Sherman Alexander Hemsley was an American actor and comedian, best known for his role as George Jefferson on the CBS television series All in the Family and The Jeffersons, Deacon Ernest Frye on the NBC series Amen, and B.P. Richfield on the ABC series Dinosaurs. For his work on The Jeffersons, Hemsley was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award. He won an NAACP Image Award.

Sherman Hemsley performed with local groups in Philadelphia before moving to New York to study with Lloyd Richards at the Negro Ensemble Company. Shortly after, he joined Vinnette Carroll's Urban Arts Company appearing in these productions: But Never Jam Today, The Lottery, Old Judge Mose is Dead, Moon on a Rainbow Shawl, Step Lively Boys, Croesus, and The Witch. He made his Broadway debut in Purlie and toured with the show for a year. In the summer of 1972, he joined the Vinnette Carroll musical Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope ensemble in Toronto, followed a month later in the American Conservatory Theater production at the Geary Theater. In this production, Hemsley performed the solos "Lookin' Over From Your Side" in Act I and "Sermon" in Act II.

While Hemsley was on Broadway with Purlie, Norman Lear called him in 1971 to play the recurring role of George Jefferson in his new sitcom, All in the Family. Hemsley was reluctant to leave his theatre role, but Lear told him that he would hold the role open for him. Hemsley joined the cast two years later. The characters of Hemsley and co-star Isabel Sanford were supporting occasional roles on All in the Family, but became popular with viewers and were given their own spin-off. The Jeffersons, premiered two years after Hemsley made his debut on the sitcom, and proved to be one of Lear's most successful series, enjoying a run of 11 seasons through 1985.

Hemsley continued to work steadily after the show's cancellation, largely typecast in George Jefferson–like roles. He teamed with the sitcom's original cast members when The Jeffersons moved to Broadway for a brief run. He later joined the cast of NBC's Amen in 1986 as Deacon Ernest Frye, a church deacon. The sitcom enjoyed a run of five seasons, ending in 1991. Hemsley then was a voice actor in the ABC live-action puppet series Dinosaurs, where he played Bradley P. Richfield, main character Earl's boss. The series ran four seasons, ending in 1994.

Hemsley retired from television acting, although Isabel Sanford and he appeared together in the mid to late 1990s and in the early 2000s, reprising their roles in guest roles on such television series as The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, in commercials for The Gap, Old Navy, and Denny's, and at dry cleaning conventions. He also starred with Sanford in a touring company of The Real Live Jeffersons stage show in the 1990s. Sanford and he made a cameo appearance in the film Sprung. They continued to work together on occasion until Sanford began having health problems that led to her death in 2004.

Hemsley made four appearances in the sitcom Sister, Sister as Ray Campbell's father. He also made a voice appearance as himself in the Seth MacFarlane animated comedy Family Guy. He appeared in the film American Pie Presents: The Book of Love. In 2011, he reprised his role as George Jefferson for the final time, along with Marla Gibbs as Florence Johnston on Tyler Perry's House of Payne.

He was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame in 2012.

In 1989, Hemsley, who had been a jazz keyboardist, released a single, "Ain't That a Kick in the Head". This was followed in 1992 with Dance, an album of rhythm and blues music. He appeared on Soul Train around the time of the record's release and also performed the song "Eyes in the Dark".

Hemsley was an enthusiastic fan of 1970s progressive rock bands, including Yes, Gentle Giant, Gong, and Nektar. In 1999, Hemsley collaborated with Yes lead singer Jon Anderson on an album, Festival of Dreams, but it was not released.

On July 24, 2012, Hemsley died at his home in El Paso, Texas, at age 74. The cause of death was given as superior vena cava syndrome, a complication associated with lung and bronchial carcinomas. He had had a malignant mass on one of his lungs for which chemotherapy and radiation had been recommended, according to the El Paso County Texas Medical Examiner's report.

A military funeral was planned for Hemsley. He was interred at Fort Bliss National Cemetery in his adopted hometown of El Paso.

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