Name: Carroll O'Connor
Date of Birth: 2 August 1924 Had completed part of his undergraduate studies at the University of Montana before returning to earn a master's degree in speech in 1956. While attending University of Montana, O'Connor was an associate editor for the college newspaper, the Kaimin. In 1949, he resigned his editing position in protest to the pressure from the campus administration that lead to confiscation and destruction of an issue of the paper, which carried a cartoon depicting the Montana Board of Education as rats gnawing at a bag of university funds. ... In 1997, he and his wife, also a University of Montana graduate, donated $1 million to the University of Montana's Center for the Rocky Mountain West, a regional studies and public policy institute. The Center was renamed "Carroll and Nancy Fields O'Connor Center for the Rocky Mountain West" in September of 1997. Spent some time at the Juilliard School of Fine Arts as an acting and dialogue professor. Earned a reported $250,000 a week for "All in the Family" in 1980. Father of Hugh O'Connor. His favorite expressions on "All in the Family" (1971) were "Dingbat" and "Stifle" to his wife, Edith, and "Meathead" to his son-in-law, Michael. Attended college in Ireland and began his career on the stage, playing in Dublin, London and Paris before making his Broadway debut in 1958. Lost his restaurant in the Northridge earthquake. [17 January 1994] He was instrumental in the passage of the Drug Dealers Civil Liability Act in California. The Act states that citizens can sue drug dealers whom they feel are responsible for the drug-related deaths of family members. The Act came about as a result of his son's drug-related suicide. He and "All in the Family" (1971) creator Norman Lear are not speaking to one another because O'Connor wants to reprise his "Archie Bunker" character, while Lear does not. He was sued for slander and invasion of privacy by the man he accused of being an accessory to his son's suicide, by supplying his son with drugs. O'Connor won the lawsuit. Auditioned for the role of The Skipper on "Gilligan's Island" (1964). Said that he came up with the address for the Bunker family residence (704 Hauser Street) when he was driving to work in L.A. He happened to find himself on Hauser Blvd (few blocks from CBS TV City) and thought the name sounded like part of Queens, New York where Archie was supposed to live. In the early 1950s, while trying to launch his acting career, he worked as a substitute high school English teacher in order to pay the rent. He met his wife, Nancy, while both were performing in the play "Life with Father" at the University of Montana. Was fluent in Italian. He passed away on the same day that blues legend, John Lee Hooker did. Coincidentally, their stars are right next to one another on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Mickey Rooney was Norman Lear's first choice to play Archie in the pilot of "All in the Family" (1971). Rooney had reservations about the character, so he refused. Was a brother of the Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity Was so displeased with CBS's axing of "Archie Bunker's Place" (1979) in 1983, without a chance to film an actual series finale, that he vowed to never work for the network again. (Nonetheless, his late-1980s NBC series, "In the Heat of the Night" (1988) later moved to CBS in 1992.) Performed the "Archie Bunker" role for a remarkable 12 years and 307 episodes ("All in the Family" (1971) and "Archie Bunker's Place" (1979)). Passed away 37 days before what would have been his golden wedding anniversary with Nancy Fields. Archie Bunker, O'Connor's character on "All in the Family" (1971), was ranked #24 in TV Guide's list of the "50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time" [20 June 2004 issue]. His only son, Hugh O'Connor, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, despondent over the disintegration of his life resulting from his long term drug addiction. He was speaking with his father on the phone at the time. O'Connor did a public service announcement shortly before his death about the perils of drug abuse. In real life, he was the total opposite of his "Archie Bunker" character. In fact, his "All in the Family" (1971) co-star Rob Reiner once remarked that O'Connor was even more liberal than Reiner himself. As executive producer of "In the Heat of the Night" (1988), he often asked longtime friends and musicians to guest-star. Two of his favorites were Miss Jean Simmons and Bobby Short. He gave long-time friend, Lois Nettleton, a significant recurring role in the first few seasons. He was a 33rd Degree Master Free Mason Has one grandson, Sean Carroll O'Connor. He adopted his only child, Hugh, while in Rome filming Cleopatra (1963). He named him after his own brother, who was killed years before in a motorcycle accident. His son, Hugh, died on what would have been his third wedding anniversary. He was in the process of reconciling with his wife at the time of his death. Attended Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, NC for at least one semester prior to enrolling at University of Montana. Best remembered by the public for his starring role as Archie Bunker in All in the Family (1971). Listed as #20 on TV Land's Top 50 TV Icons Countdown. He beat out Alan Alda, George Clooney, Matthew J. Fox, and Kermit the Frog. Underwent heart bypass surgery in 1989 and angioplasty to prevent a stroke in 1998. Read more Carroll O'Connor movies (actor)User Comments |
