CHARLES DURNING BIOGRAPHY & FILMOGRAPHY:
 
Charles Durning was born on February 28th, 1923 in Highland Falls, New York. He was the second born to a total of five siblings to parents Louise and James Durning.  As a young boy he trained in martial arts and became a professional boxer. for some time.  He also studied classical dance and at one point earned a living teaching dance.
 
He first became involved in the entertainment industry when he worked as an usher at a burlesque house.  When he was sixteen years old he became a singer with a local band and soon began working as a stage actor in Buffalo New York.
 
Durning took a break from pursuing a career as an actor during World War II when he was drafted at the age of twenty one and served overseas with the 3rd Army Support Troops unit.  After suffering a major injury and being sent back to the united States to recover in the hospital he was discharged from the Army and returned back to pursuing a career in acting.  
 
Charles began studying acting at the American Academy of Dramatic Art drama school but was kicked out because the instructors felt he lacked any acting talent. 
 
However, he later proved them wrong when he was cast in a number of small television roles followed by his break through role in a Broadway production, "That Championship Season" (1972).  Soon, director, George Roy Hill took notice of him and cast him in the film, "The Sting" (1973) starring Paul Newman, Robert Redford and Robert Shaw. 
 
Soon more prominent film roles were offered to him such as, "The Front Page" (1974), "Breakheart Pass" (1975) starring Charles Bronson, Richard Crenna, Jill Ireland and Ben Johnson, "The Choirboys" (1977), "The Muppet Movie" (1979), "North Dallas Forty" (1979), "Sharky's Machine" (1981) and "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas" (1982) starring Burt Reynolds and Dolly Parton.
 
Throughout his career he appeared in more then 100 film and television series.  He was also getting roles on numerous television series such as, "Captains and the Kings" (1976) for which he earned an Emmy and Golden Globe nomination for his performance along with appearances on, "Evening Shade" (1999), "Everybody Loves Raymond" (1996), "Monk" (2002), "Rescue Me" (2004) and he received an Emmy nomination for his role as a retired veteran soldier who was previously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor in the hit series, "NCIS" (2004) starring Mark Harmon.
 
Some of his more recent roles have been on, "The Waiter" (2010), "Naked Run" (2011), "The Life Zone" (2011) and soon to release in 2012, "Rogue Assassin".  He has married twice throughout his lifetime, first to a woman by the name of Carol whom he had three children with.  He then married Mary Ann Amelio in 1973, who was his childhood sweetheart and he has two step children.  
 
He received a number of honors for his service during the war.  He became chairman of the US National Salute to Hospitalized Veterans and was a guest speaker at the National Memorial Day Concert for a number of years. 
 
For his work in the industry he has been honored with a total of nine Emmy nominations as well as an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.  He won the Golden Globe Award for the television miniseries, "The Kennedys of Massachusetts" (1990) and in 2008 the Screen actors Guild awarded him a Lifetime Achievement Award.  Charles Durning also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.  

