Early life

Reynolds is the son of Fern H. (née Miller; 1902-92) and Burton Milo Reynolds (1906-2002). He has English, Scottish, Scots-Irish and Dutch ancestry, and is also said to have Cherokee roots. In his 2014 book, But Enough About Me, Reynolds said his mother was Italian. .Reynolds was born in Lansing, Michigan, on February 11, 1936, and in his autobiography stated that is where his family lived when his father was drafted into the United States Army. Reynolds, his mother and sister joined his father at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, and lived there for two years. When Reynolds' father was sent to Europe, the family moved to Lake City, Michigan, where his mother had been raised. In 1946, the family moved to Riviera Beach, Florida. His father became Chief of Police of Riviera Beach, which is adjacent to the north of West Palm Beach, Florida.

During 10th grade at Palm Beach High School, Reynolds was named First Team All State and All Southern as a fullback, and received multiple scholarship offers. After graduating from Palm Beach High in West Palm Beach, he attended Florida State University on a football scholarship and played halfback. While at Florida State, Reynolds became roommates with now notable college football broadcaster and analyst Lee Corso. Reynolds hoped to be named to All-American teams and to have a career in professional football, but he was injured in the first game of his sophomore season, and a car accident later that year worsened the injury. With his university football career over, Reynolds considered becoming a police officer, but his father suggested that he finish university and become a parole officer. To keep up with his studies, he began taking classes at Palm Beach Junior College (PBJC) in neighboring Lake Worth. In his first term at PBJC, Reynolds was in an English class taught by Watson B. Duncan III. Duncan pushed Reynolds into trying out for a play he was producing, Outward Bound. He cast Reynolds in the lead role based on having heard Reynolds read Shakespeare in class. Reynolds won the 1956 Florida State Drama Award for his performance in Outward Bound, and called Duncan his mentor and the most influential person in his life. While at Florida State, he became a brother of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity.

Career

Stage

The Florida State Drama Award included a scholarship to the Hyde Park Playhouse, a summer stock theater, in Hyde Park, New York. Reynolds saw the opportunity as an agreeable alternative to more physically-demanding summer jobs, but did not yet see acting as a possible career. While working there, Reynolds met Joanne Woodward, who helped him find an agent and was cast in Tea and Sympathy at the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York City. After his Broadway debut Look, We've Come Through, he received favorable reviews for his performance and went on tour with the cast, driving the bus and appearing on stage. After the tour, Reynolds returned to New York and enrolled in acting classes. His classmates included Frank Gifford, Carol Lawrence, Red Buttons, and Jan Murray. After a botched improvisation in acting class, Reynolds briefly considered returning to Florida, but he soon got a part in a revival of Mister Roberts, in which Charlton Heston played the starring role. After the play closed, the director, John Forsythe, arranged a film audition with Joshua Logan for Reynolds. The film was Sayonara. Reynolds was told that he could not be in the film because he looked too much like Marlon Brando. Logan advised Reynolds to go to Hollywood, but Reynolds did not feel confident enough to do so. He worked in a variety of different jobs, such as waiting tables, washing dishes, driving a delivery truck and as a bouncer at the Roseland Ballroom. While working as a dockworker, Reynolds was offered $150 to jump through a glass window on a live television show.

