Reformed drug kingpin who built up a Baltimore drug ring that inspired gritty HBO show The Wire dies aged 73
Melvin Williams, the man who inspired TV series The Wire and later appeared on the HBO show, has died at the age of 73.
Williams was a reformed drug kingpin who built up a Baltimore drug empire before turning his life around and later starring in the show as Deacon.
Also known as 'Little Melvin,' he died on Thursday at University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore, the funeral home confirmed to The Baltimore Sun.
Paying tribute: Melvin Williams, the man who inspired TV series The Wire and later appeared on the HBO show, died on Thursday aged 73. Showrunner David Simon praised Williams for making him rethink the drug war
Williams built up a drug empire before being sentenced to 35 years in prison for drug trafficking in 1985.
He was paroled in 1996 but was back behind bars for assault in 2000, before being released again in 2003, reports Deadline Hollywood.
The Wire creator David Simon - then a journalist for The Baltimore Sun - interviewed Williams while he was incarcerated, and wrote a series of articles about his rise and fall in the drug trade.
Reformed: The former drug dealer later swore off crime and worked with local pastors to help keep young people out of the drug trade
The articles later inspired Simon to create critically-acclaimed drama The Wire, which aired on HBO from 2002-2008. The Baltimore-set series examined America's 'war on drugs' and earned rave reviews for its gritty realism.
On Thursday, Simon paid tribute to 'Little Melvin' on Twitter.
'RIP to Melvin 'Little Melvin' Williams, 73, who made me begin to rethink the drug war,' wrote Simon on Twitter. 'You ended it free, brother.'
The Baltimore Sun also re-published Simon's original articles about the former drug kingpin.
Gritty drama: Williams' rise, fall and reformation inspired David Simon to create The Wire, after the then-journalist interviewed the drug kingpin in prison
'Little Melvin' dominated the West Baltimore drug trade in the 1960s, and was called on to help stop riots in the wake of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr in 1968, reportsThe Baltimore Sun.
After his second stint in prison, the former drug dealer renounced a life of crime and began working with local pastors to keep kids off the streets.
He later played Deacon, a pastor working with young people caught up in a life on the streets, in The Wire.
Williams was said to be the inspiration for drug dealer character Avon Barksdale.
Jail time: The former drug kingpin served two prison sentences before renouncing a life of crime
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