Happy birthday Otis Young!
Born on July 4, 1932, in Providence, Rhode Island, Young was one of 14 children. He served in the Korean War as a member of the U.S. Marine Corps, which he joined at the age of 17.
Columbo fans will recognize him as Lawrence Melville, Mr. Steinmetz's unsuspecting henchman in Identity Crisis.
Beyond Columbo
Young's acting career was marked by several notable roles. He co-starred in the television Western, The Outcasts (1968–1969), alongside Don Murray. This role made him the second African-American actor to co-star in a television Western, following Raymond St Jacques who appeared in the final season of Rawhide in 1965.
Young also played a memorable role as Richard "Mule" Mulhall, Jack Nicholson's shore patrol partner, in the 1973 comedy-drama film The Last Detail. His later film credits included low-budget horror films like The Capture of Bigfoot (1979) and Blood Beach (1981)¹.
In addition to his acting career, Young had a deep interest in theology. He studied at LIFE Bible College in Los Angeles and obtained a Bachelor of Arts in 1983. He was ordained as a pastor and served as the senior pastor of Elim Foursquare Gospel Church in Rochester, New York, from 1986 to 1988.
Young also taught acting classes at School Without Walls, a college-like alternative public high school in Rochester, from 1987 through 1991. In 1989, he joined the faculty at Monroe Community College in Rochester, where he served as a Professor of Communication and head of the Drama Department until his retirement in 1999.
Otis Young passed away on October 12, 2001, at the age of 69, in Los Angeles, California. He is survived by his wife, Barbara; sons El Mahdi and Jemal Lucien, both of Los Angeles; daughters Lovelady Young of Philadelphia and Saudia Young of Manhattan; and his mother, Gwendolyn Tunewald of Philadelphia.
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