Television and film

Reynolds guest-starred in the Pony Express episode, "The Good Samaritan", which aired in 1960 on the centennial of the famed mail route. Reynolds used television fame to secure leading roles for low-budget films, like Operation C.I.A. (1965). He played the titular role in Navajo Joe, the low-budget starring roles established him as the main film actor. He later disparaged the series, telling Johnny Carson that Dan August had "two forms of expression: "mean and meaner". Reynolds appeared on ABC's The American Sportsman hosted by outdoors journalist Grits Gresham, who took celebrities on hunting, fishing and shooting trips around the world. Reynolds was considered by producer Saul David to play the lead role in Our Man Flint, but was rejected by Lew Wasserman. Albert R. Broccoli asked Reynolds to play James Bond, but he turned the role down, saying "An American can't play James Bond. It just can't be done." The role went to George Lazenby. While filming Shark!, Sam Fuller disowned the rough cuts. Reynolds later starred in Skullduggery (1970). His breakout performance in Deliverance (1972) made him a star and he gained notoriety, when he posed naked in the April (Vol. 172, No. 4) issue of Cosmopolitan. Reynolds claims the centerfold in Cosmopolitan hurt the chances for the film and the cast from receiving Academy Awards. In 1977, Reynolds and Nick Nolte declined the role of Han Solo in the Star Wars franchise, which went to Harrison Ford. Later that year, he worked as a guest color analyst on CBS Sports' telecast of the Sun Bowl, teaming with Pat Summerall and Tom Brookshier. Reynolds starred with Jerry Reed, Jackie Gleason and Sally Field in Smokey and the Bandit, and later took the lead role in Stroker Ace (1983), a decision which, he later claimed, was a turning point in his career from which he never reovered. Reynolds tried his hand at producing two shows with friend Bert Convy, including Win, Lose or Draw. As a celebrity gameplayer, he appeared with Justine Bateman, Debbie Reynolds and Loretta Swit. Another show they produced was titled 3rd Degree, and like Win, Lose, or Draw, Reynolds appeared on a few episodes as a panelist from 1989 to 1990. He also played Wood Newton in the CBS sitcom, Evening Shade, and won a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award. For Boogie Nights (1997), Reynolds won another Golden Globe and was nominated for his first Academy Award. He starred in two film remakes, The Dukes of Hazzard that is based on the television series and The Longest Yard based on the classic film. In USA Network's Burn Notice, he played ex-CIA agent Paul Anderson, who is pursued by a team of Russian assassins who wanted to kidnap, interrogate and kill him.

Other roles

In 1973, Reynolds released the album Ask Me What I Am and sang along with Dolly Parton in The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. On March 15, 1978, Reynolds earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and in the same year built a dinner theatre in Jupiter, Florida. His celebrity was such that he drew not only big-name stars to appear in productions, but also to sell-out audiences. He sold the venue in the early 1990s, but a museum highlighting his career still operates nearby. From 1977 to 1981, Reynolds topped the Quigley Publications poll of movie exhibitors, who voted him the top box-office attraction in the country. Only Bing Crosby won the poll more consecutive years. Despite much success, Reynolds' finances expired, and he filed for bankruptcy, due in part to an extravagant lifestyle, a divorce from Loni Anderson and failed investments in some Florida restaurant chains in 1996. The filing was under Chapter 11, from which Reynolds emerged two years later. Reynolds co-authored the children's book Barkley Unleashed A Pirate, a "whimsical tale illustrates the importance of perseverance, the wonders of friendship and the power of imagination". In early 2000, he created and toured for Burt Reynolds' One-Man Show. On video games, he voiced Avery Carrington in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and himself in Saints Row: The Third as the mayor of Steelport. He starred in the audiobook version of The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook. In May 2006, Reynolds appeared in the Miller Lite beer commercial.

Personal life

Relationships

Reynolds was good friends with Dom DeLuise, Jerry Reed, Charles Nelson Reilly, Inger Stevens, Tammy Wynette, Lucie Arnaz, Adrienne Barbeau, Susan Clark, Lorna Luft, Tawny Little, Dinah Shore and Chris Evert.

Reynolds married Judy Carne from 1963 to 1965, and Loni Anderson from 1988 to 1993, with whom he adopted a son, Quinton. In the late 1970s, he had a relationship with Sally Field.

Atlanta nightclub

In the late 1970s, Reynolds opened Burt's Place, a nightclub restaurant in the Omni International Hotel in the Hotel District of Downtown Atlanta.

Sports team owner

In 1982, Reynolds became a co-owner of the Tampa Bay Bandits, a professional American football team in the USFL, whose nickname was inspired by the Smokey and the Bandit trilogy and Skoal Bandit, a primary sponsor for the team as a result of also sponsoring Reynolds' race team. Reynolds also co-owned a NASCAR Winston Cup team, Mach 1 Racing, with Hal Needham, which ran the #33 Skoal Bandit car with driver Harry Gant.

