Beau Bridges, (born Lloyd Vernet Bridges III on December 9, 1941 in Los Angeles, California), is an American actor. He is the son of actor Lloyd Bridges and his college sweetheart, Dorothy Dean Simpson. He was nicknamed "Beau" by his mother and father after Ashley Wilkes' son in Gone with the Wind, the title of the book they were reading at the time. Bridges is also the older brother of actor Jeff Bridges, born in 1949. Their sister Cindy was born in 1950. In 1989, he starred opposite his brother in perhaps his best known role, as one of The Fabulous Baker Boys.
In 1949, Bridges played a secondary juvenile role in the movie The Red Pony. Wanting to be a basketball star, however, he played his freshman year at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and later transferred to the University of Hawaii. Realizing his height was holding him back from excelling in basketball, however, he dropped out of school to continue acting instead.
Bridges enjoys playing guitar (as does his brother), collects Native American percussion instruments, loves the ocean (as well as swimming and surfing), and is also active in handgun control and environmental protection .
After the release of the 1989 movie The Wizard, Beau earned the nickname "Bumblin' Beau Bridges" due to his character's constant bumbling throughout the film.
In 1995, Bridges starred in the first ever two-part episode of the new series of Outer Limits. In 1998, he starred as Judge Bob Gibbs in the one-season Maximum Bob on the ABC. He had a recurring role in the Showtime series Beggars and Choosers (1999-2000).
In 2001, he guest-starred as Daniel McFarland, the stepfather of Jack McFarland, in two episodes of the NBC sitcom Will & Grace. From 2002 to 2003, he took on the role of Senator Tom Gage, newly-appointed Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, in over 30 episodes of the drama series The Agency. In January 2005, he was cast as Major General Hank Landry, the new commander of Stargate Command in Stargate SG-1. He has also played the character in four episodes of the spin-off series Stargate Atlantis.
In November 2005, he guest-starred as Carl Hickey, the father of the title character in the hit NBC Comedy My Name Is Earl. Bridges' character has since become recurring. Bridges received a 2007 Emmy Award nomination for his performance.
