Thomas Ford | 'Martin' actor, 52

Thomas Ford, the actor who played Martin Lawrence's best friend Tommy Strawn on the hit '90s sitcom

Martin,

died Wednesday in Atlanta.

Family spokeswoman Joy Pervis confirmed Mr. Ford's death but gave no cause.

The actor played the levelheaded pal of Lawrence on Martin for the show's entire five-year run. One running joke was about his apparent lack of employment though he would refer to his work.

In recent weeks, Mr. Ford posted on Instagram about having knee-replacement surgery and said he was being diligent about physical therapy and looked forward to returning to work.

Mr. Ford had other TV parts, notably as Lt. Malcolm Barker on Fox's New York Undercover and as Mel Parker on UPN's The Parkers as well as playing the Pope of Comedy on TV One's Who's Got Jokes with Bill Bellamy.

Several celebrities paid homage to Mr. Ford through social media, including Cedric the Entertainer and Rickey Smiley.

"Prayers up for my brother" and his family, Lawrence posted on Twitter.

The towering Mr. Ford, whose height was said to be 6 feet 4, was also a motivational speaker and a children's book author. He appeared in the fourth season of TV One's Bill Bellamy's Who's Got Jokes?

The actor's website said he had been focusing on building a career behind the camera. He had directed and produced several webisodes, and was currently filming Reverse the Lynch Curse, a documentary about breaking curses of distrust and envy. Mr. Ford was also involved in several theater productions. - AP