American stage, television, and film actor Howard Ellsworth Rollins Jr., also known as Howard Rollins, was best known for the American television miniseries Roots: The Next Generation (George Haley), American television miniseries King (Andrew Young), American drama film Ragtime (Coalhouse Walker Jr.), American mystery drama movie A Soldier's Story (Captain Davenport), and most prominently for American procedural police drama series In The Heat Of The Night ( black detective Virgil Tibbs), loosely adapted from the self-titled movie and novel. 

The year 1996 became the last year of life and acting. He was diagnosed with AIDS. Six weeks later, he suffered an untimely death on December 8, 1996. 

The Baltimore native also led a secretive double life. While Rollins lived a man's life in front of the audience, he also dressed up as a sassy woman whenever possible. The revelation of his transformation into a woman only surfaced after he wore a spangled dress and a wig at the time of his death.

More so, his friends and neighbors went on to give explicit information on his transformation, revealing that he could have been a closeted gay all along.

When was Howard Rollins Jr. born?

Rollins was born on 8 December 1966 in Baltimore Maryland, U.S., to domestic worker mother Ruth Rollins and steelworker Howard Ellsworth Rollins Sr. as the youngest of four children. Howard's father died in 1980. 

Death Cause: How did Howard Rollins die?

Rollins was only 46 when he died on 8 December 1996 at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center in New York City. As he was battling incurable HIV/AIDS, he suffered from lymphoma-related complications that ensued from a bacterial infection which led to his untimely demise. His grave lies in Woodlawn Cemetry, Lochearn, Maryland. 

In his life, he had also battled crack cocaine and alcohol addiction and was even arrested for cocaine possession and driving under influence.