Milwaukee's Bentley dies in car crash By JAMES H. BURNETT III jburnett@journalsentinel.com Posted: Jan. 19, 2005 Artimus Lamont Bentley, a Milwaukee native and actor best known for his role as Hakeem Campbell on the now-canceled UPN sitcom "Moesha," died early Wednesday morning in a single car accident in the Los Angeles area.
Bentley
Essence Atkins, Lamont Bentley and Brandy are shwon in a scene from "Moesha."
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Shortly after midnight Tuesday, Bentley's Mercedes-Benz "went up a highway off-ramp at a high rate of speed," said Craig Stevens, senior deputy medical examiner for Ventura County, Calif.
Bentley was ejected from the car after it tore through a chain link fence and rolled several times, Stevens said. He was pronounced dead at 12:23 a.m. Wednesday.
Bentley's former agent, Rob D'Avola, who said he represented the actor for two years until about a month ago, said he'd heard about the death Wednesday morning.
"We're pretty upset. . . . ," D'Avola said. "He was just a wonderful guy."
Bentley, 31, left Milwaukee when he was 13 to seek fame and fortune in Hollywood.
Reggie Brown, a DJ on local radio station WKKV-FM (100.7), said Wednesday that he had had Bentley on his show several times over the years.
"Basically every time I learned he was here, he came on my show," Brown said. "He moved to L.A. to get deeper in the business, but he was always proud to represent Milwaukee."
Brown said that before Bentley was widely known as an actor, he was getting accolades for his upbeat rapping.
Brown hosted Bentley's "Welcome Home" party last year and recalled that the actor was excited about bringing some of his former "Moesha" co-stars to Brew City.
"He was . . . glowing with excitement about all the projects he had in the works," Brown said.
Bentley's acting gigs included parts on the TV shows "The Sentinel," "Family Matters" and "Reasonable Doubts," as well as his recurring role as a sometimes annoying but always lovable neighbor with a voracious appetite on "Moesha," which starred singer-actress Brandy.
He also acted in "Buffalo Soldiers," a made-for-TV movie starring Danny Glover.
Bentley grew up on Milwaukee's north side and attended Webster Middle School. Though he later made his home on the West Coast, he periodically returned to Milwaukee to host events for his charitable organization, The Lamont Bentley Foundation Inc. The foundation distributed funds to several area non-profit groups, including Strive Media Institute and the Pentecostal Church School of Wisconsin.
John P. Carlson, an attorney for whose firm Bentley recorded ads and who represented Bentley following a minor scuffle at a 1999 charity event, remembered the actor as "a nice, pleasant guy."
"I was shocked. I heard about the incident earlier today. He wasn't pompous or have that big-star type attitude," Carlson said.
Nick Carter of the Journal Sentinel staff contributed to this report.
From the Jan. 20, 2005, editions of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Get the Journal Sentinel delivered to your home. Subscribe now.
damn its only january and we already gotta chalk up another young black celeb on the RIP list.... at least he with his boy merlin santana(RIP) now
i wonder who else is gonna pass this year....only time will tell
damn man i wuz like "who is dis guy" i had look up his name... dats dude from brandy show... damn man dats real f-ed up. Even though we didnt really see him actin much.. da small of amount of shows he did.. he shall b missed, but remebered truly.
actually, dude wuz in ah grip of things:
Actor - filmography (2000s) (1990s)
1. Shards (2004) .... Thomas 2. Too Legit: The MC Hammer Story (2001) (TV) .... Tupac '2Pac' Shakur 3. The Wash (2001) .... C-Money 4. Gabriela (2001) .... Nick
5. The Breaks (1999) .... Darryl 6. A Day in the Life of Mia (1997) 7. Buffalo Soldiers (1997) (TV) .... Cpl. Sea 8. "Moesha" (1996) TV Series .... Hakeem Campbell 9. Tales from the Hood (1995) .... Crazy K 10. "South Central" (1994) TV Series .... Rashad
Filmography as: Actor, Notable TV Guest Appearances
Notable TV Guest Appearances
1. "The Parkers" playing "Hakeem Campbell" in episode: "Road Trip" (episode # 4.9) 18 November 2002 2. "The Proud Family" playing "Gary" (voice) in episode: "Hip-Hop Helicopter" (episode # 1.20) 26 April 2002 3. "The Parkers" playing "Hakeem Campbell" in episode: "Scary Kim" (episode # 2.7) 30 October 2000 4. "Soul Food" playing "Pruitt" in episode: "Bad Luck" (episode # 1.8) 16 August 2000 5. "The Parkers" playing "Hakeem Campbell" in episode: "There's a Shag" (episode # 1.6) 4 October 1999 6. "Clueless" playing "Hakeem" in episode: "Prom Misses, Prom Misses" (episode # 3.20) 11 May 1999 7. "NYPD Blue" playing "Arnell" in episode: "Honeymoon at Viagra Falls" (episode # 5.22) 19 May 1998 8. "The Sentinel" playing "Marcus Watson" in episode: "Pennies from Heaven" (episode # 2.21) 30 April 1997 9. "The Client" playing "K-Boy-Kool" in episode: "Motherless Child" (episode # 1.12) 11 January 1996 10. "Courthouse" playing "Raymond" in episode: "One flew over the Courthouse" (episode # 1.2) 20 September 1995 11. "The Parent 'Hood" playing "Damon" in episode: "Robert in the Hood" (episode # 2.1) 6 September 1995 12. "Family Matters" playing "Andre" in episode: "An Unlikely Match" (episode # 6.14) 20 January 1995 13. "Gabriel's Fire" playing "Teen" in episode: "Windows" (episode # 1.10) 29 November 1990
..is mr bently the cat that be dancing with the unbrella.The one helping puffy on making the band,if so thats hurtful he was pretty young.
naw, dat guy is dumb and doesnt need respect lol. But dis young kid had respect. He was the one seen in the show "moshea" the one who like to eat up they food and stuff.
naw, dat guy is dumb and doesnt need respect lol. But dis young kid had respect. He was the one seen in the show "moshea" the one who like to eat up they food and stuff.
dogg he was 31 moesha was filmed longer ago then it seems like u posted 1996
chess read the articles as far as farnsworth he's kanye's mans twista...u should like him lol but he's cool
Yo I jus heard about that mug from Brandys show that is some messed up **** youll. Were jus gonna have to stay in prayer everyday and live each life to the fullest.
Treezy
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RIP 2 tha nigga...didnt really watch much of hiz ish but much respect thatz real...last year wuz a bad year 4 us and it dont look like itz gettin any better...i aint never gon be too tough 2 where a seatbelt i know that much...im on sum kanye west ish lol...
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