Hyman was born in 1926 in
Rocky Mount, North Carolina, as
George Earle Plummer according to the North Carolina Birth Index. He claimed Native American ancestry. His parents, Zachariah Hyman and Maria Lilly Plummer, seeking better educational opportunities, moved their family from the south to
Brooklyn, New York, in the late 1920s, where Hyman primarily grew up. in New York City. He made his
Broadway stage debut as a teenager in 1943 in
Run, Little Chillun, and later joined the
American Negro Theater. The following year, Hyman began a two-year run playing the role of Rudolf on Broadway in
Anna Lucasta, starring
Hilda Simms in the title role. He was a member of the
American Shakespeare Theatre beginning with its first season in 1955, and played the role of
Othello in the 1957 season. In December 1958, he came to London to play the leading role in
Moon on a Rainbow Shawl, by
Errol John, at the Royal Court. In 1959, he again appeared in the West End, this time in the first London production of
A Raisin In the Sun, alongside
Kim Hamilton. The show ran at the
Adelphi Theatre and was directed by
Lloyd Richards. A life member of
The Actors Studio, Hyman appeared throughout his career in productions in both the United States and Norway, where he also owned property. In 1965, he won a
Theatre World Award and in 1988, he was awarded the
St Olav's medal for his work in Norwegian theater. In addition to his stage work, Hyman appeared in various television and film roles including adaptions of
Macbeth (1968),
Julius Caesar (1979), and
Coriolanus (1979), and voiced
Panthro on the animated television series
ThunderCats (1985–1989). He played two roles (at different times) on television's
The Edge of Night. One of his most well known roles, that of Russell Huxtable in
The Cosby Show, earned him an
Emmy Award nomination in 1986. He played the father of lead character
Cliff Huxtable, played by
Bill Cosby.
Death Hyman died in 2017, at the
Lillian Booth Actors Home in
Englewood, New Jersey. He was 91. In March 2026, actor
Delroy Lindo, soon after receiving his
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor nomination, tearfully told an interviewer how eternally thankful he was for Earle Hyman having been a "savior" in his life. When Lindo was still a young actor, out of work and feeling "hopeless...at such a low point when Earle gave me that affirmation. He said, 'Young man, you have nothing to worry about.' " And Lindo said he cries every time he recalls Hyman's compassionate, encouraging words.
Connections to Norway In Norway, Hyman was seen as a friend of the country and had a cabin in
Skånevik. Hyman learned to speak Norwegian through Sirnes, who was originally from Haugesund. In the 1990s, they lived in New York City. ==Filmography==