Actor Lou Myers died in his native Charleston, West Virginia on Tuesday, following a heart-related emergency. He was 77.

Fans of late ’80s/early ’90s sitcoms will remember Myers best for his role as cranky chef/restaurant owner Mr. Gaines on the college-themed Cosby Show-spinoff A Different World. The popular series made stars of future big names like Jasmine Guy, Kadeem Hardison and a young Jada Pinkett-Smith.

He got his first acting break as an understudy in Broadway’s The First Breeze of Summer. In addition to A Different World, his television credits include ER, NYPD Blue and JAG. Myers shared the screen with Angela Bassett and Whoopi Goldberg in 1998′s How Stella Got Her Groove Back and appeared in the 2001 JLo-assisted comedy The Wedding Planner. The star was also an accomplished piano player.

Myers was counted among 50 “Outstanding Creative Artists” from the State of West Virginia by the Appalachian Education Initiative in 2005. A graduate of West Virginia State University, Myers returned to the university in 2010 to deliver the Black History Month convocation.

The late actor is survived by his son and his 95-year-old mother. Myers, who was an Army veteran, will receive a military burial in West Virginia.

So long, Mr. Gaines…

Written by Castina on February 21st, 2013 | Tagged as: Popular Culture