Graham Brown, 'Sanford and Son' Actor, Dies of Pulmonary Failure at 87

Actor Graham Brown, who appeared on stage at London's Globe Theatre and most notably on U.S. television in Law & Order and Sanford and Son, died Tuesday in Englewood, N.J., at the age of 87, according to The Associated Press.

Actress Barbara Montgomery often appeared with Brown on stage and had power of attorney on his behalf. Montgomery said Brown died of pulmonary failure at the nursing facility of the Lillian Booth Actors' Home of the Actors Fund, the AP reported.

According to Montgomery, Brown was meticulous and a gentleman.

Brown often appeared in stage productions of the New York-based Negro Ensemble Company and was a founding member of the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, the AP reported. His first acting gig was as Horatio in Hamlet for the Minnesota Theatre Company.

In addition to listing Brown's role as a school principal on the 1970s situation comedy Sanford and Son and recurring role as a judge on Law & Order, the Internet Movie Database noted the actor also appeared in a number of feature films, including ''Clockers in 1995, Malcolm X in 1992, and The Muppets Take Manhattan in 1984.