Fred Dalton Thompson (born Freddie Dalton Thompson; August 19 1942) is an American politician, lawyer, lobbyist and character actor. He represented Tennessee as a Republican in the U.S. Senate from 1994 through 2002 and was a candidate for the 2008 Republican nomination for President of the United States until he withdrew from the race on January 22 2008.
Thompson served as chairman of the International Security Advisory Board at the United States Department of State, is a member of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and is a Visiting Fellow with the American Enterprise Institute, specializing in national security and intelligence. He resides in McLean, Virginia, near Washington, D.C.
As an actor, Thompson has performed in film and on television. He has frequently portrayed governmental figures. In the final months of his U.S. Senate term in 2002, Thompson joined the cast of the long-running NBC television series Law & Order, playing New York City District Attorney Arthur Branch, until he asked to be released from his contract in May 2007. The network granted his request.
Frederick "Fred" Houghton Thompson (March 30, 1910 - 1971) was a New Zealand rower. He won a silver medal at the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles in the coxless pairs with partner Cyril Stiles. He also won two medals in the eights at the Empire Games, silver in 1930 at Hamilton and bronze in 1938 at Sydney .
