Thin, jug-eared, and rubber-faced black comedian Jimmie Walker is best remembered for playing J.J. on the sitcom Good Times (1974-1979). His exuberant "Dyno-mite!!" was briefly a popular catch phrase back then. Walker made his feature film debut in Sing Thanksgiving (1974). Following the demise of his show, Walker embarked upon a modest film career and carried on with his standup career. He occasionally showed up on television talk shows and in 70's retrospectives, not afraid to poke fun at his '70s persona.
Jimmie Walker
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- Discovered a talent for comedic writing while enrolled in an English class at a post high-school educational program.
- During the early years of his stand-up comedy career, he emceed at venues like the Apollo Theater in New York and the Uptown Theater in Philadelphia, PA.
- Dubbed "Comedian of the Decade" by Time magazine in 1969.
- First major TV appearance was in 1973 on Jack Paar Tonite.
- Helped coin the Good Times catch phrase "Dyn-o-mite," which was also the title of his 1975 comedy album.
- Wrote Dynomite!: Good Times, Bad Times, Our Times—A Memoir in 2012.