Emmy- and Tony Award-winning actor James Whitmore — who was also the father of Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Steve Whitmore — died Friday at his Malibu home.

Whitmore appeared in many films, including “The Asphalt Jungle,” “Planet of the Apes” and “The Shawshank Redemption” (one of my most favorite movies).

He was 87.

Steve Whitmore was quoted in an Associated Press article that moved late Friday night:

“My father was a great man and it gives me great joy to speak about a father that always had my back,” said Steve Whitmore, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

“He always said the most important thing in life was family. He loved his work, but he always saw it as a way to provide for the most important thing, and that’s family.”