Health

While filming City Heat, Reynolds was struck in the face with a metal chair, which broke his jaw and had temporomandibular joint dysfunction. He lost thirty pounds from not eating, with the painkillers prescribed leading to an addiction, which took several years to break. Reynolds underwent back surgery in May 2009 and a quintuple heart bypass in February 2010.

On August 16, 2011, Merrill Lynch Credit Corporation filed foreclosure papers, claiming Reynolds owed $1.2 million on his home in Hobe Sound, Florida. Reynolds owned the Burt Reynolds Ranch, where scenes for Smokey and the Bandit were filmed and which once had a petting zoo, until its sale during bankruptcy. In April 2014, the 153-acre rural property was rezoned for residential use and the Palm Beach County school system could sell it to residential developer K. Hovnanian Homes.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1961	Angel Baby	Hoke Adams
1961	Armored Command	Ski
1965	Operation C.I.A.	Mark Andrews
1966	Navajo Joe	Joe
1969	100 Rifles	Yaqui Joe Herrera
1969	Sam Whiskey	Sam Whiskey
1969	Impasse	Pat Morrison
1969	Shark!	Caine
1970	Skullduggery	Douglas Temple
1972	Fuzz	Detective Steve Carella
1972	Deliverance	Lewis Medlock
1972	Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex* (*But Were Afraid to Ask)	Sperm Switchboard Chief	Cameo
1973	Shamus	Shamus McCoy
1973	The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing	Jay Grobart
1973	White Lightning	Robert "Gator" McKlusky
1974	The Longest Yard	Paul "Wrecking" Crewe
1975	At Long Last Love	Michael Oliver Pritchard III
1975	W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings	W.W. Bright
1975	Lucky Lady	Walker Ellis
1975	Hustle	Lieutenant Phil Gaines	Executive producer
1976	Silent Movie	Himself	Cameo
1976	Gator	Robert "Gator" McKlusky	Director
1976	Nickelodeon	Buck Greenway
1977	Smokey and the Bandit	Bo "Bandit" Darville
1977	Semi-Tough	Billy Clyde Puckett
1978	The End	Wendell Sonny Lawson	Director
1978	Hooper	Sonny Hooper	Producer
1979	Starting Over	Phil Potter
1980	Rough Cut	Jack Rhodes
1980	Smokey and the Bandit II	Bo "Bandit" Darville
1981	The Cannonball Run	J.J. McClure
1981	Paternity	Buddy Evans
1981	Sharky's Machine	Sgt. Thomas Sharky	Director
1982	The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas	Sheriff Ed Earl Dodd
1982	Best Friends	Richard Babson
1982	Six Pack	Man walking in front of Brewster & Lila	Uncredited
1983	Stroker Ace	Stroker Ace
1983	The Man Who Loved Women	David Fowler
1983	Smokey and the Bandit Part 3	The Real Bandit
1984	Cannonball Run II	J.J. McClure
1984	City Heat	Mike Murphy
1985	Stick	Ernest "Stick" Stickley	Director
1986	Uphill All the Way	Gambler	Uncredited
1986	Heat	Nick Escalante
1987	Malone	Richard Malone
1988	Rent-a-Cop	Tony Church
1988	Switching Channels	John L. Sullivan IV
1989	Physical Evidence	Joe Paris
1989	Breaking In	Ernie Mullins
1989	All Dogs Go to Heaven	Charlie B. Barkin (voice)
1992	The Player	Himself	Cameo
1993	Cop and a Half	Nick McKenna
1995	The Maddening	Roy Scudder
1996	Citizen Ruth	Blaine Gibbons
1996	Striptease	Congressman David Dilbeck
1996	Mad Dog Time	"Wacky" Jacky Jackson
1997	Meet Wally Sparks	Lenny Spencer
1997	Bean	General Newton
1997	Boogie Nights	Jack Horner
1999	Pups	Daniel Bender
1999	Big City Blues	Connor	Co-producer
1999	Mystery, Alaska	Judge Walter Burns
1999	The Hunter's Moon	Clayton Samuels	Direct-to-video
2000	The Crew	Joey "Bats" Pistella
2000	The Last Producer	Sonny Wexler	Director
2001	Driven	Carl Henry
2001	Tempted	Charlie LeBlanc
2001	Hotel	Flamenco Manager
2001	The Hollywood Sign	Kage Mulligan
2002	Time of the Wolf	Archie McGregor
2003	The Librarians	Irish	Uncredited
2004	Without a Paddle	Del Knox
2005	The Longest Yard	Coach Nate Scarborough
2005	The Dukes of Hazzard	Boss Hogg
2006	Cloud 9	Billy Cole
2006	End Game	General Montgomery
2006	Forget About It	Sam LeFleur
2006	Grilled	Goldbluth
2006	Broken Bridges	Jake Delton
2007	Randy and the Mob	Elmore Culpepper	Uncredited cameo
2007	In the Name of the King	King Konreid
2008	Deal	Tommy Vinson
2008	Delgo	Delgo's Father (voice)
2008	A Bunch of Amateurs	Jefferson Steele
2015	Pocket Listing	Ron Glass

