In 1990, his performance in the role earned him a nomination for an Emmy Award for "Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series".

During the late 1960s and early 1970s, Kimbrough and his first wife Mary Jane Wilson were part of the resident company of the Milwaukee Repertory Theatre where they appeared in such plays as Georges Feydeau's Cat Among the Pigeons and Jules Feiffer's The White House Murder Case.

In 1988, Kimbrough was cast as Jim Dial, a veteran network news anchor with the integrity and experience of an Edward R. Murrow or Walter Cronkite, on the CBS sitcom Murphy Brown.

[5] In 2002, Kimbrough married actress and fellow Company castmate Beth Howland, known for her television work as Vera Louise Gorman-Novak on the sitcom Alice.

[6] Kimbrough's son, John, founded, sang and played guitar for the St. Paul-based alternative rock band Walt Mink.