Affable, amiable actor best known as the laid-back court clerk on NBC's long-running sitcom "Night Court" (1984-1992). A native of Houston TX, Robinson was working as a toolmaker when the inspiration to act struck him while watching Bill Cosby in an episode of "I Spy." Robinson decided he could do that, enrolled in acting classes at Houston's Studio 7 and the University of Houston and before long was making a name for himself as an acting teacher as well as making appearances in the Houston theater scene. After moving to LA during the 1970s, Robinson won his first TV acting job in the miniseries "The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald" (1977), and made his feature film debut the following year in the forgettable "Uncle Joe Shannon" (1978) about a down-and-out trumpet player.