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1959	M Squad	Peter Marashi	Episode: "The Teacher"
1959	The Lawless Years	Tony Sappio	Episode: "The Payoff"
1959	Pony Express	Adam	Episode: "The Good Samaritan"
1959-60	Riverboat	Ben Frazer	20 episodes
1959/60	Playhouse 90	Ace / The Actor	2 episodes
1960	Johnny Ringo	Tad Stuart	Episode: "The Stranger"
1960	Alfred Hitchcock Presents	Bill Davis	Episode: "Escape to Sonoita"
1960	Lock-Up	Latchard Duncan	Episode: "The Case of Alexis George"
1960/61	The Blue Angels	Chuck / Corman	2 episodes
1960/61	The Aquanauts	Leo / Jimmy	2 episodes
1961	Ripcord	The Assassin	Episode: "Crime Jump"
1961	Michael Shayne	Jerry Turner	Episode: "The Boat Caper"
1961	Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre	Branch Taylor	Episode: "Man from Everywhere"
1961	The Brothers Brannagan	Abelard	Episode: "Bordertown"
1961	Naked City	Young Man	Episode: "Requiem for a Sunday Afternoon"
1961/62	The Everglades	Trask / Lew Johnson	2 episodes
1962	Route 66	Tommy	Episode: "Love Is a Skinny Kid"
1962	Perry Mason	Chuck Blair	Episode: "The Case of the Counterfeit Crank"
1962-65	Gunsmoke	Quint Asper	50 episodes
1963	The Twilight Zone	Rocky Rhodes	Episode: "The Bard"
1965	Branded	Red Hand	Episode: "Now Join the Human Race"
1965	Flipper	Al Bardeman	2 episodes
1965/68	The F.B.I.	John Duquesne / Michael Murtaugh	2 episodes
1966	Hawk	Detective Lt. John Hawk	17 episodes
1967	Gentle Ben	Pilot	Episode: "Voice from the Wilderness"
1968	Premiere	Pete Lassiter	Episode: "Lassiter"
1968	Fade In	Rob	Television film
1970	Love, American Style	Stanley Dunbar	Episode: "Love and the Banned Book"
1970-71	Dan August	Dan August	26 episodes
1986	The Golden Girls	Himself	Epiosde: "Ladies of the Evening"
1987-91	Out of This World	Troy Garland (voice)	95 episodes
1989-90	B.L. Stryker	B.L. Stryker	12 episodes
1990-94	Evening Shade	Wood Newton	98 episodes
1993	Beverly Hills, 90210	Himself	Episode: "She Came in Through the Bathroom Window"
1993	The Larry Sanders Show	Himself	Episode: "The Grand Opening"
1993	The Man from Left Field	Jack Robinson	Television film
1995	Amazing Grace	Josiah Carey	Episode: "Hallelujah"
1995	Hope and Gloria	Himself	Episode: "Sisyphus, Prometheus and Me"
1995	Cybill	Himself	Episode: "The Cheese Stands Alone"
1996	The Cherokee Kid	Otter Bob the Mountain Man	Television film
1997	Duckman	Judge Keaton (voice)	Episode: "Das Sub"
1997	King of the Hill	M.F. Thatherton (voice)	Episode: "The Company Man"
1998	Universal Soldier II: Brothers in Arms	CIA Deputy Director	Television film
1998	Hard Time	Detective Logan McQueen	Television film
1999	Universal Soldier III: Unfinished Business	CIA Deputy Director Mentor / GR88	Television film
2002	The X-Files	Mr. Burt	Episode: "Improbable"
2003/04	Ed	Russ Burton	2 episodes
2005	The King of Queens	Coach Walcott	Episode: "Hi, School"
2005	Robot Chicken	J.J. McClure / Himself (voices)	Episode: "Gold Dust Gasoline"
2005	Duck Dodgers	Royal Serpenti (voice)	Episode: "Master & Disaster/All in the Crime Family"
2006	Freddie	Carl Crane Pool	Episode: "Mother of All Grandfathers"
2006-07; 2009	My Name Is Earl	Chubby	3 episodes; uncredited
2010	Burn Notice	Paul Anderson	Episode: "Past & Future Tense"
2011	American Dad!	Senator Buckingham (voice)	Episode: "School Lies"
2011	Reel Love	Wade Whitman	Television film
2012	Archer	Himself (voice)	Episode: "The Man from Jupiter"

