Carroll O'Connor

Carroll O'Connor (August 2, 1924 - June 21, 2001) was an American actor, most famous for his portrayal of the character Archie Bunker in the television sitcoms "All in the Family" (1971-1979) and "Archie Bunker's Place" (1979-1983). O'Connor later starred in the television series "In the Heat of the Night" as Police Chief Bill Gillespie from 1988 to 1994. O'Connor's many film roles include "Lonely Are The Brave", "Cleopatra", "In Harm's Way", "Hawaii", "The Devil's Brigade", and "Kelly's Heroes". O'Connor also appeared on episodes of many popular television series such as "Gunsmoke", "I Spy", "The Fugitive" and "The Wild Wild West".

O'Connor's own politics were liberal, but he understood the Bunker character and played him not only with bombast and humor, but with touches of vulnerability. The writing on the show was consistently left of center, but O'Connor often deftly skewered the liberal pieties of the day. Although Bunker was famous for his malapropisms of the English language, O'Connor was highly educated and cultured. In fact, he was an English teacher before turning to acting. In the late 1990s, O'Connor taught screenwriting at the University of Montana, where he attended college in his earlier years. In March 2000, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and was given a St. Patrick's Day tribute by MGM.

Source: Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carroll_O'Connor