George Kennedy

American actor (1925–2016) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

George Kennedy

George Harris Kennedy Jr.[1] (February 18, 1925 – February 28, 2016) was an American actor who appeared in more than 100 film and television productions. He played "Dragline" in Cool Hand Luke (1967), winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for the role and being nominated for the corresponding Golden Globe. He received a second Golden Globe nomination for portraying Joe Patroni in Airport (1970).

Quick Facts Born, Died ...
George Kennedy
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Publicity photo of Kennedy (1975)
Born
George Harris Kennedy Jr.

(1925-02-18)February 18, 1925
New York City, U.S.
DiedFebruary 28, 2016(2016-02-28) (aged 91)
OccupationActor
Years active1956–2014
Spouses
Dorothy Gillooly
(m. 1946; div. 1959)
Norma Wurman
(m. 1959; div. 1971)
(m. 1973; div. 1978)
Joan McCarthy
(m. 1978; died 2015)
Children6
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Among other films in which he had a significant role are Lonely Are the Brave, Charade, Strait-Jacket, McHale's Navy, Hush… Hush, Sweet Charlotte, Mirage, Shenandoah, The Sons of Katie Elder, The Flight of the Phoenix, In Harm's Way, The Dirty Dozen, The Boston Strangler, Guns of the Magnificent Seven, tick… tick… tick…, Cahill U.S. Marshal, Thunderbolt and Lightfoot, The Good Guys and the Bad Guys, Earthquake, The Eiger Sanction and The Delta Force.

Kennedy is the only actor to appear in all four films in the Airport series, reprising the role of Joe Patroni three times. He also portrays Police Captain Ed Hocken in the Naked Gun series of films, and corrupt oil tycoon Carter McKay on the original Dallas television series.

Early life, education and military service

Kennedy was born on February 18, 1925, in New York City,[1] into a show business family. His father, George Harris Kennedy, a musician and orchestra leader, died when Kennedy was four years old.[2] He was raised by his mother, Helen A. (née Kieselbach), a ballet dancer.[1] His maternal grandfather was a German immigrant; his other ancestry was Irish and English.[1]

Kennedy made his stage debut at age 2 in a touring company of Bringing Up Father, and by age 7, he was a New York City radio DJ.[citation needed]

Kennedy graduated in 1943 from Chaminade High School in Mineola, Long Island, New York.[3]

Kennedy enlisted in the United States Army during World War II in 1943. He served 16 years, reaching the rank of captain. Kennedy served in the infantry under George S. Patton, fought in the Battle of the Bulge, and earned two Bronze Stars. He re-enlisted after the war, and he was discharged in the late 1950s due to a back injury.[2][4]

Career

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In Sarge, 1971

His first notable screen role was a military policeman on the TV sitcom The Phil Silvers Show,[citation needed] for which he also served as a technical adviser to ensure accuracy for the show's military base setting. Kennedy later described the Silvers show as "a great training ground".[2]

His film career began in 1961 in The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come. He appeared in several Hollywood movies, including as a sadistic jail guard in the Kirk Douglas modern Western Lonely Are the Brave (1962), a ruthless criminal in the Cary Grant suspense film Charade (1963) and in the Joan Crawford thriller Strait-Jacket (1964).

Kennedy was busy in 1965. He appeared with Gregory Peck in the mystery Mirage, with a large cast led by James Stewart in the plane-crash adventure The Flight of the Phoenix, with John Wayne in the war film In Harm's Way, and with Wayne and Dean Martin in the Western The Sons of Katie Elder.

He played the character Blodgett in a 1966 episode "Return to Lawrence" of the series The Legend of Jesse James. He won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in Cool Hand Luke (1967) for his performance as Dragline, a chain-gang convict who at first resents the new prisoner in camp played by Paul Newman, then comes to idolize the rebellious Luke.

Kennedy followed with films such as The Dirty Dozen, Bandolero! and The Boston Strangler. In 1970, he appeared in the disaster film Airport, in which he plays one of its main characters, airline troubleshooter Joe Patroni. He reprises this role in Airport 1975, Airport '77 and The Concorde ... Airport '79, the only cast member to appear in each film of the series.

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As Bumper Morgan in The Blue Knight, 1976

The Airport franchise helped inspire the Zucker, Abrahams, and Zucker satire Airplane!, in which the filmmakers hoped to cast Kennedy as the bumbling plane dispatcher. The role went to Lloyd Bridges because Kennedy "couldn't kill off his Airport cash-cow", Jerry Zucker said in 2010.[5]

Kennedy co-starred with Clint Eastwood in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot and The Eiger Sanction, and with ensemble casts in the disaster film Earthquake and the Agatha Christie mystery Death on the Nile.

He also starred in two television series: Sarge, which aired from 1971 to 1972 and The Blue Knight from 1975 to 1976.

