Timothy Brown, a long-time NFL running back who was also well known for his roles in both the film and television versions of M*A*S*H., has died. Per The New York Post, Brown died from complications of dementia. He was 82.
Born in Indiana, Brown joined the NFL in 1959, spending most of his 10 seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles, where he became a key part of the team’s offensive line, as well as a regular at Pro Bowl games throughout the 1960s. Brown retired from football in 1968, at which point he transitioned into a full-time career as an actor, after having his TV debut on Wild Wild West the previous year. (He’d already also embarked on a sideline as a singer, with singles like “I Got Nothin’ But Time” and “If I Loved You” on Imperial Records.)
Brown’s second acting role was also one of his most prominent, scoring the role of Cpl. Judson in Robert Altman’s M*A*S*H. He also carries the distinction of being one of only a handful of actors to appear in both the film and TV versions of the franchise, although unlike actors like Gary Burghoff, Brown switched roles between the two, taking over the part of Captain Oliver Jones from fellow former NFL-er Fred Williamson. The character recurred throughout the show’s first season, before eventually being written out.
Brown continued to work throughout the 1970s and ’80s, most notably re-connecting with Altman for 1975's Nashville, where he got to indulge both his acting and his singing talents. His final film role was in 2000, where he had a small part in the time travel drama Frequency.