Freddie Dalton "Fred" Thompson (August 19, 1942 – November 1, 2015) was an American politician, actor, attorney, lobbyist, columnist, and radio host. Thompson, a Republican, served in the United States Senate representing Tennessee from 1994 to 2003.

This guy got around, and I always enjoyed him on the screen.

R.I.P., Fred.

Fred Thompson: I was in Die Hard.
Homer: Die Hard 2!

Lot of good shows.

90 Minutes in Heaven - Jay B. Perkins
A Larger Life - Robert Parker
Allegiance (TV Series) - FBI Director
Unlimited - Harold Finch
23 Blast - Coach Powers
Persecuted - Dr. Charles Luther
The Last Ride - O'Keefe
The Good Wife (TV Series) - Frank Michael Thomas
Sinister - Sheriff
Alleged - William Jennings Bryan
Secretariat- Bull Hancock
The Genesis Code - Judge Hardin
Ironmen - Governor Neeley
Life on Mars (TV Series) - Chief Harry Woolf
Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee (TV Movie) - President Ulysses S. Grant
Law & Order (TV Series) - D.A. Arthur Branch
Conviction (TV Series) - D.A. Arthur Branch
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (TV Series) - D.A. Arthur Branch
Law & Order: Trial by Jury (TV Series)- D.A. Arthur Branch
Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World - Himself
Law & Order: Criminal Intent (TV Series) - D.A. Arthur Branch
Last Best Chance (Video) - President Charles Ross
Racing Stripes - Sir Trenton (voice)
Evel Knievel (TV Movie) - Jay Sarno
Rachel and Andrew Jackson: A Love Story (TV Movie) - Andrew Jackson (voice)
Sex and the City (TV Series) - Politician on TV
Politically Erect (2000) - Politician on TV (uncredited)
Baby's Day Out - FBI Agent Dale Grissom
In the Line of Fire - Harry Sargent
Born Yesterday - Sen. Hedges
Barbarians at the Gate (TV Movie) - Jim Robinson
Matlock (TV Series) - Gordon Lewis / Prosecutor Mr. McGonigal
Keep The Change - Otis
Day-O (TV Movie) - Frank DeGeorgio
Stay the Night (TV Movie) - Det. Malone
White Sands - Arms Dealer (uncredited)
Thunderheart - William Dawes
Bed of Lies (TV Movie) - Richard 'Racehorse' Haynes
Aces: Iron Eagle III - Stockman
Cape Fear - Tom Broadbent
Curly Sue - Bernard Oxbar
Necessary Roughness - Carver Purcell
Class Action - Dr. Getchell
Flight of the Intruder - Court-Martial Captain (uncredited)
Die Hard 2 - Trudeau
Days of Thunder - Big John
The Hunt for Red October - Admiral Painter
Fat Man and Little Boy - Maj. Gen. Melrose Hayden Barry
Roseanne (TV Series) - Keith Faber
China Beach (TV Series) - Lt. Col. Reinhardt
Wiseguy (TV Series) - Knox Pooley
Feds - Bill Bilecki
Unholy Matrimony (TV Movie) - Frank Sweeny
No Way Out - Marshall

Thanks, Fred.

RIP.

That's a huge list of work I've never seen.

RIP.

You've seen none of it?

Well, I did see The Hunt for Red October, and I did see Fat Man and Little Boy...but I can't say that I recall his performances in those. And I have seen some episodes of Roseanne...but I don't know what a "Keith Faber" would be.

All of the other things on that list are things I have not watched.

Admiral on the aircraft carrier where Ryan went before stripping down a helicopter into naught more than a flying gas can to get far enough north to reach the Dallas submarine - that had already found the Red October.

A rival general complaining to General Groves about shortages on materials (particularly rubber tires) to his division, or whatever - he rolled a worn out truck tire into Grove's office to show him how bad it was and what they were being forced to use - Groves replied they needed the product more (didn't mention the Manhattan project, of course, since it was top secret - Fred said when the war was over there would be an accounting - a sort of threat that if what Groves was working on wasn't worth it, there'd be hell to pay.

Some factory owner/manager - not too concerned with the workers, like Roseanne - and she led them out on strike.

He was always popping up - the main DA in Law and Order - I watched all of those, the airport chief (or head guy) in Die Hard 2, a dozen others that I saw - but even for me, most of those I didn't see.

He had a good commanding presence. You could really believe he was a senator or a lawyer or a leader. Oh yeah - he was all of those.

I'm sorry he's gone. 72 - not too old for an actor and plenty of roles for the elderly statesman or wise legal councils, etc. He will be missed.

He made Jack Ryan more heroic just by association. His small retort to the butler from The Nanny/Moriarity from STTNG about Jack Ryan deserving to wear the naval officer uniform... One of the best scenes in the film.

Get a reverse mortgage in his memory.

Yep those commercials ran a lot around here the last few years.

It won't be the first movie people think of when they look at his long line of work, but one of Fred Thompson's last movies was pretty good. He played the sheriff in Sinister.

If I had to sum up Thompson's acting in a nutshell, he added gravity and realism to plots that otherwise might have been ridiculous. You could believe this guy really was an admiral, a cop, or an airport manager. HIs presence often made it a lot easier to suspend your disbelief in movies like Die Hard 2.

Anyway, he will be missed.

He would've made a great Perry White.