A handsome, muscular leading man, Burt Reynolds first achieved prominence on TV's "Riverboat" (NBC, 1959-61). Although he made his film debut in 1961, he remained best known for his small-screen work, notably as partly Native American characters on "Gunsmoke" (CBS, 1962-65; a blacksmith), and "Hawk" (ABC, 1966; a detective). He began the 70s inauspiciously as the star of the little-watched police detective drama "Dan August" (ABC, 1970-71), but then his movie breakthrough came in John Boorman's powerful backwoods drama "Deliverance" (1972), pushing him into the front rank of Hollywood stars. (His appearance as a nude centerfold in a 1972 issue of COSMOPOLITAN didn't hurt either.)

Consistently at the top of box-office polls from the mid-70s through the early 80s, Reynolds essayed a series of light, comically roguish, working and middle-class heroes in such vehicles as "The Longest Yard" (1974), "Smokey and the Bandit" (1977), and "Hooper" (1978). His "good ol' boy" image served as a pal to male devotees of action flicks while women fans enjoyed his tongue-in-cheek sexiness. Reynolds occasionally attempted to expand his range via the subdued romantic comedy of "Starting Over" or the black humor of "The End" (both 1978) but did not always enjoy a similar measure of popular success. His career as a 'hyphenate' (actor-director) began in 1976 with "Gator" and reached a peak with the taut cop drama, "Sharkey's Machine" (1981).

Reynolds lost his box-office sock rather abruptly in the mid-80s but was extremely good in his first character part as the aging safecracker in Bill Forsyth's 1989 comedy "Breaking In". After enjoying modest success as retired cop-turned-private investigator B.L. Stryker in a series of TV-movies (ABC, 1989-90), he turned to TV production, garnering popular and critical acclaim with the laid-back CBS ensemble sitcom "Evening Shade" (CBS, 1990-94). He also starred in the show and won his first major industry award, a 1991 Emmy as Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy series, for his work as Wood Newton. Reynolds increasingly devoted time to directing and teaching at the Burt Reynolds Dinner Theatre and Institute for Theatre Training in Jupiter, FL (founded 1978), returning to the big screen with the action comedy "Cop and a Half" (1993).

The reversal in fortune caused by the dimming of his star (exacerbated by his vitriolic divorce from Loni Anderson, best known for the CBS sitcom "WKRP in Cincinnati") led Reynolds to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in December 1996. He has worked tirelessly as the star of a plethora of low-budget, straight-to-video fare (i.e., "The Maddening" and "Frankenstein and Me", both 1996) and made-for-TV movies (e.g., HBO's "The Cherokee Kid" and TMC's "The Raven", both 1996) to pay off his debts. He has also occasionally played supporting roles in higher-profile films like a televangelist in "Citizen Ruth" and a sleazy senator entranced with stripper Demi Moore in "Striptease" (both 1996). Reynolds' career received a major boost from Paul Thomas Anderson's "Boogie Nights" (1997), in which he delivered an outstanding, understated comic performance as porn mogul Jack Horner. Reynolds received a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination for his performance and was considered a front-runner but his cause wasn't helped when old interviews surfaced wherein he complained about Hollywood's not taking him seriously as an actor. When the award was presented, it went to another former TV star--Robin Williams.

The expected career boost from the nomination also seemingly failed. Reynolds returned to the small screen in a handful of projects including a series of TNT movies that cast him as a former cop and ex-con ("Hard Times", "The Premonition" and "Hostage Hotel"). Big screen roles in little-seen projects like "The Hunter's Moon" (1999) and "Pups" (2000) also followed. Reynolds did find a rare role worthy of his talent, playing a coach of a local hockey team that gets a chance to play opposite the New York Rangers in the David E Kelley-penned "Mystery, Alaska" (1999). Still, audiences stayed away. His next effort as director-star, "The Last Producer" (2000), reflected where his career stood as he was cast as an aging veteran producer in desperate need of a hit. Even stunt casting, opposite fellow 70s/80s icon Sylvester Stallone in the middling race car flick "Driven" (2001) failed to recapture the kind of heat that "Boogie Nights" gave Reynolds' third act career. Through a string of B to Z grade films ("Tempted," "Hotel" "The Hollywood Sign" [all 2001] and "Snapshots" [2002]) Reynolds still conjured much of his old charm, and turned in a nice performance as a U.S. Marshal on the trail of three brothers in the TNT Western miniseries "Johnson County War" (2002), which was followed by a series of decent telepic turns by the actor.

