Jimmie Walker

And Florida Evans, on the CBS television comedy series Good Times. The show ran from 1974 to 1979, and Walker was nominated for a Golden Globe Award in 1975 and 1976 for his role as J.J. On Good Times, Walker's character was known for his catchphrase "Dyn-o-mite!", and the actor later used it in his mid-1970s TV commercials for Panasonic cassette and 8-track tape players and in a 2021–2023 public announcement for Medicare. Walker also starred in Let's Do It Again (1975) with John Amos, and The Greatest Thing That Almost Happened (1977) with James Earl Jones. Walker continues to tour the country with his stand-up comedy routine.

• Known for — J.J. Evans – Good Times • Birth Name — James Carter Walker Jr. • Born — 25 June 1947 • Birthplace — New York City, U.S. • Education — Theodore Roosevelt High School • Occupation — Actor, comedian • Years Active — 1969–present • Website — jimmiejjwalkerdynomite.com • Illustration — On Good Times (1974), L–R: Ralph Carter, BernNadette Stanis, Jimmie Walker, Esther Rolle and John Amos

Walker was born in Brooklyn, New York, and raised in the Melrose Projects of Melrose, Bronx. He attended Theodore Roosevelt High School in New York City. Through a New York State funded program known as SEEK (Search for Education, Evaluation, and Knowledge), he continued his studies and entered into the field of radio engineering with WRVR. As a young man, Walker was a vendor at Yankee Stadium, starting with the 1964 World Series.

In 1967, Walker began working full-time with WRVR, the radio station of the Riverside Church. In 1969, Walker began performing as a stand-up comedian and was eventually discovered by the casting director for Good Times, after making appearances on Rowan & Martin's Laugh In and on the Jack Paar Show. He eventually released one stand-up comedy album during the height of his Good Times popularity: Dyn-o-mite on Buddah Records (5635). During Good Times ' 1974–75 season, Walker was 26 years old, though his character was much younger. John Amos, the actor who portrayed Walker's father on Good Times, was actually just eight years older than Walker. Walker credits producer/director John Rich for inventing "Dyn-o-mite!", which Rich insisted Walker say on every episode. Both Walker and executive producer Norman Lear were skeptical of the idea, but the phrase and Walker's character caught on with the audience. Off- and on-camera, Walker did not get along with the series' lead, Esther Rolle, because she and Amos disapproved of Walker's increasingly buffoonish character and his popularity, and Walker felt hurt by their disdain. Dissatisfaction led Amos to leave the show before Rolle did, making Walker the star of the show. Walker was the only Good Times star to not attend Rolle's funeral.

During 1975, Walker was also a weekend personality on contemporary R&B music station KAGB 103.9 FM licensed to Inglewood in the Los Angeles market. Walker appeared on The Tonight Show and Match Game during the 1970s and early 1980s. He was a five-time panelist on the Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour from 1983 to 1984. He also appeared on the 1990 revival of Match Game and various game shows during that era. Walker has made guest appearances on Badge 373, The Love Boat, Fantasy Island, The Larry Sanders Show, Son of the Beach, The Drew Carey Show, The John Larroquette Show, In the House, Cagney & Lacey, The Fall Guy, Scrubs, Star Dates, Everybody Hates Chris, George Lopez, Chelsea Lately and Lincoln Heights. He also appeared in the films Rabbit Test (1978), The Concorde... Airport '79 (1979), Airplane! (1980), Water (1985), Doin' Time (1985), The Guyver (1991), Monster Mash (1995) and Plump Fiction (1997). Aside from guest appearances, he starred in the short-lived television series At Ease in 1983 and Bustin' Loose in 1987. In the 1990s, Walker returned to his radio roots hosting shows on WHIO, WOAI, WLS and KKAR. In 1996, he appeared on split release with Powerviolence band Spazz distributed by Spazz-owned label Slap-a-ham records. In 2010, Walker made a cameo appearance in the movie Big Money Rustlas. In 2011, he appeared in a Syfy channel movie Super Shark. On May 4, 2023 he made a guest appearance on The Bold and the Beautiful. In 2012, Walker's autobiography, Dyn-o-mite! Good Times, Bad Times, Our Times – A Memoir, was published. In 2012, Walker announced the release of his official app developed by Monty Goulet for iOS. Walker has also appeared on Funny You Should Ask and Comics Unleashed. He was honored during an episode for his contribution to Byron Allen's career, as well as the impact he had on David Letterman and Jay Leno.

