GK
George Kennedy
Actor
Born February 18, 1925Died February 28, 2016 (91 years)
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.
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.
Movies & Shows on Plex
Known For
Featured Videos
Filmography
| 2014 | The Gambler · as Ed |
| 2011 | Another Happy Day · as Joe Baker |
| 2010 | 2 Everything 2 Terrible 2: Tokyo Drift · as (archive Footage) |
| 2010 | Six Days in Paradise · as Monty Crenshaw |
| 2008 | The Man Who Came Back · as Judge Duke |
| 2008 | The Boneyard Collection · as Professor Zebediah Jones (segment "the Devil's Due At Midnight") |
| 2007 | Sands of Oblivion · as John Tevis |
| 2005 | Don't Come Knocking · as Director |
| 2005 | Three Bad Men · as Ed Fiske |
| 2005 | Truce · as Dr. Peter Gannon |
| 2003 | Monster Makers · as Dexter Brisbane |
| 2003 | View from the Top · as Passenger Requesting Vodka (uncredited) |
| 1998 | Men in White · as Army |
| 1998 | Dennis the Menace Strikes Again! · as Mr. Johnson |
| 1998 | Small Soldiers · as Brick Bazooka (voice) |
| 1998 | Dallas: War of the Ewings · as Carter Mckay |
| 1997 | Cats Don't Dance · as L.b. Mammoth (voice) |
| 1997 | Bayou Ghost · as Officer Lowe |
| 1996 | Dallas: J.R. Returns · as Carter Mckay |
| 1996 | The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest (TV Series) · as General Axton (voice) |
| 1995 | Santo Bugito (TV Series) · as Ralph (voice) |
| 1994 | Aaahh!!! Real Monsters (TV Series) · as Bones Duvalier |
| 1994 | Lonesome Dove: The Series (TV Series) · as Judge J.t. 'rope' Calder |
| 1994 | Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult · as Ed Hocken |
| 1994 | Duckman (TV Series) · as Movie Director |
| 1992 | Distant Justice · as Tom Bradfield |
| 1992 | Final Shot: The Hank Gathers Story · as Father Dave Hagan |
| 1991 | Intensive Care · as Dr. Bruckner |
| 1991 | The Commish (TV Series) · as Al Scali |
| 1991 | The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear · as Ed Hocken |
| 1991 | Driving Me Crazy · as John Mccready |
| 1991 | Hangfire · as Warden Barles |
| 1990 | |
| 1990 | Hired to Kill · as Thomas |
| 1990 | Brain Dead · as Vance |
| 1990 | Countdown to Esmeralda Bay · as Wilson |
| 1989 | Ministry of Vengeance · as Rev. Hughes |
| 1989 | The Terror Within · as Hal |
| 1988 | The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! · as Ed Hocken |
| 1988 | |
| 1988 | Top Line · as Heinrich Holzmann |
| 1988 | Nightmare at Noon · as Sherrif Hanks |
| 1988 | Private Road: No Trespassing · as Sam Milshaw |
| 1988 | Counterforce · as Vince Colby |
| 1988 | Demonwarp · as Bill Crafton |
| 1988 | Born to Race · as Vincent Duplain |
| 1987 | Kenny Rogers as The Gambler, Part III: The Legend Continues · as General Nelson Miles |
| 1987 | The Gunfighters · as Deke Turner |
| 1987 | Creepshow 2 · as Ray Spruce |
| 1986 | Liberty · as Seamus Reilly |
| 1986 | The Delta Force · as Father O'malley |
| 1986 | Rigged · as Ben |
| 1985 | International Airport · as Rudy Van Leuven |
| 1985 | Half Nelson · as Parsons |
| 1985 | Savage Dawn · as Tick Rand |
