Born:
February 11, 1936
in
Lansing, Michigan
Best Known For:
The Smokey and the Bandit movies
Early-life:
Burton Leon Reynolds Jr was born in Lansing, Michigan, on February 11, 1936. He moved to Florida as a youngster, where he excelled in various sports and athletics, most notably American football. He attended Florida State University and won a place on the All Star Southern Conference team. His promising future as a sporting star was shattered by a knee injury and a car accident. Halfway through his college education, Reynolds dropped out and moved to New York where he tackled odd jobs until his acting career took off.
Career:
Reynolds found fame with TV series Gunsmoke and Hawk. In 1972 he became a movie star thanks to the acclaimed thriller Deliverance, while 1977's Smokey and the Bandit gave him wider appeal. He has since worked continuously with differing amounts of success on features such as The Cannonball Run, Sharky's Machine, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas and Striptease, as well as his own brainchild, the sitcom Evening Shade. However, it was his turn as porn mogul Jack Horner in Boogie Nights that revived his fortunes and bagged him his only Oscar nomination to date. More recently, he's appeared in The Dukes of Hazzard and alongside Adam Sandler in a remake of his own 1974 hit The Longest Yard.
Quote:
On working with young directors: "Having done 300 television shows and almost 60 movies, I'm tired of having guys who are younger than some sandwiches I've had, telling me to turn left at the couch."
Trivia:
Reynolds played himself in the video game Saints Row: The Third.