “227” star is survived by his two children, three grandchildren and three great-grandchildren — as his eldest son, Mark, died on a Angeles National Forest camping trip at the age of 20.

Born in December 1934 in Columbus, Ohio, Williams began his career in community theater.

The actor (pictured above in February 2025) passed away in his California home. The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images Williams’ cause of death is not yet known at this time. (Pictured above: The “Private Benjamin” on the September 1982 series). CBS via Getty Images Want more celebrity and pop culture news?

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After stints as a postal worker, a corrections officer and a social worker, he relocated to Los Angeles in 1968 to pursue acting.

The move took place on the heels of his divorce, with Williams feeling so “extremely unhappy,” he gave “the one thing [he] want[ed] to try to do” a shot.

“I didn’t tell nobody but my parents, who thought I’d lost my mind,” he explained to Columbus Monthly in 2023. “I was scared to death, but I said, ‘If I don’t do this now, I know I will never get the guts to do it.”

Williams (pictured above in “Sanford and Son” in September 1972) had a career spanning nearly six decades. Courtesy Everett Collection The “On the Rocks” alum (pictured above in February 2025) was “scared to death” to relocate from Ohio to Hollywood, but did so in the late ’60s. Getty Images for ESSENCE

He nabbed his “Sanford and Son” role of Officer “Smitty” Smith in 1972, appearing in 20 episodes of the show, as well as five more in the “Sanford” spinoff.

Williams had recurring roles on other shows over the years, including “The Waltons,” “On the Rocks,” “Roots: The Next Generation” and “Private Benjamin.”

One of his best-known characters is Lester Jenkins from “227,” which aired between 1985 and 1990.

His most recent acting gigs were in “A Black Lady Sketch Show” and “Matlock.”

One of Williams’ most notable roles was Lester Jenkins on “227” (pictured above with co-star Marla Gibbs). ©Columbia Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection Williams (pictured above in February 2025) once said he planned to work until his “last day.” Getty Images for ESSENCE

Williams planned to “keep working … to the last day,” he quipped in his Columbus Monthly sitdown.

“I’ve prided myself on choosing a profession where you don’t have to stop working,” he added. “You just get older as you work.”

At the time, he was working on a memoir and cookbook, saying, “I’ll do it on my own time. They keep pressuring me. I said, ‘Oh, you all think I’m so old I may die before I get the book done? Well, you’re going to have to wait and see!’”