Tommy “Tiny” Lister, the giant of an actor who usually played mean/bad guy roles, and best known for his characters in “Friday” and “The Fifth Element” passed away December 10, his manager Cindy Cowan confirmed.
Deputies were initially called to the actor's home for a welfare check after associates of Lister said they had not heard from him since the night before.
When they made entry into the home, they found Lister dead inside.
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According to autopsy reports obtained by TMZ, Lister died of hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease commonly known as heart disease.
At the time of his death, the L.A. County Medical Examiner said the 62-year-old actor had COVID-19, but that is not what caused his death.
TMZ reported that the L.A. County Medical Examiner said a nasal swab came back positive for COVID-19 and noted that Lister had fluid in his chest when he died. Additionally, he had an enlarged heart with high blood pressure, poor circulation in his legs, and coronary artery disease.
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Originally, Lister’s manager said that she believed Lister died as a result of COVID-19, which he had contracted months prior.
She said he started to exhibit symptoms of the illness once again.
According to the Office of Minority Health, Black men have a 70% higher risk of heart failure compared with white men. Black women have a 50% higher risk of heart failure compared with white women. Black adults are more than twice as likely as white adults to be hospitalized for heart failure.
High blood pressure, overweight and obesity and diabetes are common conditions that increase the risk of heart disease and stroke.
The prevalence of high blood pressure in Black people in the U.S. is among the highest in the world. Also known as hypertension, high blood pressure increases your risk of heart disease and stroke. It can cause permanent damage to the heart before you even notice any symptoms, that's why it is often referred to as the "silent killer." Not only is high blood pressure more severe in Black people than white people, but it also develops earlier in life.
You can’t do anything about your family history, but you can control your blood pressure.
The No. 1 thing you can do is check your blood pressure regularly. A normal blood pressure is less than 120/80 mm Hg. The first number is the systolic pressure when heart is contracting. The second is diastolic pressure in the arteries when the heart is relaxing. High blood pressure is when you have consistent systolic readings of 130 mm Hg or higher or diastolic readings of 80 mm Hg or higher. If you have high blood pressure, work with your health care professional to find the right medication and lifestyle changes that can help.
If you know your blood pressure is high, keeping track of changes is important. Check it regularly and notify your health care professional of changes in case your treatment needs to be adjusted.
“He was a wonderful guy with a heart of gold. Everyone loved him. A real gentle giant,” Cowan said reminiscing about Lister. “We’re all devastated.”
As a result of his talent to appear menacing on film and his ability to turn it on and off, Tiny has carved out a weird, remarkable career — 30 years long, 176 acting credits in all, with work alongside icons like Marlon Brando, Tupac Shakur, Bruce Willis, Hulk Hogan, and even Michael Jackson.
He was also a professional wrestler in World Championship Wrestling under the name Z-Gangsta. He even wrestled Hulk Hogan in the World Wrestling Federation after appearing as Zeus in 1989’s “No Holds Barred.”
Lister was fondly remembered for playing the neighborhood bully, Deebo, in the 1995 cult-classic “Friday” and appeared in the sequel “Next Friday.”
His other appearances include playing a prisoner in “The Dark Knight,” and the bail agent in “Jackie Brown,” as well as roles in “The Players Club,” Ice Cube’s directing debut and Mario Van Peeble’s “Posse.”
He had a supporting role in “Zootopia” as the voice of the fennec fox, in Adam Sandler’s “Little Nicky” as Nicky’s brother Cassius, and in “Austin Powers in Goldmember.” In “The Fifth Element,” he played the Galactic President.
In the pilot of “Star Trek: Enterprise,” he played Klaang, the first Klingon to make contact with humans. Also on television, he appeared as Mr. Matlock’s bodyguard in “Matlock” and on “In the Heat of the Night.”
Lister appeared in a number of music videos such as French Montana, 50 Cent, Sublime, Ice Cube, Chamillionaire and Young Bleed, just to name a few.
The 6 foot 5 inch Lister grew up in Compton, Calif. and won the national shot put title in college, briefly playing football before deciding to become an actor.
He was blind in one eye as a result of being born with a detached and deformed retina.
Lister was once ashamed of his right eye, trying to hide it when he was younger by wearing tinted glasses. He even cursed God as being the cause of his eye. Then one day he stopped hiding and took off the shades. “I started doing these movies and God said, ‘You thought it was a curse. It was a blessing,’” he says. “[My eye] became my trademark in Hollywood.”
Upon changing his mindset and outlook about life, Lister became a born-again Christian.
“I thought to reach your full potential as a man, you need to have the spirit of Jesus Christ within you to step into your purpose and destiny. You can’t just go around saying that you’re from your mother’s womb.
“What amazed me about Jesus Christ was that this cat was so gangster. He cheated death. Doing something ‘gangsta’ growing up in my hood meant that you were able to do something that nobody else was capable of. Jesus cheated death. That’s the ultimate form of being gangsta, so I had to follow Him."
“Another thing that amazed me was that God said ‘let there be light.’ In the beginning, He said, ‘let there be light,’ but on the fourth day, he created the sun. So God was out there working in the light without the sun. Now, what’s more gangsta than that?!”
Rest well, Tiny.
Here are some more pictures to remember the "gentle giant"