Kennedy starred in two Japanese productions, Junya Satō's Proof of the Man in 1977 and Kinji Fukasaku's Virus in 1980. Both films were produced by Haruki Kadokawa and featured extensive international casts and shooting locations. Although Proof of the Man was only released theatrically in Japan and Virus saw a financially unsuccessful truncated cut in the U.S., Kennedy was highly enthusiastic about his involvement.[6]

In 1984, Kennedy starred with Bo Derek in the box-office bomb Bolero. His other films during the 1980s included Savage Dawn, The Delta Force and Creepshow 2. He played Captain Ed Hocken in all three entries of The Naked Gun film trilogy (1988, 1991, 1994) alongside Leslie Nielsen, Priscilla Presley and O. J. Simpson.

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With Karen Black, 2008

In 1990, Kennedy appeared in the Korean film Mayumi directed by Shin Sang-ok. Despite featuring Kennedy, it saw no wide release outside of South Korea and was ultimately a box-office failure.[7]

On television, Kennedy starred as Carter McKay in the TV series Dallas (1978–1991), appearing from 1988 to 1991. From the mid-to-late 1990s, he promoted "BreathAsure" antacid tablets in radio and television commercials.[8][9] Around this time, he reprised his role as McKay in the television films Dallas: J.R. Returns and Dallas: War of the Ewings. In the late 1970s, Kennedy also appeared as a celebrity guest on the game show Match Game.

In 1998, he voiced Brick Bazooka for the film Small Soldiers. He then made several independent films, before making a 2003 comeback to television in The Young and the Restless, playing the character Albert Miller, the biological father to character Victor Newman. In 2005, he made a cameo in the film Don't Come Knocking, playing the director of an ill-fated western.

Kennedy made his final film appearance in The Gambler (2014) as Ed, the dying grandfather of Mark Wahlberg's Jim Bennett. His role lasts for less than two minutes during the film's opening scene, wherein Ed (moments before his death) bequeaths the responsibilities of patriarch to a heartbroken Jim.

Personal life

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Marriages and children

Kennedy was married four times, to three women. In the 1940s, he married Dorothy Gillooly, who had served in the Women's Army Corps.[10] They were divorced in the 1950s; Dorothy returned to her hometown Buffalo, New York. In 1959, Kennedy married Norma Wurman,[10] also known as Revel Wurman.[11] The couple had two children. Kennedy and Norma divorced the first time in 1971, remarried in 1973, and divorced a second and final time in 1978.[10] The same year, Kennedy married Joan McCarthy (née Castagna).[11] They remained married until her death in September 2015.[12] The couple adopted three children.[4]

Interests

Kennedy was friends with James Stewart, and he provided the voiceover in a mini-tribute to Stewart on TCM.[13] Kennedy was an aviator who enjoyed flying and owned a Cessna 210 and Beechcraft Bonanza.[14] Following his experiences working for the Far East Network during WWII and professional involvement with Proof of the Man and Virus, Kennedy maintained a lifelong affinity for Japan and its culture.[6]

Illness and death

Kennedy resided in Eagle, Idaho, at the time of his death. He died on the morning of February 28, 2016, of a heart ailment at an assisted-living facility in Middleton, Idaho, 10 days after his 91st birthday.[11][4] He had a history of heart disease.[12][4]

