1. Burt Reynolds had leading roles in films such as Navajo Joe and 100 Rifles, and his breakthrough role was as Lewis Medlock in Deliverance.
120 Facts About Burt Reynolds
1. 2.
Burt Reynolds was voted the world's number one movie actor from 1978 to 1982 in the annual Top Ten Money Making Stars Poll, a record that he shares with Bing Crosby.
3.
Burt Reynolds's family descended from Dutch, English, Scots-Irish and Scottish ancestry.
4.
Burt Reynolds had an outstanding freshman year as a football player.
5.
Burt Reynolds did not return to the university for almost two years.
6.
When Burt Reynolds returned to Florida State in 1957, he rejoined the football team, although his leg injured by the car accident slowed him.
7.
Burt Reynolds was blamed, fairly or not, for the team's loss to North Carolina State University on October 12,1957.
8.
Burt Reynolds cast him in the lead role based on having heard him read Shakespeare in class, resulting in his winning the 1956 Florida State Drama Award for his performance.
9.
Burt Reynolds considered the opportunity as an agreeable alternative to more physically demanding summer jobs, but did not yet consider acting as a possible career.
10.
Burt Reynolds had the kind of lovely personality that made you want to do something for him.
11.
Burt Reynolds was cast in Tea and Sympathy at the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York City.
12.
Burt Reynolds was told that he could not be in the movie because he looked too much like Marlon Brando.
13.
Logan advised Burt Reynolds to go to Hollywood, although Burt Reynolds did not feel confident enough to do so.
14.
Burt Reynolds worked in a variety of jobs, such as waiting tables, washing dishes, driving a delivery truck, and as a bouncer at the Roseland Ballroom.
15.
Burt Reynolds wrote that while working as a dockworker, he was offered $150 to jump through a glass window on a live television show.
16.
Burt Reynolds began acting for television during the late 1950s, with guest roles on shows like Flight, M Squad, Schlitz Playhouse, The Lawless Years and Pony Express.
17.
Burt Reynolds starred in the low budget film Angel Baby.
18.
Burt Reynolds followed it with a role in a war film Armored Command.
19.
Burt Reynolds continued to guest-star on episodes of Naked City, Ripcord, Everglades, Route 66, Perry Mason and The Twilight Zone.
20.
Burt Reynolds was cast in his first lead role in a movie, the low-budget action movie Operation CIA.
21.
Burt Reynolds was given the title role of a TV series, Hawk, playing Native American detective John Hawk.
22.
Burt Reynolds played another Native American in the Italian Western film Navajo Joe, which was filmed in Spain.
23.
Burt Reynolds guest-starred in Gentle Ben, and made a pilot for a TV series, Lassiter, in which he would have played a magazine journalist.
24.
Burt Reynolds described Fade In as "the best thing I've ever done", but it was not released for a number of years, and off of which director Jud Taylor took his name.
25.
Burt Reynolds starred with Jim Brown and Raquel Welch in another Western, 100 Rifles.
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Burt Reynolds starred in the film Skullduggery, filmed in Jamaica.
27.
Burt Reynolds featured in two television films: Hunters Are for Killing and Run, Simon, Run.
28.
In Hunters Are for Killing, his character was originally a Native American, but Burt Reynolds requested that this element be changed, feeling that he had played the persona too many times already, and that it was not needed for the character anyway.
29.
Burt Reynolds was offered other TV pilots, but was reluctant to play a detective again.
30.
Burt Reynolds made jokes at his own expense, calling himself America's most "well-known unknown" who made the kind of movies "they show in airplanes or prisons or anywhere else the people can't get out".
31.
Burt Reynolds proved enormously popular and was frequently asked back by Griffin and Johnny Carson; he even guest-hosted The Tonight Show.
32.
Burt Reynolds was so popular as a guest that he was offered his own talk show, but he wanted to continue as an actor.
33.
Burt Reynolds was considered for the role of Sonny Corleone in The Godfather, but Francis Ford Coppola's desire to cast James Caan in the part prevailed.
34.
Brando denied that he played a role in thwarting the casting of Burt Reynolds, saying in a January 1979 Playboy interview that Coppola would not have cast Burt Reynolds in the part.
35.
Burt Reynolds later claimed that he declined the role of Sonny.
36.
Burt Reynolds said that he could not understand Brando's enmity toward him.
37.
When he was finally introduced to Brando, Burt Reynolds said that he told him that he was the finest actor in the world.
38.
Burt Reynolds had a major role in the movie Deliverance, directed by John Boorman, who cast him on the basis of a talk show appearance.
39.
Burt Reynolds returned to the stage, appearing in The Rainmaker at the Arlington.
40.
Burt Reynolds had the title role of Shamus, playing a private detective.
41.
Burt Reynolds described it as "not a bad film, kind of cute".
42.
Burt Reynolds was in The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing, co-featuring Sarah Miles.
43.
Burt Reynolds meant to reunite with Boorman in Zardoz, but fell ill and was replaced by Sean Connery.
44.
Burt Reynolds made a sports comedy with Robert Aldrich, The Longest Yard, which was popular.