He resurfaced in films for the mainstream comedy "Without a Paddle" (2004), cleverly riffing on his "Deliverance" role by playing the former partner of legendary bank robber D.B. Cooper, who's waited 25 solitary years in the backwoods waiting to collect his share of Cooper's haul. Perhaps sensing that tweaking nostalgic memories of his classic films would reignite interest in his career, the actor also gave his blessing to a remake of "The Longest Yard" (2005) starring Adam Sandler and Chris Rock, this time with Reynolds playing prison team Coach Nate Scarboro, who much like Reynolds just might have a few plays left in him. Reynolds then donned the white suit and Stetson of the villainous Boss Hogg for the dumb but mildly diverting big screen version of TV's "The Dukes of Hazzard" (2005). Though Reynolds approached the role with verve and the film was intended as a tribute to his "Smokey & The Bandit" films, the actor--who saw the Hogg part as akin to Jackie Gleason's role in their films together-was given little by way of comedic material to work with.

• Also Credited As:
  Buddy Reynolds, Burton Leon Reynolds Jr
• Born:
  Burton Leon Reynolds Jr on February 11, 1936 in Waycross, Georgia
• Job Titles:
  Actor, Director, Producer, Stuntman, Bouncer, Dishwasher

Family

• Father: Burton Leon Reynolds Sr. After being discharged from the Army in late 1945, worked as a general contractor for a new housing development in Riviera Beach, Florida; later became the police chief in Riviera Beach, Florida
• Mother: Fern Reynolds. Died in 1992 at age 90
• Son: Quinton Reynolds. Adopted in 1988, with then wife Loni Anderson

Significant Others

• Companion: Kate Edelman Johnson. Dated from 2003 to 2005
• Companion: Dinah Shore. worked together on TV in such lighthearted fare as "How to Handle a Woman" (NBC, 1972), "Dinah in Search of the Ideal Man" (NBC, 1973), and "Burt Reynolds' Late Show" (NBC, 1973); reunited for "Dinah Shore: A Special Conversation with Burt Reynolds" (TNN, 1991)
• Companion: Pam Seals. became involved with Reynolds approximately a year and a half before his separation from Loni Anderson; born c. 1958; announced engagement in 1998
• Companion: Sally Field. had five-year relationship (1977-82); worked together in several films, the best known of which was "Smokey and the Bandit" (1977)

Education

• Hyde Park Playhouse, New York, NY
• Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL

Milestones

• 1955 Drafted by the Baltimore Colts professional football team before accident ended his sports career
• 1956 Professional stage debut in the revival of "Mr. Roberts" starring Charlton Heston at NYC City Center Theatre
• 1959 First regular TV appearances on "Riverboat" (NBC)
• 1961 First appearance on film, "Angel Baby"
• 1961 Made Broadway debut in the short-lived play "Look: We've Come Through"
• 1962 Played Quint Asper for several season on the long-running CBS TV Western, "Gunsmoke"
• 1966 Had the title role on the police detective series, "Hawk" (ABC)
• 1970 Played the title role on the ABC police detective series "Dan August"
• 1972 Breakthrough film, John Boorman's "Deliverance"
• 1972 Was one of the first-ever nude male centerfolds in a mainstream magazine in Cosmopolitan (April)
• 1974 First collaboration with Hal Needham, "W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings"; Needham was stunt coordinator
• 1974 Played an incarcerated former pro football player in "The Longest Yard"
• 1975 Co-starred with Liza Minnelli and Gene Hackman in "Lucky Lady"; sang "Ain't Misbehavin'"
• 1975 Sang and danced in the disastrous screen musical "At Long Last Love" directed by Peter Bogdanovich
• 1976 Feature directorial debut, "Gator"; also starred
• 1976 Reteamed with Bogdanovich for the period drama about early Hollywood, "Nickelodeon"
• 1977 First film with Needham as director, "Smokey and the Bandit"; also co-starred with future off-screen companion Sally Field
• 1978 Directed (also co-starred) the comedy "The End" oppsite Dom DeLuise
• 1978 Second film with Needham as director, "Hooper"
• 1979 Delivered one of his best screen performances as a divorced man finding love again in "Starting Over"
• 1980 Enjoyed a hit with "The Cannonball Run"; fourth film with Needham as director
• 1980 Reprised role of the Bandit in the sequel "Smokey and the Bandit II"; third film with Needham as director
• 1982 Cast as Sheriff Ed Earl Dodd opposite Dolly Parton's Miss Mona in the film musical "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas"
• 1983 Reprised role in the Needham-directed sequel, "Cannonball Run II"
• 1984 Teamed with Clint Eastwood in "City Heat"
• 1985 Directed and starred in "Stick"
• 1987 Co-executive produced (with Bert Convy) and made frequent guest appearances on the NBC game show, "Win, Lose or Draw"
• 1988 Had the Cary Grant role opposite Kathleen Turner in "Switching Channels" a misguided remake of "His Girl Friday"
• 1988 Reteamed with Liza Minnelli for the misfire "Rent-A-Cop"
• 1989 Played an aging safecracker in "Breaking In"
• 1989 Provided character voice (and sang several songs) in the animated feature "All Dogs Go to Heaven"
• 1990 Starred as Wood Newton in the popular CBS sitcom, "Evening Shade"; also directed and produced
• 1992 Appeared as himself in Robert Altman's "The Player"
• 1992 Hosted a number of CBS primetime specials, "Burt Reynolds' Conversations with..."; among earliest installments was one where he interviewed Ginger Rogers, June Allyson, Jane Powell, and Esther Williams
• 1992 Signed a one-year, $500,000, contract with the Florida Citrus Commission to appear in commercials
• 1993 Directed (also executive produced and starred) the CBS TV-movie "The Man From Left Field"
• 1993 Dropped as corporate spokesman by the Florida Citrus Commission and the Quaker State Motor Oil Corp. due to bad publicity generated by his bitter divorce from Loni Anderson
• 1996 Co-starred with Demi Moore in "Striptease" as a sleazy politician
• 1997 Career received major boost for starring in Paul Thomas Anderson's "Boogie Nights" as porn mogul Jack Horner; earned first Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor
• 1998 Starred in a series of TV-movies for TNT, "Hard Time" playing an ex-con and former cop; third installment "Hostage Hotel" directed by Needham
• 1999 Co-starred as a hockey coach in "Mystery, Alaska"
• 2000 Directed and starred in "The Last Producer"; screened at Cannes; aired on USA Network in 2001
• 2001 Appeared alongside Sylvester Stallone in "Driven"
• 2004 Starred as a Vietnam veteran, opposite Raquel Welch in "Forget About It"
• 2005 Co-starred with Adam Sandler and Chris Rock in the remake of "The Longest Yard"
• 2005 Played Boss Hogg in the big-screen version of "The Dukes of Hazzard" based on the 1970's hit show
• 2006 Cast as King Konreid in Uwe Boll's "Dungeon Siege"
• 2008 Played a former poker player who tutors a younger player in "Deal"
• Born in Georgia and raised in Florida
• Donated $1 million to the Asolo Theatre in Sarasota, Florida
• Founded Burt and Bert Productions with game show host Bert Convy
• Starred in 12 ABC TV-movies as detective B.L. Stryker, the first of which was "The Dancer's Touch"
• Worked as stuntman on TV and in films

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