Filmography

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Film

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Television

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Year Title Role Notes
1956–1959 The Phil Silvers Show MP Sergeant Kennedy 14 episodes
1959 Cheyenne Lee Nelson Episode: "Prisoner of Moon Mesa"
Colt .45 Hank Episode: "The Rival Gun"
The Deputy Tex Episode: "The Big Four"
Sugarfoot Sykes Episode: "The Canary Kid, Inc."
1960 Gunsmoke Emil Episode: "The Blacksmith"
Route 66 Thad Skinner Pilot Episode: "Black November"
Peter Gunn Karl Episode: "The Crossbow"
Sugarfoot Ross Kuhn Episode: "Funeral at Forty Mile"
Shotgun Slade Tex Episode: "The Spanish Box"
Laramie Gallagher Henchman Episode: "Duel at Alta Mesa"
Maverick Deputy Jones Episode: "Hadley's Hunters"
Lawman Burt Episode: "To Capture the West"
Have Gun – Will Travel Tarnitzer Episode: "The Legacy"
Lieutenant John Bryson Episode: "A Head of Hair"
1961 Bat Masterson Sheriff Zeke Armitage Episode: "The Fourth Man"
Have Gun – Will Travel Preston Episode: "The Road"
Deke Episode: "The Vigil"
Rud Saxon Episode: "A Proof of Life"
Brother Grace Episode: "Squatter's Rights"
Gunsmoke Pat Swooner Episode: "Big Man"
The Untouchables Birdie Episode: "The King of Champagne"
Gunslinger Sheriff Episode: "The Buried People"
Bonanza Peter Long Episode: "The Infernal Machine"
Gunsmoke Jake Bayloe Episode: "Kitty Shot"
1962 The Tall Man Hyram Killgore Episode: "One for All"
Rawhide George Wales Episode: "The Peddler"
Gunsmoke Hug Episode: "The Boys"
Have Gun – Will Travel Big John Episode: "Don't Shoot the Piano Player"
Going My Way Mike Episode: "A Man for Mary"
Death Valley Days Steamboat Sully Episode: "Miracle at Whiskey Gulch"
Outlaws Joe Ferris Episode: "Farewell Performance"
1963 The Andy Griffith Show State Police Detective Episode: "The Big House"
Have Gun – Will Travel Brother Grace Episode: "The Eve of St. Elmo"
Dr. Kildare Joe Cramer Episode: "To Each His Own Prison"
Perry Mason George Spangler Episode: "The Case of the Greek Goddess"
The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters Angus Episode: "The Day of the Long Night"
1963–1964 McHale's Navy Big Frenchy Episodes: "French Leave for McHale", "The Return of Big Frenchy"
1964 Gunsmoke Cyrus Episode: "Crooked Mile"
Bonanza Waldo Watson Episode: "The Scapegoat"
The Virginian Jack Marshman Episode: "A Gallows for Sam Horn"
Gunsmoke Warden Stark Episode: "The Warden"
1965 Daniel Boone Zach Morgan S2/E11 "A Rope for Mingo"
Laredo Jess Moran Episode: "Pride of the Rangers"
The Virginian Tom "Bear" Suchette Episode: "Nobility of Kings"
A Man Called Shenandoah Mitchell Canady Episode: "A Special Talent for Killing"
1966 Gunsmoke Ben Payson Episode: "Harvest"
The Legend of Jesse James Blodgett Episode: "Return to Lawrence"
Dr. Kildare Sergeant Hensley Episodes: "Mercy or Murder", "Strange Sort of Accident"
The Virginian Huck Harkness Episode: "The Trail to Ashley Mountain"
The Big Valley Jack Thatcher Episode: "Barbary Red"
1967 Tarzan Crandell Episode: "Thief Catcher"
1971 Ironside Father Samuel Cavanaugh Episode: "The Priest Killer"
Sarge Father Samuel Patrick "Sarge" Cavanaugh (Swanson) 16 episodes
1972 A Great American Tragedy Brad Wilkes Television Film
1974 A Cry in the Wilderness Sam Hadley Television film
1975 The Blue Knight Bumper Morgan 24 episodes
1979 Backstairs at the White House President Warren G. Harding Episode: #1.2
1981 Saturday Night Live Himself/host Episode: "George Kennedy/Miles Davis"
1983 Fantasy Island Adam Cobb Episode: "God Child/Curtain Call"
1984 The Jesse Owens Story Charles 'Charley' Riley Television film
1986 Benson Himself Episodes: "Reel Murder" parts 1 & 2
1988–1991 Dallas Carter McKay 67 episodes
1994 Lonesome Dove Judge J.T. "Rope" Calder Episode: "Judgement Day"
1995 The Commish Al Scali Episode: "The Golden Years"
The Gambler Part III: The Legend Continues General Nelson Miles Television miniseries
1996 Wings Himself Episode: "What About Larry?"
The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest General Axton Episode: "DNA Doomsday"
Dallas: J.R. Returns Carter McKay Television film
1998 Dallas: War of the Ewings Carter McKay Television film
2003 The Young and the Restless Albert Miller Episodes: #1.7762, #1.7763, #1.7764
2004 The Complete History of U.S. Wars 1700–2004 Host 8 episodes
2010 The Young and the Restless Albert Miller (ghost) Episode: #1.9553
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Awards and nominations

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Year Category Award Work Result Ref.
1967 Academy Awards Best Supporting Actor Cool Hand Luke Won [2]
1967 Laurel Awards Top Male Supporting Performance [70]
1967 Golden Globe Awards Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture Nominated [4]
1970 Airport [71]
1970 Laurel Awards Top Male Supporting Performance
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Honors

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The hand prints of Kennedy in front of The Great Movie Ride at Walt Disney World's Disney's Hollywood Studios theme park.

For his contributions to motion pictures, Kennedy received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, at 6352 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California.[12]

Writing career

Kennedy wrote three books. In 1983, he wrote the murder mystery Murder On Location, set on a film shoot. A second novel, Murder on High, was released in 1984. In 2011, he wrote his autobiography, Trust Me.[72]

Notes

  1. Trevanian is a pseudonym used by the American author Dr. Rodney William Whitaker.

References

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