Biography
Sandy-haired, tall and burly George Harris Kennedy, Jr. was born in New York City, to Helen A. (Kieselbach), a ballet dancer, and George Harris Kennedy, an orchestra leader and musician. He had German, Irish, and English ancestry. A World War II veteran, 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 Travel (1957), Rawhide (1959), Maverick (1957), Colt .45 (1957), among others; before scoring minor roles in films including Lonely Are the Brave (1962), The Sons of Katie Elder (1965) and The Flight of the Phoenix (1965). The late 1960s was a very busy period for Kennedy, and he was strongly in favor with casting agents, appearing in Hurry Sundown (1967), The Dirty Dozen (1967) and scoring an Oscar win as Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Cool Hand Luke (1967). The disaster film boom of the 1970s was kind to Kennedy, too, and his talents were in demand for Airport(1970) and the three subsequent sequels, as a grizzled cop in Earthquake (1974), plus the buddy/road film Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974) as vicious bank robber Red Leary.
The 1980s saw Kennedy appear in a mishmash of roles, playing various characters; however, Kennedy and Leslie Nielsen surprised everyone with their comedic talents in the hugely successful The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988), and the two screen veterans hammed it up again in, The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear (1991), plus Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994).
Kennedy remained busy in Hollywood and lent his distinctive voice to the animated Cats Don't Dance (1997) and the children's action film Small Soldiers (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 film The Gambler (2014), as Mark Wahlberg's character's grandfather.
George Kennedy died on February 28, 2016 in Middleton, Idaho.
Filmography
all 167
Movies 121
TV Shows 46
self 12
Voice 3
Director 1
The Gambler (2014)
Another Happy Day (2011)
A Natural Born World-Shaker: The Making of 'Cool Hand Luke' (2008)
The Man Who Came Back (2008)
The Boneyard Collection (2008)
Sands of Oblivion (2007)
Armed and Deadly: The Making of 'The Dirty Dozen' (2006)
Don't Come Knocking (2005)
Three Bad Men (2005)
Truce (2005)
The Complete History of U.S. Wars 1700-2004 (2004)
Monster Makers (2003)
View from the Top (2003)
Men in White (1998)
Dennis the Menace Strikes Again! (1998)
Small Soldiers (1998)
Dallas - War of The Ewings (1998)
Hollyweird (1998)
Cats Don't Dance (1997)
Dallas: J.R. Returns (1996)
The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest (1996)
Santo Bugito (1995)
WWE SummerSlam 1994 (1994)
Naked Gun 33⅓: The Final Insult (1994)
Distant Justice (1992)
Final Shot: The Hank Gathers Story (1992)
Intensive Care (1991)
The Commish (1991)
The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear (1991)
Driving Me Crazy (1991)
Hangfire (1991)
The Cops Are Robbers (1990)
Hired to Kill (1990)
Mayumi: Virgin Terrorist (1990)
Wings (1990)
Brain Dead (1990)
Ministry of Vengeance (1989)
Esmeralda Bay (1989)
The Terror Within (1989)
The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988)
Uninvited (1988)
Top Line (1988)
Nightmare at Noon (1988)
Private Road: No Trespassing (1988)
Demonwarp (1988)
Counterforce (1988)
Born to Race (1988)
What Price Victory (1988)
The Gambler, Part III: The Legend Continues (1987)
Creepshow 2 (1987)
The Gunfighters (1987)
Radioactive Dreams (1986)
Liberty (1986)
Savage Dawn (1986)
The Delta Force (1986)
International Airport (1985)
Rigged (1985)
Half Nelson (1985)
Rare Breed (1984)
Bolero (1984)
The Jesse Owens Story (1984)
Chattanooga Choo Choo (1984)
The Jupiter Menace (1982)
Wacko (1982)
Just Before Dawn (1981)
The Archer: Fugitive from the Empire (1981)
Modern Romance (1981)
Hotwire (1980)
Virus (1980)
Death Ship (1980)
Steel (1979)
The Concorde... Airport '79 (1979)
Search and Destroy (1979)
The Double McGuffin (1979)
Backstairs at the White House (1979)
Brass Target (1978)
Death on the Nile (1978)
Dallas (1978)
Mean Dog Blues (1978)
Death on the Nile: Making of Featurette (1978)
Proof of the Man (1977)
Airport '77 (1977)
The Human Factor (1975)
Saturday Night Live (1975)
The Eiger Sanction (1975)
The Blue Knight (1975)
The Blue Knight (1975)
The Lion Roars Again (1975)
Earthquake (1974)
Airport 1975 (1974)
Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974)
A Cry in the Wilderness (1974)
Sonic Boom (1974)
The Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts (1973)
Deliver Us from Evil (1973)
Cahill: United States Marshall (1973)
Lost Horizon (1973)
A Great American Tragedy (1972)
The Bull of the West (1972)
Sarge (1971)
Fools' Parade (1971)
Sarge: The Badge or the Cross (1971)
Dirty Dingus Magee (1970)
Airport (1970)
Zig Zag (1970)
Tick... Tick... Tick... (1970)
Gaily, Gaily (1969)
The Good Guys and the Bad Guys (1969)
Guns of the Magnificent Seven (1969)
The Pink Jungle (1968)
The Boston Strangler (1968)
The Legend of Lylah Clare (1968)
Bandolero! (1968)
The Ballad of Josie (1968)
Cool Hand Luke (1967)
The Dirty Dozen (1967)
Hurry Sundown (1967)
Tarzan (1966)
The Flight of the Phoenix (1965)
Mirage (1965)
Laredo (1965)
The Big Valley (1965)
The Legend of Jesse James (1965)
The Sons of Katie Elder (1965)
Shenandoah (1965)
In Harm's Way (1965)
Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964)
See How They Run (1964)
Daniel Boone (1964)
The Rogues (1964)
Island of the Blue Dolphins (1964)
McHale's Navy (1964)
Strait-Jacket (1964)
Charade (1963)
Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre (1963)
The Great Adventure (1963)
Grindl (1963)
The Man from the Diners' Club (1963)
Going My Way (1962)
The Alfred Hitchcock Hour (1962)
The Virginian (1962)
Lonely Are the Brave (1962)
Gunfight at Black Horses Canyon (1961)
Dr. Kildare (1961)
Kraft Mystery Theatre (1961)
The Little Shepherd Of Kingdom Come (1961)
The Asphalt Jungle (1961)
Route 66 (1960)
Surfside 6 (1960)
The Andy Griffith Show (1960)
Outlaws (1960)
Thriller (1960)
The Tall Man (1960)
Riverboat (1959)
Bonanza (1959)
Rawhide (1959)
77 Sunset Strip (1958)
Bat Masterson (1958)
Lawman (1958)
Peter Gunn (1958)
Maverick (1957)
Perry Mason (1957)
Have Gun, Will Travel (1957)
Cheyenne (1955)
The Phil Silvers Show (1955)
Gunsmoke (1955)
The Oscars (1953)
Ratings
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Information
Known ForActing
GenderMale
Birthday1925-02-18
Deathday2016-02-28 (91 years old)
Birth PlaceNew York City, United States of America
CitizenshipsUnited States of America
Also Known AsGeorge Harris Kennedy Jr.
Awardsstar on Hollywood Walk of Fame, Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor
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