Ken Swofford

Kenneth C. Swofford
Born	July 25, 1933 Du Quoin, Illinois, U.S.
Occupation	Actor, voice actor, script writer
Years active	1962–2004
Spouse(s)	Barbee Biggs (1958–?)

Ken Swofford (born July 25, 1933) is an American film and television actor often cast as "everyman", villains, or policemen.

Between 1962 and 1995, Swofford's film credits included Thelma and Louise, Skyjacked, Black Roses and The Andromeda Strain, while his TV career during the same period was prolific. He appeared on such television series as Fame, Switch, The Oregon Trail, Rich Man, Poor Man Book II, Murder, She Wrote, and as a cast member of the mystery series Ellery Queen.

Life and career

Born to Howard and Goldie Swofford on July 25, 1933, Ken Swofford graduated from Southern Illinois University (Carbondale) in 1959 with a BS in theater.^[1]

In an interview in 1976, Swofford described the advantages of a career as an actor as spending more time with his children and having the freedom to do any job. “If you're an actor, you can do anything. I have cleaned carpets, painted houses, worked on loading docks. It didn't bother me, because I could always act and enjoy myself.”^[2]

He met and married Barbee Biggs in summer stock in 1958; the couple have children. In a Los Angeles Times interview in 1985 titled “Autistic Youth Thrives in Large, Loving Family”, the Swoffords discussed bringing up their autistic son Brendan at home.^[3]

In 1989, Swofford was convicted of felony drunk driving and sentenced to 28 months in prison,^[4] after which he made a comeback and continued to work steadily until his apparently self-imposed retirement in 1995.^[5] In 2001, he supplied the voice of the coach in Recess: School's Out, and played Officer White in Teacher's Pet (2004), which was his last role before retiring permanently.

Filmography

• First to Fight (1967)
• The Lawyer (1970)
• The Andromeda Strain (1970)
• Bless the Beasts and Children (1971)
• Skyjacked (1972)
• One Little Indian (1973)
• The Black Bird (1975)
• The Domino Principle (1977)
• S.O.B. (1981)
• Annie (1982)
• Bridge Across Time (1985)
• The Stepford Children (1987)
• Thelma & Louise (1991)
• The Taking of Beverly Hills (1991)

Selected TV appearances

The A-Team Adam-12 New Adam-12 Battlestar Galactica Baywatch The Big Valley Cimarron Strip Columbo: Candidate for Crime Daniel Boone Diagnosis Murder Dynasty (3 ep.) The Eddie Capra Mysteries (regular cast) Ellery Queen The F.B.I. Falcon Crest Fantasy Island Gunsmoke (10 ep.) Hardcastle & McCormick

Here Come the Brides The Highwayman Highway to Heaven How the West Was Won I Spy The Incredible Hulk Knight Rider Knots Landing Kung Fu Mancuso, FBI Matlock Max Headroom Mission: Impossible Murder, She Wrote (3 ep.) Murphy's Law The Odd Couple Ohara

Our House Paper Moon The Partridge Family Petrocelli Police Story (3 ep.) Remington Steele The Rockford Files (5 ep.) The Rookies Trapper John, M.D. Scarecrow and Mrs. King Simon & Simon The Six Million Dollar Man The Streets of San Francisco Surf Side 6 The Virginian Walking Tall The Waltons

References

1. "Department of Theater: List of Theater Department Alums, 2009-1958". Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois University. Retrieved May 28, 2012.
2. Eugene Register - Guard, June 20, 1976, from "TV Key"|
3. Tia Gindick, Los Angeles Times, July 28, 1985; "Autistic Youth Trives in Large, Loving Family"]; accessed April 3, 2015.
4. Carlos V. Lozano. "'Fame' Actor Gets 28-Month Sentence for Driving Drunk", Los Angeles Times, June 14, 1989.
5. hollywood.com Profile, hollywood.com; accessed April 3, 2015.

External links

• Ken Swofford at the Internet Movie Database