Jim Brown, the NFL Hall of Famer, civil rights activist, and accomplished actor known for his roles in films and TV shows such as The Dirty Dozen, I Spy, Draft Day, Mars Attacks!, and The A-Team, passed away on Thursday night in Los Angeles. According to his wife Monique Brown’s Instagram post, he died peacefully, but no cause of death was given.
Brown is widely regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time. He was drafted sixth overall by the Cleveland Browns out of Syracuse University in 1957, and his powerful running style revolutionized the running back position. As a rookie, he set a record by running for 237 yards in a game against the Los Angeles Rams – a feat that remained unmatched until the 1970s.
Throughout his career, Brown achieved numerous NFL records and milestones, including being the first player to exceed 100 career rushing touchdowns and setting single-season and career rushing records during 12- or 14-game seasons. He was named Rookie of the Year, a three-time MVP, an eight-time All-Pro, and an eight-time rushing leader, retiring with a multitude of records. Brown helped lead the Browns to the NFL championship in 1964, three years before the first Super Bowl.
In the 1969 western film 100 Rifles, starring Burt Reynolds and featuring another running back-turned-actor, Jim Brown made history as the first Black man to appear in an interracial love scene in a major Hollywood movie, co-starring with Raquel Welch.
Born on February 17, 1936, in St. Simons Island, GA, Brown played a prominent role in Regina King’s directorial debut film One Night in Miami, which is set on the night of February 25, 1964, when Cassius Clay became heavyweight champion by defeating Sonny Liston. As the film’s plot unfolds, while the rest of Miami Beach celebrates Clay’s victory, he and his friends, including Malcolm X, Sam Cooke, and Jim Brown (played by Aldis Hodge), gather at the Hampton House Motel in Miami’s Overtown neighborhood to celebrate. Each of them was beginning to emerge as a prominent figure in the Civil Rights movement.