HBO's very first one-hour dramatic series was Oz, which featured a sprawling ensemble pf actors who played the inmates and staff of the Oswald State Penitentiary. To this day, Oz remains one of my favourite TV shows, and one of my favourite characters on the series was Arnold "Poet" Jackson, an inmate who recited poems relating to social problems and life in the prison, so I'm incredibly sad to report that Poet actor Craig Grant, aka muMs da Schemer, passed away yesterday at the age of 52. No cause of death has been reported at this time.
Much like the character he played on Oz, Craig Grant was an accomplished poet and performer, and was featured in SlamNation, a documentary which followed the members of the Nuyorican Poetry Slam team as they competed at the 1996 National Poetry Slam in Portland, Oregon. Following his stint on Oz, Craig Grant went on to appear in TV shows such as Chappelle's Show, The Jury, The Sopranos, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Boston Legal, Law & Order, Cold Case, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, The Knick, Nurse Jackie, Luke Cage, She's Gotta Have It, City on a Hill, The Last O.G., and Hightown, as well as movies like Dark Water, The Good Heart, Side Effects, Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), Good Time, BlacKkKlansman, and Steven Soderbergh's upcoming No Sudden Move. "We are heartbroken over the loss of one of the most genuine, caring, loving souls we have ever had the pleasure of representing," Craig's agency said in a statement. "Craig was more than our client, he was our dear friend. We all just lost a phenomenal man." You will be greatly missed, Mr. Grant.