45.
Burt Reynolds starred in two big-budget fiascos: At Long Last Love, a musical for Peter Bogdanovich, and Lucky Lady, with Gene Hackman and Liza Minnelli.
46.
Burt Reynolds had a cameo appearance in Mel Brooks's Silent Movie.
47.
Toward the end of his life, Burt Reynolds revealed that he declined the role of Han Solo in Star Wars.
48.
Burt Reynolds made his directorial debut in 1976 with Gator, the sequel to White Lightning, written by Norton.
49.
Burt Reynolds was reunited with Bogdanovich for the comedy Nickelodeon, which was a commercial disappointment.
50.
Burt Reynolds had the biggest success of his career with the car-chase film Smokey and the Bandit, directed by Hal Needham and co-starring Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed and Sally Field.
51.
Burt Reynolds followed it with a comedy about football players, Semi-Tough, featuring Jill Clayburgh and Kris Kristofferson, and produced by David Merrick.
52.
Burt Reynolds directed his second film The End, a dark comedy, playing a role originally written for Woody Allen.
53.
For California Suite, Burt Reynolds declined a leading role, which went to Alan Alda.
54.
Burt Reynolds tried a change of pace with Starting Over, a romantic comedy, co-starring Jill Clayburgh and Candice Bergen.
55.
Burt Reynolds plays a jewel thief in Rough Cut produced by Merrick, who fired and rehired director Don Siegel during filming.
56.
Burt Reynolds had two huge successes with more car films directed by Needham: Smokey and the Bandit II and The Cannonball Run.
57.
Burt Reynolds starred in David Steinberg's film Paternity and directed himself in an action film, Sharky's Machine.
58.
In 1982, Burt Reynolds was voted the most popular actor in the US for the fifth year in a row.
59.
However, Burt Reynolds refused the role, and instead starred in another car-chase comedy Stroker Ace, directed by Needham.
60.
Burt Reynolds said in 1987, "I felt I owed Hal more than I owed Jim," but Stroker Ace failed.
61.
Burt Reynolds felt that it was a turning point in his career from which he never recovered.
62.
For director Blake Edwards, Burt Reynolds starred in The Man Who Loved Women, a remake in English of Francois Truffaut's 1977 film L'Homme qui aimait les femmes, but it failed.
63.
Burt Reynolds returned to directing with Stick, from an Elmore Leonard novel, but it was both a critical and commercial failure.
64.
Burt Reynolds starred in Switching Channels, a remake of the comedy The Front Page.
65.
Burt Reynolds received excellent reviews for the caper comedy Breaking In, but the commercial reception was poor.
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The moderately successful animated film All Dogs Go to Heaven, in which Reynolds voiced Charlie B Barkin, was one of his few successes at the time.
67.
Burt Reynolds starred in the situation comedy television series, Evening Shade as former Pittsburgh Steelers player Woodward "Wood" Newton.
68.
Burt Reynolds credited this role for his membership in Steeler Nation.
69.
Burt Reynolds starred in the crime film Cop and a Half.
70.
Burt Reynolds was a supporting actor in Frankenstein and Me, Mad Dog Time, The Cherokee Kid, Meet Wally Sparks with Rodney Dangerfield, and Bean with Rowan Atkinson.
71.
Burt Reynolds had the lead in Raven, a straight-to-video action movie.
72.
Burt Reynolds played a porn film director in the successful film Boogie Nights, which was considered a comeback role for him.
73.
Burt Reynolds received 12 acting awards and three nominations for the role, including a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, Reynolds' first and only nomination for the award.
74.
Boogie Nights co-star William H Macy stated in an interview that Reynolds was clueless about the film and had become out of touch with the film industry due to his age.
75.
Burt Reynolds was offered a role in Anderson's third film, Magnolia, but he declined it.
76.
Burt Reynolds had the lead in Big City Blues and supporting roles in Universal Soldier II: Brothers in Arms and Universal Soldier III: Unfinished Business.
77.
Burt Reynolds returned to directing with Hard Time, an action TV movie featuring himself.
78.
Burt Reynolds featured in the straight-to-video The Hunter's Moon, Stringer, and Waterproof.
79.
Burt Reynolds played supporting roles in Pups and Mystery, Alaska, and had the lead in The Crew alongside Richard Dreyfuss.
80.
Burt Reynolds directed The Last Producer, featuring himself, and was second-billed in Renny Harlin's Driven, featuring Sylvester Stallone.
81.
Burt Reynolds was in Tempted, Hotel, and The Hollywood Sign.
82.
Burt Reynolds voiced Avery Carrington in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, released in 2002.
83.
Burt Reynolds was top-billed in Snapshots with Julie Christie, an $11 million Anglo-Dutch-American picture that failed to find a wide release.
84.
Burt Reynolds featured in Time of the Wolf and Hard Ground, and had supporting roles in Johnson County War with Tom Berenger, and Miss Lettie and Me with Mary Tyler Moore.
85.
