Burt Reynolds

Burton Leon Reynolds Jr. was born on February 11, 1936, in Lansing, Michigan, though he frequently claimed Waycross, Georgia, as his birthplace throughout his career, clarifying the discrepancy publicly in 2015. His family background included Dutch, English, Scots-Irish, and Scottish ancestry, along with Cherokee and Italian heritage he also claimed. After his father was drafted into the United States Army, the family lived at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, then relocated to Lake City, Michigan, before settling in Riviera Beach, Florida, in 1946, where Reynolds's father eventually served as chief of police.

At Palm Beach High School, Reynolds earned letters in both football and track, and in 1953 was named a first-team All-State fullback. He accepted a football scholarship to Florida State University, where he roomed with future broadcaster and analyst Lee Corso and joined the Phi Delta Theta fraternity. His freshman season in 1954 produced 16 carries for 134 rushing yards and two touchdowns, along with four receptions for 76 yards. A torn knee cartilage in 1955 preseason workouts interrupted his sophomore year, and a serious automobile accident on Florida State Road A1A compounded his physical setbacks, leaving him with internal injuries including a ruptured spleen. He enrolled at Palm Beach Junior College in early 1956 to continue his studies, and when he returned to Florida State in 1957, lingering injuries prevented him from regaining his earlier form. He left the team following a loss to North Carolina State University on October 12, 1957.

Reynolds's path to acting began during his time at Palm Beach Junior College, where an English instructor named Watson B. Duncan III cast him in the school play Outward Bound after hearing him read Shakespeare in class. That performance earned Reynolds a best actor award at the 1956 PBJC Drama Awards, which came with a scholarship to the Hyde Park Playhouse summer stock theater in Hyde Park, New York. While working there, Reynolds met Joanne Woodward, who helped him secure an agent. He was subsequently cast in Tea and Sympathy at the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York City.

Reynolds made his Broadway debut in 1961 in Look, We've Come Through, receiving favorable reviews for his performance. He then traveled with the production on tour, serving as both a cast member and the bus driver for the company. Following the tour, he returned to New York City and studied acting alongside Frank Gifford, Carol Lawrence, Red Buttons, and Jan Murray, training with Wynn Handman at the Neighborhood Playhouse. Earlier, in December 1956, director John Forsythe had arranged for Reynolds to appear in a supporting role in a revival of Mister Roberts at the New York City Center, a production that starred Charlton Heston and featured Orson Bean as Ensign Pulver.

Reynolds transitioned to television in the early 1960s, appearing in Gunsmoke from 1962 to 1965, followed by Hawk in 1966 and Dan August from 1970 to 1971. His film career gained momentum with roles in Navajo Joe in 1966 and 100 Rifles in 1969, but it was his portrayal of Lewis Medlock in John Boorman's Deliverance in 1972 that established him as a major film presence. A sustained run of commercially successful films followed, including White Lightning, The Longest Yard, Smokey and the Bandit, Semi-Tough, The End, Hooper, Starting Over, Smokey and the Bandit II, The Cannonball Run, Sharky's Machine, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Smokey and the Bandit III, and Cannonball Run II, several of which he also directed. He received two Golden Globe nominations for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy during this period. From 1978 to 1982, Reynolds was voted the top box-office draw in the annual Top Ten Money Making Stars Poll, a five-year consecutive run that is part of a six-year record he shares with Bing Crosby.

After a period of box-office setbacks, Reynolds returned to television with the situation comedy Evening Shade, which ran from 1990 to 1994 and earned him both a Golden Globe Award and a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. His career experienced a further resurgence with his performance as pornographer Jack Horner in Paul Thomas Anderson's Boogie Nights in 1997, which brought him the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor and nominations for both an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actor. Reynolds died on September 6, 2018.