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Roundtree, who was born in New Rochelle in 1942, died on Tuesday afternoon, Oct. 24 at the age of 81 after a battle with pancreatic cancer, according to numerous reports.
After beginning his acting career in 1963, Roundtree landed what many consider to be his most iconic role in the 1971 film "Shaft," in which he played Detective John Shaft. He also starred in several sequels to the film, including Shaft's Big Score (1972) and Shaft in Africa (1973).
As a result of these films, he made history as one of the first major Black action stars and helped inspire other people in the industry, including Cheo Hodari Coker, who produced and wrote films and television shows starring Black actors such as the Marvel series "Luke Cage."
"My hero. A huge inspiration for Luke Cage," Coker wrote in a post on the X platform following Roundtree's death.
Roundtree was also known for playing slave Sam Bennett in the 1977 television series Roots and won a Peabody Award for narrating the 2002 PBS documentary "The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow."
Roundtree was a 1961 graduate of New Rochelle High School, where he played on an undefeated and nationally-ranked football team.
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