Actor. He is best remembered for his roles of 'Bart,' the African-American sheriff in the Western comedy movie "Blazing Saddles" (1974) and as 'Dr. Jerry Noland' in the 1970s television series "Temperatures Rising." Born in Chickasha, Oklahoma, he grew up in San Diego, California, graduated from Kearny High School and attended San Diego State University. He earned a scholarship to Julliard and the American Academy of Dramatic Arts (AADA), where he trained as an actor, and soon won a part in the Off-Broadway Shakespearean plays, "Hamlet" and "A Midsummer Night's Dream." After winning a Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in the Broadway musical "Purlie," he headed for Hollywood, where he got his first role playing Captain Hancock in the soap "Another World" (1964). Other small roles continued, on such television shows as Felony Squad, when he obtained bit roles in movies, including "John and Mary" (1969), "Cotton Comes to Harlem" (1970) and "Vanishing Point" (1971)." Once Bitten"(Sebastian) with Lauren Hutton , Jim Carrey (1985). He would continue to show up on television on such series as: "All in the Family," "The Mod Squad" and "Police Story," but it was his lead role of Bart, the sheriff in Mel Brooks' "Blazing Saddles," for which he is best remembered. That role had been tailor-made for actor-comedian-screenwriter Richard Pryor, but Warner Bros. studio executives were nervous over Pryor's reputation for being somewhat racy and controversial, and they thought that Little would be a safer actor. "Blazing Saddles" proved to be his career high point, after which his career moved into a slow decline. Trained as a Shakespearean actor, he remained passionately for the classics, and would return to them periodically to play classic Shakespearean roles. His last major role would be as Sal, in the television series "Baghdad Café" (1990), but he continued to act, appearing in cameo roles in such television series as "Perfect Harmony" (1991), "MacGyver" (1989 and 1991 episodes) and "True Colors" (1991). Often bothered with ulcers and stomach problems for much of his life, he died of colon cancer in Sherman Oaks, California, in 1992, at the age of 53. For his contributions to motion pictures, Little has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, located at 7080 Hollywood Blvd.