Everything about Charles Durning totally explained
Charles Durning (born
February 28,
1923) is an
American actor of stage and screen.
Biography
Early life
Durning was born in
Highland Falls,
New York, the son of Louise and James Durning. He was raised in an impoverished family, and left his home as soon as possible to ease the financial pressure on his mother.
Military service
Durning served as a soldier in
World War II, during which he was awarded a
Silver Star, three
Purple Heart medals, and a Good Conduct Medal. He was drafted into the
U.S. Army at the age of 21, and landed on
D-Day in the
Normandy Invasion on
June 6,
1944. Some sources state he was in the
1st Infantry Division at the time, but it's unclear if he was a rifleman or in an artillery unit by 1944.
» On
Omaha Beach itself, Pvt. Charles Durning was among the first troops to land. Drafted early in the war, he was first assigned as a rifleman with the 398th Infantry Regiment, but later served overseas with the
3rd Army Support troops and the 386th Anti-aircraft Artillery (AAA) Battalion.
» Durning was wounded by an
“S” Mine on
June 15,
1944, at Les Mare des Mares. He was transported by the 499th Medical Collection Company to the 24th Evacuation Hospital. By
June 17, he was back in England at the 217th General Hospital. Although severely wounded by shrapnel in the left and right thigh, right hand, the frontal region of the head and the interior left chest wall, Durning recovered quickly and was determined to be “fit for duty” on
December 6,
1944. Durning was present for the
Battle of the Bulge, the German counter-offensive in December 1944.
He was taken prisoner during the Battle of the Bulge, and was one of the few survivors of the infamous
Malmedy massacre of American
POWs, perpetrated by a battlegroup under
Joachim Peiper of the
1st SS Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler. "He escaped with two others, and returned to find the remainder murdered." The real truth of the incident only becomes known for certain when the guilt-stricken veteran goes through a
cathartic reliving of the battlefield events.
Durning is well-known for participating in various functions to honor American veterans. He was the chairman one year of the U.S. National Salute to Hospitalized Veterans.
Film career
Durning's breakthrough film performance was in the
1973 Best Picture,
The Sting. In the film, Durning plays a corrupt policeman, Lieutenant Snyder, who polices and hustles professional
con artists. He doggedly pursues the young grifter Johnny Hooker (
Robert Redford), only to become the griftee in the end. Since then he's amassed over 100 film and TV credits, including
Queen of the Stardust Ballroom,
Dog Day Afternoon (with
Al Pacino), the sci-fi classic
The Final Countdown, and
The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. In
1979, he played Doc Hopper, the main villain in
The Muppet Movie. In
Tootsie he plays a suitor to a cross-dressing
Dustin Hoffman. The two actors worked together again in a
1985 TV production of
Death of a Salesman. In 1993, Durning guest starred in the
Sean Penn-directed music video for "
Dance with the One That Brought You" by
Shania Twain.
More recently he's played a benevolent father to
Holly Hunter in
Home for the Holidays (1995), a savvy southern state governor (
"Pappy" O'Daniel) in
O Brother, Where Art Thou, and as Victor Rasdale in
Dirty Deeds. In 1996 he played Lew in the romantic comedy
One Fine Day and
Santa Claus in the Sesame Street home video "
Elmo Saves Christmas". He played town doctor Harlan Eldridge on the
Burt Reynolds sitcom
Evening Shade (
1990-
1994). He subsequently had a
recurring role on
Everybody Loves Raymond (
1996 –
2005) as the Barone family's long-suffering parish priest, Father Hubley. He also played the voice of recurring character
Francis Griffin in the animated series
Family Guy until the episode
Peter's Two Dads where the character died.
For his roles on television, Durning has earned eight
Emmy Award nominations. He has also received
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor nominations for
The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas in 1982 and for
To Be or Not to Be in 1983. He won a Golden Globe in 1990 for his supporting role in the television miniseries
The Kennedys of Massachusetts.
He can currently be seen on the
FX television series
Rescue Me, playing Mike Gavin, the retired firefighter father of
Denis Leary's character. The character died in the Season 4 finale. His daughter Jeanine Durning is a well known New York-based modern dance performer and choreographer.
Charles Durning was honored with the Life Achievement Award at the 14th Annual
Screen Actors Guild Award Ceremony on
January 27, 2008.
Filmography
Further Information
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