| 1984 | Radioactive Dreams · as Spade Chandler |
| 1984 | |
| 1984 | Bolero · as Cotton |
| 1984 | The Jesse Owens Story · as Charles 'charley' Riley |
| 1984 | Chattanooga Choo Choo · as Bert |
| 1982 | Wacko · as Mr. Doctor Graves |
| 1981 | Just Before Dawn · as Roy Mclean |
| 1981 | The Archer: Fugitive from the Empire · as Brakus |
| 1981 | Modern Romance · as George Kennedy / Zeron |
| 1980 | Hotwire · as Farley & Harley Fontenot |
| 1980 | Virus: Day of Resurrection · as Admiral Conway |
| 1980 | Death Ship · as Captain Ashland |
| 1979 | Search and Destroy · as Anthony Fusqua |
| 1979 | The Concorde... Airport '79 · as Joe Patroni |
| 1979 | Steel · as Big Lew Cassidy |
| 1979 | The Double McGuffin · as Chief Talasek |
| 1979 | Backstairs at the White House (TV Series) · as Pres. Warren G. Harding |
| 1978 | Brass Target · as Gen. George S. Patton |
| 1978 | Death on the Nile · as Andrew Pennington |
| 1978 | Dallas (TV Series) · as Carter Mckay |
| 1978 | Mean Dog Blues · as Captain Omar Kinsman |
| 1977 | Proof of the Man · as Ken Shuftan |
| 1977 | The Love Boat (TV Series) · as Erik Larsen |
| 1977 | Airport '77 · as Joe Patroni |
| 1977 | Fantasy Island (TV Series) · as Adam Cobb |
| 1975 | The 'Human' Factor · as John Kinsdale |
| 1975 | The Eiger Sanction · as Ben Bowman |
| 1975 | The Blue Knight (TV Series) · as Officer Bumper Morgan |
| 1975 | Sonic Boom · as Ben Dover |
| 1974 | Earthquake · as Sgt. Lew Slade |
| 1974 | Airport 1975 · as Joe Patroni |
| 1974 | Thunderbolt and Lightfoot · as Red Leary |
| 1974 | A Cry in the Wilderness · as Sam Hadley |
| 1973 | Deliver Us from Evil · as Walter 'cowboy' Mcadams |
| 1973 | Cahill U.S. Marshal · as Abe Fraser |
| 1973 | The Young and the Restless (TV Series) · as Albert Miller |
| 1973 | Lost Horizon · as Sam Cornelius |
| 1972 | The Bull of the West · as 'bear' Suchette |
| 1972 | A Great American Tragedy · as Brad Wilkes |
| 1971 | Fools' Parade · as Dallas 'doc' Council |
| 1971 | Sarge (TV Series) · as Father Samuel Cavanaugh |
| 1970 | Dirty Dingus Magee · as Herkimer 'hoke' Birdsill |
| 1970 | Zig Zag · as Paul R. Cameron |
| 1970 | Airport · as Joe Patroni |
| 1970 | Tick, Tick, Tick · as John Little |
| 1969 | Gaily, Gaily · as Axel P. Johanson |
| 1969 | The Good Guys and the Bad Guys · as Mckay |
| 1969 | Guns of the Magnificent Seven · as Chris |
| 1968 | The Legend of Lylah Clare · as Matt Burke |
| 1968 | The Pink Jungle · as Sammy Ryderbeit |
| 1968 | The Boston Strangler · as Det. Phil Dinatale |
| 1968 | Bandolero! · as Sheriff July Johnson |
| 1967 | Cool Hand Luke · as Dragline |
| 1967 | Ironside (TV Series) · as Father Samuel Cavanaugh |
| 1967 | The Dirty Dozen · as Major Max Armbruster |
| 1967 | Hurry Sundown · as Sheriff Coombs |
| 1967 | The Ballad of Josie · as Arch Ogden |
| 1966 | The Jean Arthur Show (TV Series) · as Riggs |
| 1966 | Tarzan (1966) (TV Series) |
| 1965 | The Flight of the Phoenix · as Bellamy |
| 1965 | Mirage · as Willard |
| 1965 | Laredo (TV Series) |
| 1965 | The Big Valley (TV Series) · as Thatcher |
| 1965 | A Man Called Shenandoah (TV Series) · as Mitchell Canady |
