Beau Bridges

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Lloyd Vernet "Beau" Bridges III (born December 9, 1941) is an American actor and director.

Early life and career

Bridges was born in Los Angeles, the son of actor Lloyd Bridges and his college sweetheart, Dorothy Bridges He was nicknamed "Beau" by his mother and father after Ashley Wilkes's son in Gone with the Wind, the book they were reading at the time. He has one younger brother, Jeff – who is an Oscar-winning film actor – and one younger sister, Lucinda. His brother Garrett died in childhood of sudden infant death syndrome on August 3, 1948. He has shared a close relationship with Jeff, to whom he acted as a de facto father during his earlier life when their father was busy with work. He and his siblings were raised in the Holmby Hills section of Los Angeles. In 1989, he starred opposite his brother in perhaps his best known role, as one of The Fabulous Baker Boys.

In 1949, Bridges played a secondary juvenile role in the movie The Red Pony. Wanting to be a basketball star, however, he played in his freshman year at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and later transferred to the University of Hawaii. He enlisted in the US Coast Guard in 1959 and also served for eight years in the Coast Guard Reserve.

In the 1962–1963 television season, Bridges, along with his brother, Jeff, appeared on their father's CBS anthology series, The Lloyd Bridges Show. In 1965 he guest-starred as Corporal Corbett in second season episode 3, "Then Came The Mighty Hunter" of 12 O-Clock High (TV series).

In the 1993–1994 television season, Bridges appeared again with his father in the 15-episode CBS comedy/western series, Harts of the West, set at a dude ranch in Nevada. The cast also included Harley Jane Kozak as Beau's wife, Alison Hart, and Sean Murray as older son Zane Grey Hart.

In 1995, Bridges starred with his father Lloyd and son Dylan in the two-part pilot episode of the Showtime science fiction series, The Outer Limits titled The Sandkings. In 1998, he starred as Judge Bob Gibbs in the one-season Maximum Bob on ABC. He had a recurring role in the Showtime series Beggars and Choosers (1999–2000).

In 2001, he guest-starred as Daniel McFarland, the stepfather of Jack McFarland, in two episodes of the NBC sitcom Will & Grace. He also played a single father and college professor in the fantasy adventure film, Voyage of the Unicorn based on the novel by James C. Christensen.

From 2002 to 2003, he took on the role of Senator Tom Gage, newly appointed Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, in over 30 episodes of the drama series The Agency. In January 2005, he was cast as Major General Hank Landry, the new commander of Stargate Command in Stargate SG-1. That same character, played by him, appears also in five episodes of the spin-off series Stargate Atlantis.

In November 2005, he guest-starred as Carl Hickey, the father of the title character in the hit NBC Comedy My Name Is Earl. Bridges's character has since become recurring. Bridges received a 2007 Emmy Award nomination for his performance.

In 2008, Bridges starred in the motion picture Max Payne, based on the video game-character. The film also starred Mark Wahlberg and Mila Kunis. Bridges portrayed "BB" Hensley, an ex-cop who aides Wahlberg on his quest to bring down a serial killer. The film got mixed reviews, but Bridges participation was noted for being a positive one.

On February 8, 2009, he won a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album. He, along with Cynthia Nixon and Blair Underwood, read Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth.

In 2009, he guest-starred as Eli Scruggs on the 100th episode of Desperate Housewives and received an Emmy Award nomination for his performance.

2010 Bridges has signed on with Chris Mallick in the production of their upcoming movie Columbus Circle.

On March 19, 2010, it was announced Bridges would play the role of Joseph 'Rocky' Rockford, the father of private eye Jim Rockford, in the pilot episode of a new version of The Rockford Files, scheduled for production for broadcast in fall 2010. In 2011 he guest-starred as an old boyfriend of matriarch Nora Walker in Brothers and Sisters.

Personal life

Bridges married Julie Landfield in 1964. They divorced in 1984. They have two sons:

Casey Bridges (b. 1969, adopted)

Jordan Bridges (b. 1973)

Soon after the divorce in 1984, he married Wendy Treece. The couple has three children:

Dylan Bridges (b. 1984)

Emily Bridges (b. 1986)

Ezekiel (Zeke) Jeffrey Bridges (b. 1993)

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