He attended Oakland Technical High School, where he first became interested in acting.

He is best remembered for his role as the brusque, no-nonsense Captain Dobey in the United States 1970s police series Starsky and Hutch.

[1] Hamilton was also an impresario; starting in the late 1960s he ran a nightclub/art gallery called Citadel d’Haiti on Sunset Boulevard.

One of his releases featured himself; it was entitled Captain Dobey Sings the Blues.

[2] Hamilton married Maxine King on December 7, 1950, they divorced in 1968 after having two children, son Raoul and daughter Candy.