Bill Cobbs dies at 90: what was the cause of the death?

Actor Bill Cobbs, known for his roles in films such as ‘Bodyguard,’ ‘Night at the Museum,’ and ‘Air Bud,’ has passed away at the age of 90. His publicist, Chuck I. Jones, informed TMZ that Cobbs, who had over 50 years of experience in Hollywood, died Tuesday night at his home in Riverside, California.

Cobbs’s brother, Thomas Cobbs, shared with the media that Bill had recently been battling pneumonia, which is suspected to be the cause of his death. “As a family, we take comfort in knowing that Bill has found peace and eternal rest with his Heavenly Father. We ask for your prayers and encouragement during this time,” he stated.

The career of Bill Cobbs

Wilbert “Bill” Cobbs was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on June 16, 1934. He was an American television and film actor with credits in over 100 TV shows and movies, according to IMDb.

Before pursuing a career in acting, Bill served in the U.S. Air Force for 8 years and worked at IBM as well as a car salesman. He moved to New York to chase his dream of becoming an actor, making his film debut in 1974 with a role in ‘The Taking of Pelham One Two Three.’

Cobbs portrayed the manager of Whitney Houston in ‘The Bodyguard’ (1992), Medgar Evers’s elder brother in ‘Ghosts of Mississippi’ (1996), a jazz pianist in ‘That Thing You Do!’ (1996), and Master Tinker in ‘Oz the Great and Powerful’ (2013). He was also known for playing the coach who added a basketball-playing dog to the Timberwolves lineup in ‘Air Bud’ (1997), and the security guard Reginald in ‘Night at the Museum’ (2006).

In television, Cobbs had a recurring role as Lewis Coleman in ‘I’ll Fly Away’ in the early 1990s, and guest-starred in shows such as ‘Walker, Texas Ranger’ and ‘The Sopranos.’

Bill earned a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in a Children’s Series for his work on the children’s show ‘Dino Dana.’ Besides his screen work, Bill also appeared in several stage productions and played the drums. RIP.