Video games

Year	Title	Voice role
2002	Grand Theft Auto: Vice City	Avery Carrington
2011	Saints Row: The Third	Himself (The Mayor)

Singles

Year	Single	Chart positions			Album	Songwriter
1980	"Let's Do Something Cheap and Superficial"	51	88	33	Smokey and the Bandit II Soundtrack	Richard Levinson

Awards and nominations

Awards and nominations for acting

Year	Association	Category	Nominated work	Result
1971	Golden Globe Awards	Best Actor - Television Series Drama	Dan August	Nominated
1975		Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy	The Longest Yard	Nominated
1980			Starting Over	Nominated
	American Movie Awards	Favorite Film Star - Male	N/A	Won
1991	Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series	Evening Shade	Nominated
	People's Choice Awards	Favorite Male Performer in a New TV Series		Won
	Viewers For Quality Television	Best Actor in a Quality Comedy Series		Won
	Golden Boot Awards	Golden Boot		Won
1992	Golden Globe Awards	Best Actor - Television Series Musical or Comedy		Won
	Primetime Emmy Awards	Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series		Won
1993	Golden Globe Awards	Best Actor - Television Series Musical or Comedy		Nominated
1997	Boston Society of Film Critics	Best Supporting Actor	Boogie Nights	2nd place
	Los Angeles Film Critics Association	Best Supporting Actor		Won
	New York Film Critics Circle	Best Supporting Actor		Won
	Online Film Critics Society	Best Supporting Actor		Won
	San Diego Film Critics Society	Best Supporting Actor		Won
1998	Academy Awards	Best Supporting Actor		Nominated
	Golden Globe Awards	Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture		Won
	BAFTA Awards	Best Actor in a Supporting Role		Nominated
	Chicago Film Critics Association	Best Supporting Actor		Won
	Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association	Best Supporting Actor		Won
	Florida Film Critics Circle	Best Cast		Won
	National Society of Film Critics	Best Supporting Actor		Won
	Satellite Awards	Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture		Won
	Screen Actors Guild	Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role		Nominated
		Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture		Nominated

Other honors

• 1978: Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6838 Hollywood Blvd.
• 2000: Children at Heart Award
• 2003: Atlanta IMAGE Film and Video Award

Further reading

• Reynolds, Burt. (1994) My Life. New York: Hyperion. ISBN 0-7868-6130-4
• Anderson, Loni. (1997) My Life in High Heels. Avon Books. ISBN 978-0-380-72854-1
• Reynolds, Burt. (2015) But Enough About Me: A Memoir. G.P. Putnam's Sons. ISBN 0-3991-7354-4

[ Source: Wikipedia ]