| 1965 | The Legend of Jesse James (TV Series) · as Blodgett |
| 1965 | The Sons of Katie Elder · as Curley |
| 1965 | Shenandoah · as Col. Fairchild |
| 1965 | In Harm's Way · as Colonel Gregory |
| 1964 | Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte · as Foreman |
| 1964 | See How They Run · as Rudy |
| 1964 | Daniel Boone (TV Series) · as Zach Morgan |
| 1964 | The Rogues (TV Series) · as Major Vyx |
| 1964 | Island of the Blue Dolphins · as Aleut Captain |
| 1964 | McHale's Navy · as Henri Le Clerc |
| 1964 | Strait-Jacket · as Leo Krause |
| 1963 | |
| 1963 | Bob Hope Presents The Chrysler Theatre (TV Series) · as Der |
| 1963 | The Great Adventure (TV Series) · as Sergeant Muldaney |
| 1963 | The Farmer's Daughter (TV Series) · as Olaf Bjornsen |
| 1963 | Grindl (TV Series) |
| 1963 | The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters (TV Series) · as Angus |
| 1963 | The Man from the Diners' Club · as George |
| 1962 | McHale's Navy (TV Series) · as Big Frenchy |
| 1962 | Going My Way (TV Series) |
| 1962 | The Alfred Hitchcock Hour (TV Series) · as George Martin |
| 1962 | The Virginian (TV Series) · as Jack Marshman |
| 1962 | Lonely Are the Brave · as Deputy Sheriff Gutierrez |
| 1961 | Alcoa Premiere (TV Series) · as Jake |
| 1961 | Gunfight at Black Horse Canyon · as Hawk |
| 1961 | Dr. Kildare (TV Series) · as Joe Cramer |
| 1961 | Kraft Mystery Theatre (TV Series) |
| 1961 | The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come · as Nathan Dillon |
| 1961 | The Asphalt Jungle (TV Series) |
| 1961 | Gunslinger (TV Series) · as Sheriff |
| 1961 | The Americans (TV Series) · as Hoon |
| 1960 | The Case of the Dangerous Robin (TV Series) · as Cast |
| 1960 | Klondike (TV Series) · as Ira Shallop |
| 1960 | |
| 1960 | The Andy Griffith Show (TV Series) · as State Police Detective |
| 1960 | SurfSide 6 (TV Series) |
| 1960 | Outlaws (TV Series) |
| 1960 | Thriller (TV Series) · as John Paterson |
| 1960 | The Tall Man (TV Series) |
| 1959 | Shotgun Slade (TV Series) · as Tex |
| 1959 | The Alaskans (TV Series) · as Anders |
| 1959 | Laramie (TV Series) · as Gene |
| 1959 | Riverboat (TV Series) · as Gunner Slagle |
| 1959 | |
| 1959 | The Deputy (TV Series) · as Tex |
| 1959 | The Untouchables (TV Series) · as Birdie |
| 1959 | Rawhide (TV Series) · as George Wales |
| 1958 | 77 Sunset Strip (TV Series) |
| 1958 | Bat Masterson (TV Series) · as Sheriff Zeke Armitage |
| 1958 | Lawman (TV Series) |
| 1958 | Peter Gunn (TV Series) |
| 1957 | Colt .45 (TV Series) · as Hank |
| 1957 | Maverick (TV Series) |
| 1957 | Perry Mason (TV Series) · as George Spangler |
| 1957 | Sugarfoot (TV Series) · as Ross Kuhn |
| 1957 | Have Gun, Will Travel (TV Series) · as Big Jim |
| 1957 | Tales of Wells Fargo (TV Series) · as Hawk |
| 1955 | The Phil Silvers Show (TV Series) · as Mp Sgt. Kennedy (uncredited) |
| 1955 | |
| 1955 | Gunsmoke (TV Series) · as Swarner |
| 1952 | Death Valley Days (TV Series) · as Steamboat Sully |
| 1951 | The Red Skelton Show (TV Series) · as Ship's Purser |