Tony winner Sammy Williams from ‘A Chorus Line’ dies at 69

Sammy Williams (Photo: The Fascinating World of the Movie Soundtracks and Hollywood/Facebook)

NEW YORK — Sammy Williams, who won a Tony Award in the original Broadway production of “A Chorus Line,” has died. He was 69.

Family spokeswoman and friend Brandee Barnaby says Williams died of cancer Saturday in Los Angeles.

Williams won best featured actor in a musical in 1976 for the role of Paul in “A Chorus Line.” The pioneering musical with music by Marvin Hamlisch told of the inner lives of actors auditioning for a big show. Paul was a young Puerto Rican performer starting to feel comfortable about being gay.

Williams had other earlier smaller parts on Broadway in “Applause” and “The Happy Time.” He was later a choreographer, director and actor in Los Angeles, who appeared in “Follies” at the Ahmanson Theatre in 2012.