Bernie Hamilton

Who was Bernie Hamilton?

Bernie Hamilton was an American actor.

Hamilton was born in East Los Angeles and attended Oakland Technical High School, where he first became interested in acting. In films from 1950, he laboured in bit roles for years before getting noticed in the film One Potato, Two Potato, the story of an inter-racial marriage. He is best remembered for his role as the brusque, no-nonsense Captain Dobey in the United States 1970s police series Starsky and Hutch. Hamilton was the brother of jazz drummer Chico Hamilton. Hamilton was also an impresario; since the late 1960s he had run a nightclub/art gallery called Citadel d’Haiti on Sunset Boulevard. Hamilton also produced Rhythm and blues and gospel music recordings on his own record label called Chocolate Snowman. One of his releases featured himself; it was entitled Captain Dobey Sings the Blues.

Hamilton died of cardiac arrest on December 30, 2008, aged 80.