 
Filmography

2012 Rogue Assassin 
2004-2011 Rescue Me 
2011 The Life Zone 
2011 The Great Fight 
2011 Naked Run
2010 An Affirmative Act
2010 The Waiter
2010 No Clean Break 
2010 Three Chris's
1999-2009 Family Guy 
2009 Shannon's Rainbow 
2008 A Bunch of Amateurs
2008 iMurders 
2008 Break 
2008 Deal
2008 Good Dick 
2008 The Golden Boys 
2007 Polycarp 
2007 Monk 
2006 Everwood 
2006 Desperation 
2006 Local Color 
2006 Jesus, Mary and Joey 
2006 Unbeatable Harold 
2006 Miracle Dogs Too 
2006 Descansos 
2006 Forget About It 
2005 Dirty Deeds 
2005 The L.A. Riot Spectacular 
2005 Detective
2005 Resurrection: The J.R. Richard Story
2005 One Last Ride 
2005 River's End 
2004 A Very Married Christmas 
2004 A Boyfriend for Christmas
2004 NCIS
2004 Death and Texas
2003 Touched by an Angel 
2003 Dead Canaries 
2002 Mr. St. Nick 
2002 Mother Ghost
2002 Turn of Faith 
1998-2002 Everybody Loves Raymond 
2002 First Monday 
2002 The Naked Run 
2002 Pride & Loyalty 
2002 The Last Man Club
2001 Citizen Baines
2001 Bleacher Bums 
2001 L.A.P.D.: To Protect and to Serve 
2001 Arli$$ 
2001 The Judge
2000 State and Main 
2000 The Last Producer 
2000 Very Mean Men 
1997-2000 Early Edition 
2000 O Brother, Where Art Thou? 
1999-2000 Now and Again 
2000 Lakeboat 
1998-2000 The Practice
2000 The Hoop Life
2000 Never Look Back
1999 Hard Time: Hostage Hotel
1999 Chicken Soup for the Soul
1999 Justice 
1999 Hard Time: The Premonition 
1998 Hard Time 
1998 A Chance of Snow 
1998 Hi-Life 
1998 Cybill 
1998 Homicide: Life on the Street
1998 Jerry and Tom
1998 Shelter 
1997 Orleans 
1997 The Secret Life of Algernon
1996 One Fine Day
1996 Mrs. Santa Claus 
1996 The Land Before Time IV: Journey Through the Mists 
1996 Recon 
1996 Spy Hard 
1996 Elmo Saves Christmas 
1995 Home for the Holidays 
1995 The Grass Harp 
1995 The Last Supper 
1995 A Woman of Independent Means
1994 I.Q.
1994 Leslie's Folly
1994 Texan 
1994 Roomates
1990-1994 Evening Shade 
1994 The Hudsucker Proxy 
1993 Harlan & Merleen 
1993 When a Stranger Calls Back 
1993 The Music of Chance 
1992 Tales from Hollywood
1992 The Water Engine 
1991 The Story Lady
1991 The Return of Eliot Ness
1991 V.I. Warshawski
1990 Dick Tracy
1990 Fatal Sky 
1990 The Kennedys of Massachusetts
1989 Dinner at Eight
1989 The Butter Battle Book
1989 Cat Chaser 
1989 Prime Target 
1989 Brenda Starr 
1989 Étoile
1989 It Nearly Wasn't Christmas
1988 Unholy Matrimony 
1988 Far North
1988 Case Closed 
1988 Cop
1987 Tall Tales & Legends
1987 The Man Who Broke 1,000 Chains
1987 Hadley's Rebellion
1987 I Would Be Called John: Pope John XXIII
1987 A Tiger's Tale
1987 Happy New Year
1987 The Rosary Murders 
1987 Meatballs III: Summer Job
1987 Kenny Rogers as The Gambler, Part III: The Legend Continues
1986 Solarbabies 
1985-1986 Amazing Stories
1986 Tough Guys 
1986 Where the River Runs Black
1986 Big Trouble 
1985 Stand Alone
1985 Death of a Salesman
1985 The Man with One Red Shoe
1985 Comedy Factory
1985 Stick
1985 Eye to Eye
1984 Mass Appeal
1984 P.O.P. 
1984 Good Evening, He Lied 
1984 Mister Roberts 
1983 To Be or Not to Be
1983 Two of a Kind
1983 Scarface 
1982 Tootsie
1982 The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas
1982 American Playhouse 
1981 Sharky's Machine 
1981 Dark Night of the Scarecrow
1981 True Confessions 
1981 The Girls in Their Summer Dresses and Other Stories by Irwin Shaw 
1981 The Best Little Girl in the World 
1975-1981 Hallmark Hall of Fame 
1981 Crisis at Central High 
1980 A Perfect Match 
1980 The Final Countdown 
1980 Die Laughing 
1980 Attica
1979 When a Stranger Calls 
1979 Starting Over 
1979 North Dallas Forty 
1979 The Muppet Movie 
1979 Tilt 
1979 Studs Lonigan 
1978 The Greek Tycoon 
1978 An Enemy of the People
1978 The Fury 
1978 Special Olympics
1977 The Choirboys 
1977 Visions 
1977 Twilight's Last Gleaming 
1976 Captains and the Kings 
1976 Harry and Walter Go to New York 
1975-1976 The Cop and the Kid
1976 The Ashes of Mrs. Reasoner
1975 The Hindenburg 
1975 Breakheart Pass
1975 Hawaii Five-O
1975 Baretta 
1975 Dog Day Afternoon 
1975 Barnaby Jones 
1975 Cannon 
1975 Switch 
1975 Queen of the Stardust Ballroom 
1975 The Trial of Chaplain Jensen 
1974 The Front Page 
1973 The Sting 
1973 Rx for the Defense 
1973 Sisters 
1973 All in the Family 
1973 The Connection 
1972 Another World 
1972 Madigan
1972 Doomsday Voyage
1972 Dealing: Or the Berkeley-to-Boston Forty-Brick Lost-Bag Blues 
1972 Look Homeward, Angel
1972 Deadhead Miles
1971 The Pursuit of Happiness 
1970 I Walk the Line 
1970 Hi, Mom! 
1970 The High Chaparral
1969 Stiletto 
1967-1968 N.Y.P.D. 
1965 Harvey Middleman, Fireman
1965 The Doctors and the Nurses 
1963 East Side/West Side 
1962 The Password Is Courage
1953 You Are There