According to an appearance on The Wendy Williams Show on June 27, 2012, Walker stated he has never been married nor fathered children, but has had many girlfriends. Walker appeared on The O'Reilly Factor on July 11, 2012. He stated that he did not vote for Barack Obama in 2008 and that he would not vote for him in the 2012 election either. In an interview with CNN, Walker described himself politically as a "realist independent" and stated that he opposed affirmative action, saying that it had outlived its usefulness. He also said that he was against gay marriage on moral grounds, but believed its legalization should be passed, stating it was not worth fighting against. Walker was also vocal of his support for Donald Trump in 2017. Walker described his political beliefs at length in his autobiography, Dyn-O-Mite: Good Times, Bad Times, Our Times: A Memoir. In it, he called himself a "logicist," who believes in "logic and common sense", holding conservative positions on many issues.

• Year — Film — Role — Notes • 1974 — Tattletales — Himself — Appeared with "fiancé" Samantha Stone (Episodes #2.62-2.66, aired the week of December 23, 1974) • 1974–1979 — Good Times — James "J.J." Evans Jr. — 133 episodes • 1974 — Tony Orlando and Dawn — Himself — Episode: "Episode #1.2" (S1:E2) • 1977 — Bob Hope television specials — Himself — Episode: "Bob Hope's All-Star Comedy Tribute to Vaudeville" (S27:E4) • The Greatest Thing That Almost Happened — Morris Bird III — Made-for-TV-Movie directed by Gilbert Moses. • 1977–1985 — The Love Boat — Ronald — Episode: "The Captain And The Lady/One If By Land/Centerfold" (S1:E1) (1977) • The Late Mickey Garner — Episode: "Till Death Do Us Part-Maybe/Locked Away/Chubs" (S2:E9) (1978) • Wally — Episode: "The Brotherhood of the Sea/Daddy's Pride/Letter to Babycakes" (S3:E10) (1979) • Marvin Jones — Episode: "The Mallory Quest/Julie, the Vamp/The Offer": Parts 1 (S4:E5) and 2 (S4:E6) (1980) • Marty Kilmer — Episode: "Charmed, I'm Sure/Ashes to Ashes/No Dad of Mine" (S8:E25) (1985) • 1980 — B.A.D. Cats — Rodney Washington — Episode: "Pilot" (S1:E1) • Murder Can Hurt You — Parks, The Pusher — Made-for-TV-Movie directed by Roger Duchowny. • 1980 — The White Shadow — Himself — Episode: "If Your Number's Up, Get It Down" (S3:E3) • 1982 — Today's FBI — Reggie — Episode: "Bank Job" (S1:E16) • Fantasy Island — Jay — Episode: "The Beautiful Skeptic/The Lost Platoon" (S6:E6) • 1983 — Cagney & Lacey — Tony Brown — Episode: "Chop Shop" (S2:E18) • At Ease — Sergeant Val Valentine — 14 episodes • 1983–1984 — Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour — Himself (celebrity panelist) — Five weeks' worth of episodes • 1987–1988 — Bustin' Loose — Sonny Barnes — 26 episodes • 1994 — The Larry Sanders Show — Himself — Episode: The Gift Episode • 1994 — Blossom — Himself — Episode: Season 4 Episode 20 The Flip Side • 1995 — In the House — Darryl — Episode: "Nanna Don't Play" • 1996 — Space Ghost Coast to Coast — Himself — Episode: "Surprise" • 2001–2002 — Scrubs — Himself — Episodes: "My Bad" (S 1:Ep 6), and "My Blind Date" (S1:E12) • 2003 — George Lopez — Lionel — Episode: Dubya, Dad, and Dating (Part 1) (S3: E1) • 2006–2008 — Everybody Hates Chris — Gene — Episodes: "Everybody Hates Funerals" (S1:E17), "Everybody Hates Gambling" (S2:E19), and "Everybody Hates the Port Authority" (S3:E11) • 2006 — Minoriteam — Fasto's Grandfather — Episode: "Balactus: Part II" • 2018–2020 — Funny You Should Ask — Himself — 6 episodes • 2019 — Live in Front of a Studio Audience: Good Times — Himself • 2023 — The Bold and the Beautiful — Count Bouche

• Year — Film — Role — Notes • 1996 — Ripper — Soap Beatty — Interactive movie

Jimmie Walker is recorded as actor and comedian.