Isiah Whitlock Jr., actor of The Wire and Veep, dies at 71. Acting

American actor Isiah Whitlock Jr., who played a corrupt politician in the crime series The Wire and participated in several Spike Lee films, died on Tuesday at the age of 71, his manager said.

“It is with great sadness that I share in the passing of my dear friend and client Isiah Whitlock Jr. If you knew him – I loved him. An amazing actor and an even better person,” Brian Liebman wrote on social media.

Whitlock delighted audiences as scheming politician Clay Davis in the action-packed drama The Wire, based on former journalist David Simon’s gritty tales from the underbelly of drug trafficking and criminal politics in Baltimore, Maryland.

The book based the show on his character’s catchphrase, a long pronunciation of the word “shit” that lasted several syllables – “sheeeee-it.”

On Tuesday, Simon posted a photo of Whitlock smiling with kind eyes in honor of the actor’s death.

With over 125 acting credits to his name, Whitlock’s career has spanned decades and includes roles in numerous Spike Lee films, including She Hate Me, 25th Hour, Red Hook Summer, Chi-Raq, BlacKkKlansman and Da 5 Bloods.

Lee posted a photo of himself holding Whitlock’s hand, calling him his “dear, beloved brother.”

Whitlock’s other memorable roles include his role as US Secretary of Defense in the satirical television series Veep, which satirizes the work environment of politicians in Washington.

In one of his first film roles, Whitlock appeared in Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas, playing a doctor who supplied gangster Henry Hill with Valium.

His deep voice has been heard in animated films and TV shows, including Pixar’s Lightyear and Cars 3.

Whitlock was born in the Midwestern state of Indiana as the middle child in a family of 10, his father a steel mill worker. He graduated from Southwestern State University and studied drama at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco.