Charles Durning

Charles Durning was a U.S. actor whose career encompassed stage, screen, and television, as well as service as a WWII veteran and work as a dance instructor. He did not begin acting in front of the camera until his early forties, but quickly became a reliable and in-demand supporting actor in Hollywood. Born in Highland Falls, New York, to Louise Marie (Leonard), a laundress, and James Gerald Durning, an Irish immigrant, Durning began his career with guest appearances on 1960s television shows. He took on minor roles for the next decade before gaining wider recognition as the sneering, corrupt cop "Lt. Snyder" in *The Sting* (1973), a multi-award-winning box office hit co-starring Robert Redford. He appeared in *The Front Page* (1974), a Billy Wilder production, and supported Charles Bronson in the western *Breakheart Pass* (1975). He also appeared in *The Choirboys* (1977), playing "Spermwhale Whalen." Durning was equally at home in comedic roles, portraying "Doc Hopper" in *The Muppet Movie* (1979), a feisty football coach in *North Dallas Forty* (1979), a tense police officer in *Sharky's Machine* (1981), and a dancing governor in *The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas* (1982), co-starring Burt Reynolds. He continued his on-screen collaboration with Reynolds in several other films and appeared as "Dr. Harlan Elldridge" in the popular TV series *Evening Shade* (1990). Durning remained active in television, guest-starring in *Everybody Loves Raymond* (1996), *Monk* (2002), and *Rescue Me* (2004), and portrayed "Santa Claus" in five different TV movies.