Actor Bill Cosby took to Twitter on Sunday to post his condolences on the death of actor Earle Hyman. Cosby thanked the veteran actor for bringing "love, dignity and integrity" to the popular character of Dr. Cliff Huxtable in the hit 80s show "The Cosby Show," in which he portrayed the role of Hyman's son.

Hyman died Friday at the Lillian Booth Actors Home in Englewood, New Jersey, at the age of 91. The death of the actor was confirmed by Jordan Strohl, a representative for The Actors Fund. Hyman is also renowned for voicing the character Panthro in the animated television series "ThunderCats."

The cause of death was not revealed, according to the website TVLine. The actor was unmarried and had no immediate relatives.

Comedian Rickey Smiley also took to Twitter to offer his condolences on the demise of Hyman.

The actor was born in North Carolina as George Earle Plummer. His parents Zachariah Hyman and Maria Lilly Plummer moved to Brooklyn, New York, in the 1920s, where Hyman grew up and acquired a taste for acting.

"The first play I ever saw was a present from my parents on my 13th birthday — Nazimova in 'Ghosts' at Brighton Beach on the subway circuit — and I just freaked out," Hyman said, during an interview in 2000.

He debuted on Broadway as a teenager in 1943 in the play "Run, Little Chillun" and later joined the American Negro Theatre, the New York Times reported. Even though people knew and loved him as the Shakespeare-quoting, head-butting beloved Dr. Cliff Huxtable in "The Cosby Show," Hyman was primarily a theatre actor. His stage career broke racial stereotypes as he played traditionally white roles such as that of Hamlet, Macbeth and Lear, as well as black roles like Othello, Eugene O’Neill’s play "Emperor Jones" and the chauffeur in Alfred Uhry’s play "Driving Miss Daisy," according to the New York Times.

"It used to be that casting black actors in traditionally white roles seemed daring, like marching in the street, and maybe things have gotten better and maybe they haven’t," Mr. Hyman told the newspaper in 1991. "But just the fact that people still ask that question — should we or shouldn’t we? — proves that things have not come a long way."

Hyman’s acting career had more than a few accolades. He was nominated in 1980 for a Tony for his Broadway role in Edward Albee’s "The Lady From Dubuque" and an Emmy in 1986 for "the Cosby Show." He won the CableACE award for best actor in drama for his role in "Long Day’s Journey Into Night" in 1983 and also an Outstanding Pioneer Award in 1980 from the Audience Development Committee. Hyman, who was popular in Norway due to the theatre work there, was awarded the Medal of St. Olav from the king of the country in 1988.

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