Actor Reginald Ballard disclosed that his career breakthrough resulted from Thomas Mikal Ford missing a film appointment decades before their work together on the sitcom Martin. Ford had been occupied with Harlem Nights when Ballard took his place as a stand-in during I Love You to Death production, unexpectedly earning dialogue and a contract from director Lawrence Kasdan after the original performer failed to appear.
Ballard learned years later, during Class Act filming, that Ford was the absent actor whose scheduling conflict created his entry into professional acting. The revelation cemented a friendship that lasted until Ford died from complications following knee replacement surgery when an abdominal aneurysm proved fatal.
Ballard remembered Ford as generous and consistently supportive, recalling his final appearance at a Baltimore comedy performance shortly before his death. The loss particularly affected Ballard after witnessing similar surgical complications claim another friend's life through blood clot complications.
Ballard learned years later, during Class Act filming, that Ford was the absent actor whose scheduling conflict created his entry into professional acting. The revelation cemented a friendship that lasted until Ford died from complications following knee replacement surgery when an abdominal aneurysm proved fatal.
Ballard remembered Ford as generous and consistently supportive, recalling his final appearance at a Baltimore comedy performance shortly before his death. The loss particularly affected Ballard after witnessing similar surgical complications claim another friend's life through blood clot complications.