Burt Reynolds was in a series of supporting roles that referred to earlier performances: Without a Paddle, a riff on his role in Deliverance, The Longest Yard, a remake of his 1974 success with Adam Sandler playing Reynolds' old role ; and The Dukes of Hazzard as Boss Hogg as a reference to his performances in 1970s car-chase movies.
86.
Burt Reynolds continued to play lead roles in movies such as Cloud 9, Forget About It, Deal, and A Bunch of Amateurs, and supporting parts in End Game, Grilled, Broken Bridges, In the Name of the King, Not Another Not Another Movie, and Reel Love.
87.
Burt Reynolds voiced himself as the Mayor of Steelport in Saints Row: The Third, released in 2011.
88.
Burt Reynolds voiced himself in the animated series Archer, in the episode "The Man from Jupiter".
89.
Burt Reynolds was top billed in Category 5 and Elbow Grease and could be seen in key roles in Pocket Listing, and Hollow Creek.
90.
Burt Reynolds returned to a regular role on TV in Hitting the Breaks but it only ran for ten episodes.
91.
Burt Reynolds was in Apple of My Eye and took the lead in The Last Movie Star.
92.
In May 2018, Burt Reynolds joined the cast of Quentin Tarantino's movie Once Upon a Time in Hollywood as George Spahn, but he died before filming his scenes and was replaced by Bruce Dern.
93.
Burt Reynolds appeared posthumously in the 2019 movie An Innocent Kiss as well as in the 2020 movie Defining Moments, which includes his final performance.
94.
Burt Reynolds was credited as the author of a 1972 mass market paperback book Hot Line: The Letters I Get.
95.
Burt Reynolds published two autobiographies, My Life in 1994 and But Enough About Me in 2015.
96.
Burt Reynolds co-authored the 1997 children's book, Barkley Unleashed: A Pirate's Tail, a "whimsical tale [that] illustrates the importance of perseverance, the wonders of friendship and the power of imagination".
97.
Burt Reynolds was married to English actress Judy Carne from 1963 to 1965.
98.
Burt Reynolds lived with actress Miko Mayama from 1968 to 1971.
99.
Burt Reynolds had a relationship from 1976 to 1980 with American actress Sally Field, during which time they appeared together in four films.
100.
Burt Reynolds was married to American actress Loni Anderson from 1988 to 1994.
101.
Burt Reynolds was a minority owner of the Tampa Bay Bandits of the USFL from 1982 to 1986.
102.
The team's name was inspired by the Smokey and the Bandit trilogy and Skoal Bandit, a primary sponsor for the team as a result of sponsoring Burt Reynolds' motor racing team.
103.
Burt Reynolds co-owned a NASCAR Winston Cup Series team, Mach 1 Racing, with Hal Needham, which ran the No 33 Skoal Bandit car with driver Harry Gant.
104.
Burt Reynolds owned the Burt Reynolds Dinner Theatre in Jupiter, Florida, with an emphasis on training young performers trying to enter show business.
105.
Burt Reynolds operated it until 1989 and leased it until 1996.
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Burt Reynolds had invested the capital as an individual, not as a corporate investment, and was responsible personally for the liabilities when Po' Folks and the Daisy's Diner failed.
107.
Burt Reynolds suffered a steep decrease of his career earnings after the cancellation of Evening Shade, as his popularity waned due to bad publicity from his divorce from Loni Anderson, which became tabloid fodder.
108.
Burt Reynolds suffered from hypoglycemia, which he discussed publicly on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.
109.
Burt Reynolds, who said he was a card-carrying member of the stunt performers guild, often performed his own stunts in movies, such as the fall over the waterfall in Deliverance, where he injured his coccyx.
110.
Burt Reynolds had to be operated on for a hernia that resulted from a fight scene in The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing.
111.
Burt Reynolds was restricted to a liquid diet and lost 30 pounds from not eating.
112.
Burt Reynolds underwent back surgery in 2009 and a quintuple coronary artery bypass surgery in February 2010.
113.
Burt Reynolds died of a heart attack at the Jupiter Medical Center in Jupiter, Florida, on September 6,2018, at the age of 82.
114.
Burt Reynolds' body was cremated and his ashes were given to his niece, Nancy Lee Brown Hess.
115.
Burt Reynolds was interred at Hollywood Forever Cemetery on February 11,2021.
116.
Burt Reynolds was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar in 1998, losing out to Robin Williams in Good Will Hunting.
117.
Burt Reynolds won Golden Globe Awards for Best Actor In A Television Series-Musical or Comedy for Evening Shade in 1992, and as Best Supporting Actor in Boogie Nights in 1998.
118.
Burt Reynolds received Best Actor in a TV series nominations for Evening Shade in 1991 and 1993.
119.
Burt Reynolds won four People's Choice Awards, as Favorite Motion Picture Actor and Favorite All-Around Male in 1983, as Favorite Motion Picture Actor in 1984, and as Favorite Male Performer in a New TV Series in 1991.
120.
Burt Reynolds was awarded an honorary doctorate from Florida State University in 1981 and later endorsed the construction of a new performing arts facility in Sarasota, Florida.