Franklyn Seales (July 15, 1952 â€" May 14, 1990) was an American film,
television and stage actor. He was known for his portrayals of
business manager Dexter Stuffins in the 1980s sitcom Silver Spoons,
and real-life convicted cop killer Jimmy Lee (Youngblood) Smith in the
1979 film The Onion Field.Franklyn Vincent Ellison Seales was born on
July 15, 1952, the fifth eldest of eight siblings, in Calliaqua to
Francis Seales, a merchant seaman and government employee, and Olive
Seales (née Allen), a homemaker. Seales was of English, Scottish,
African, Portuguese and Native Caribbean descent. He and his family
left the West Indies in 1960 and settled in New York City. He attended
Lincoln High School in Brooklyn.Seales originally intended to study at
the Pratt Institute to pursue a career in art. However, in the early
1970s, Seales agreed to accompany an aspiring-actress friend to an
audition at the Juilliard School. As Seales helped his friend run
through the famous Romeo and Juliet balcony scene, actor/producer John
Houseman (then director and founder of the school's drama division)
began to notice him. Houseman offered Seales a four-year Juilliard
scholarship. Seales was the first and only known graduate of Juilliard
to hail from St. Vincent. He studied at Houseman's Acting
Company.Seales made his breakthrough in 1978 with the PBS drama, Trial
of the Moke, portraying Lt. Henry O. Flipper, the first
African-American graduate of West Point. He went on to appear in The
Onion Field (1979), in which he portrayed real-life convicted cop
killer Jimmy Lee (Youngblood) Smith. That same year, he also had a
minor role in Star Trek: The Motion Picture. He appeared in the 1981
film, Southern Comfort, in which he portrayed Rifleman Cleotis Simms.
television and stage actor. He was known for his portrayals of
business manager Dexter Stuffins in the 1980s sitcom Silver Spoons,
and real-life convicted cop killer Jimmy Lee (Youngblood) Smith in the
1979 film The Onion Field.Franklyn Vincent Ellison Seales was born on
July 15, 1952, the fifth eldest of eight siblings, in Calliaqua to
Francis Seales, a merchant seaman and government employee, and Olive
Seales (née Allen), a homemaker. Seales was of English, Scottish,
African, Portuguese and Native Caribbean descent. He and his family
left the West Indies in 1960 and settled in New York City. He attended
Lincoln High School in Brooklyn.Seales originally intended to study at
the Pratt Institute to pursue a career in art. However, in the early
1970s, Seales agreed to accompany an aspiring-actress friend to an
audition at the Juilliard School. As Seales helped his friend run
through the famous Romeo and Juliet balcony scene, actor/producer John
Houseman (then director and founder of the school's drama division)
began to notice him. Houseman offered Seales a four-year Juilliard
scholarship. Seales was the first and only known graduate of Juilliard
to hail from St. Vincent. He studied at Houseman's Acting
Company.Seales made his breakthrough in 1978 with the PBS drama, Trial
of the Moke, portraying Lt. Henry O. Flipper, the first
African-American graduate of West Point. He went on to appear in The
Onion Field (1979), in which he portrayed real-life convicted cop
killer Jimmy Lee (Youngblood) Smith. That same year, he also had a
minor role in Star Trek: The Motion Picture. He appeared in the 1981
film, Southern Comfort, in which he portrayed Rifleman Cleotis Simms.
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