Date of Birth : Feb 11th 1936
Burt is one of America’s most recognizable film and television personalities. With more than 90 feature film and 300 television episode credits, he was the number-one box-office attraction for five straight years (1978-82) a record no one else has ever achieved, with vehicles like Smokey and the Bandit and The Cannonball Run.
Burton Leon Reynolds, Jr., was born the son of Fern and Burton Reynolds, a police officer. Reynolds’ family lived in several Southern and Midwestern cities during his childhood, before settling in Riviera Beach, Florida. Reynolds thought he was in paradise; he had access to the Everglades to the west, the shore of the Lake Worth Lagoon to the east, and further east, across the Blue Heron Boulevard bridge to Singer Island, the Atlantic Ocean. He was fascinated by the Conch fishermen and their families who made up most of the population of Riviera Beach.
After two years Burt Senior’s contractor job ended, and the Reynolds bought a lunch counter and sundry store next to the bridge to Singer Island. As the business was close to a large dock and some fish and shrimp packing houses, business was good. Soon after, Burt Senior was recruited as a police officer for Riviera Beach. When the police chief died a few years later, Burt Senior became the chief.
When Burt Junior was twelve he became friends with Jimmy Hooks. After learning that Jimmy was being physically abused in his home, Burt Junior took Jimmy home with him and told his parents he wanted Jimmy to be his brother. The Reynolds took Jimmy in. The Reynolds officially adopted Jimmy Hooks years later, when he was in his twenties.