English
EspaΓ±ol
Russian
George Kennedy (February 18, 1925 β February 28, 2016) was a European-American businessman, entrepreneur, A World War II veteran, actor, adviser, radio dj, and author. Kennedy at one stage in his career cornered the market at playing tough, no-nonsense characters who were either quite crooked or possessed hearts of gold. Kennedy notched up an impressive 200+ appearances in both TV and film, and was well respected within the Hollywood community. He started out in TV westerns in the late 1950s and early 1960s: Have Gun - Will TravelΒ (1957),Β RawhideΒ (1959),Β MaverickΒ (1957),Β Colt .45Β (1957), among others; before scoring minor roles in films includingΒ Lonely Are the BraveΒ (1962),Β The Sons of Katie ElderΒ (1965) andΒ The Flight of the PhoenixΒ (1965). The late 1960s was a very busy period for Kennedy, and he was strongly in favor with casting agents, appearing inΒ Hurry SundownΒ (1967),Β The Dirty DozenΒ (1967) and scoring an Oscar win as Best Supporting Actor for his performance inΒ Cool Hand LukeΒ (1967). The disaster film boom of the 1970s was kind to Kennedy, too, and his talents were in demand forΒ Airport(1970) and the three subsequent sequels, as a grizzled cop inΒ EarthquakeΒ (1974), plus the buddy/road filmΒ Thunderbolt and LightfootΒ (1974) as vicious bank robber Red Leary.
The 1980s saw Kennedy appear in a mishmash of roles, playing various characters; however, Kennedy andΒ Leslie NielsenΒ surprised everyone with their comedic talents in the hugely successfulΒ The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!Β (1988), and the two screen veterans hammed it up again in,Β The Naked Gun 2Β½: The Smell of FearΒ (1991), plusΒ Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final InsultΒ (1994).
Kennedy remained busy in Hollywood and lent his distinctive voice to the animatedΒ Cats Don't DanceΒ (1997) and the children's action filmΒ Small SoldiersΒ (1998). A Hollywood stalwart for nearly 50 years, he is one of the most enjoyable actors to watch on screen. His last role was in the filmΒ The GamblerΒ (2014), asΒ Mark Wahlberg's character's grandfather.
George Kennedy died on February 28, 2016 in Middleton, Idaho.
