That’s a Wrap for Reynolds

This sad news comes from The Hollywood Reporter:

Burt Reynolds, the charismatic star of such films as Deliverance, The Longest Yard and Smokey and the Bandit who set out to have as much fun as possible on and off the screen—and wildly succeeded—has died. He was 82.

Reynolds, who received an Oscar nomination when he portrayed porn director Jack Horner in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Boogie Nights (1997) and was the No. 1 box-office attraction for a five-year stretch starting in the late 1970s, died Thursday morning at Jupiter Medical Center in Florida, his manager, Erik Kritzer, told The Hollywood Reporter.

Always with a wink, Reynolds shined in many action films (often doing his own stunts) and in such romantic comedies as Starting Over (1979) opposite Jill Clayburgh and Candice Bergen; The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982) with Dolly Parton; Best Friends (1982) with Goldie Hawn; and, quite aptly, The Man Who Loved Women (1983) with Julie Andrews.

Reynolds’ on-screen crime-fiction credentials were also solid. Following guest roles on early TV series such as M Squad, Michael Shayne, and Perry Mason, he starred in the short-lived, 1966 ABC-TV series Hawk, cast as “a full-blooded Iroquois working the streets of New York City as a special detective for the city’s District Attorney’s office,” to quote from Wikipedia. Four years later, he had slightly more success as the eponymous star of Dan August (1970-1971), playing a California police homicide detective. Not until 1989 did he again sign on for a small-screen crime drama, this time in the role of a Palm Beach, Florida, private eye in B.L. Stryker (1989-1990), one of three shows broadcast under the banner of The ABC Mystery Movie.

In the way of crime and thriller films, Reynolds is destined to be remembered not only for Deliverance, but for his roles in 1972’s Fuzz, 1973’s Shamus (in which he played pool hustler-turned-New York private eye Shamus McCoy), 1975’s Lucky Lady and Hustle, 1981’s Sharky’s Machine, 1985’s Stick, 1986’s Heat, 1987’s Malone, and 1996’s Striptease, among others. The Spy Command notes this morning that “In the ’70s, Reynolds’ name came up as a possible James Bond. Director Guy Hamilton was keen on the idea after seeing the actor on television. But nothing came of it.”

The Internet Movie Database offers a long list of Reynolds’ credits.

READ MORE: “Burt Reynolds, Self-Mocking Hollywood Heartthrob, Dies at 82,” by Ralph Blumenthal (The New York Times); “Burt Reynolds, Swaggering Star Actor, Has Died at 82,” by Bob Mondello (NPR); “Appreciation: So Long, Bandit. They Just Don’t Make ’Em Like Burt Reynolds Anymore,” by Chris Erskine (Los Angeles Times); “Six Performances That Explain Burt Reynolds” (Vox); “The Late Great Burt Reynolds,” by Terence Towles Canote (A Shroud of Thoughts).