Actor. He was an American actor who was best known for his roles in the popular motion pictures "Deliverance" in 1972, "The Longest Yard" in 1974, and "Smokey and the Bandit" in 1977, and his work on the television series "Gunsmoke" from 1962 to 1965, "Dan August" from 1970 to 1971 and "Evening Shade" from 1990 to 1994. Born Burton Leon Reynolds Jr. in Lansing, Michigan, and raised in both Riviera Beach and West Palm Beach, Florida, he played football at Palm Beach High School and then Florida State University on a football scholarship before a knee injury cut short his football career in his sophomore year. He later enrolled at Palm Beach Junior College, where he got his start in acting in theatrical plays. This led him to both a scholarship and a stint at Hyde Park Playhouse in New York. He would also study acting at the Actors Studio in New York. After a few appearances on both Broadway theatre and television, he went to Hollywood, California, and signed with Universal Pictures. His first major acting role came on the NBC television series "Riverboat" from 1959 to 1960. Besides "Gunsmoke," "Dan August," and "Evening Shade," he went on to appear in many television series during his career, such as "Hawk," "B.L. Stryker," "Out of This World," "My Name Is Earl," and "Hitting the Breaks." He earned a Best Comedy Series Actor Emmy Award for his performance on "Evening Shade" in 1991. His first motion picture appearance came in the 1961 film "Angel Baby." Besides "Deliverance," "The Longest Yard," and "Smokey and the Bandit," he also appeared in such films as "Shamus" in 1973, "Gator" in 1976, "Semi-Tough" in 1977, "Smokey and the Bandit II" in 1980, "The Cannonball Run" in 1981, "Sharky's Machine" in 1981, "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas" in 1982, "Stick" in 1985, "All Dogs Go To Heaven" in 1989 as the voice of Charlie, "Cop and a Half" in 1993, "Striptease" in 1996, "Boogie Nights" in 1997) and "The Longest Yard" in 2005. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, he was Hollywood's top-grossing star. In 1972, he posed nude on a bearskin rug for a "Cosmopolitan" magazine centerfold, and it helped his growing "sex symbol" image. He was married to actresses Judy Carne in 1963 and Loni Anderson in 1988, with both marriages ending in divorce. He and Anderson have an adopted son. He had a long and much-publicized relationship with Emmy Award recipient Dinah Shore. Later in his career, he had business ventures in the food, sports, and television industries.