# RIP Dennis Burkley (king of the Big Redneck What's-His-Name Actors) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 16, 2013, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697 "2013-07-16T20:44:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2013, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697/1 "2013-07-16T20:44:55Z")
You may not know the name Dennis Burkley, but you know him and you know his voice. He was huge: over 6’0 tall and usually well [over 300 pounds](http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20121027200506/sanfordandson/images/f/f3/Dennis_Burkey_Sanford.jpg), usually with a scruffy beard, though the last few times I saw him he’d [slimmed down](http://www.dennisburkley.com/index.1.jpg)considerably. His two best known roles may be as Cal on the shortlived Sanford & Son spinoff Sanford and as the speech impaired biker Dozer in _Mask_, and he voiced the principal and other characters on _King of the Hill_. [Dead at 67, natural causes](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/actor-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-hill-585754). RIP, big guy. ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2013, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697/2 "2013-07-16T20:50:54Z")
I did not know the name but as soon as you started describing him I knew who you meant. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2013, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697/3 "2013-07-16T20:52:54Z")
According to his obit he’d been an acting teacher in L.A. for a few years. It’s always interesting to learn such tidbits about performers who are so recognizable but almost unknown. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2013, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697/4 "2013-07-16T20:58:56Z")
I know who he was. Many, many roles playing big guys. Sad to hear of his passing. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2013, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697/5 "2013-07-16T21:27:40Z")
Biker “Animal” on _ **The Rockford Files** _. Pity. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2013, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697/6 "2013-07-16T21:43:11Z")
I didn’t recognise him, but I have seen a few things he’s been in. I thought these sequential films on his IMDb page were amusing: \*\*Pauly Shore Is Dead Wish You Were Dead \*\* ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2013, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697/7 "2013-07-16T22:36:27Z")
He was also the butt of a lot of fat jokes in Redd Foxx’s short-lived “Sanford,” the successor series to “Sanford and Son.” ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2013, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697/8 "2013-07-16T22:52:15Z")
Sounds like he was a cool guy. I liked the scene in Mask where the other bikers “compelled” his character to give blood. Looks like he had a long running marriage, for Hollywood. Forty-six years, they were in it for the long haul. ---
**Author:** ![installLSC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/54ee81/32.png) [@installLSC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/installLSC)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2013, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697/9 "2013-07-17T00:31:07Z")
> [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](#): > > He was also the butt of a lot of fat jokes in Redd Foxx’s short-lived “Sanford,” the successor series to “Sanford and Son.” In the 90s, BET used to run reruns of that show mixed with “Sanford and Son” reruns. So I always assumed until today that those were episodes of “Sanford and Son”. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2013, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697/10 "2013-07-17T12:16:12Z")
Man, that guy was in everything. You’d see him in Dukes of Hazard, Home Improvement, The Master… Any time they needed a big furry biker for a sitcom, it was, “Call that one guy…” ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2013, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697/11 "2013-07-17T14:50:55Z")
> [@Hypno-Toad](#): > > Man, that guy was in everything. You’d see him in Dukes of Hazard, Home Improvement, The Master… Any time they needed a big furry biker for a sitcom, it was, “Call that one guy…” What was great about his career is that you’d see him on a low rated sitcom (like _Evening Shade_) one week and in a major big budget motion picture (like _The Doors_) the next week. I’ve wondered what kind of living actors like that make; I would guess his career earnings were probably greater than many bigger name actors whose careers fizzled. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2013, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697/12 "2013-07-17T15:12:58Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > What was great about his career is that you’d see him on a low rated sitcom (like _Evening Shade_) one week and in a major big budget motion picture (like _The Doors_) the next week. I’ve wondered what kind of living actors like that make; I would guess his career earnings were probably greater than many bigger name actors whose careers fizzled. Depends on the deals he got, but I think you’re right. He was obviously one of those guys they love in Hollywood, shows up on time, knows his lines, doesn’t cause trouble on the set. His IMDB page is lengthy, it goes back to 1972. A lot of small parts, but not many actors work that steadily over a career. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2013, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697/13 "2013-07-17T16:02:53Z")
I’ll never forget is pivotal performance in “Laserblast.” ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2013, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697/14 "2013-07-17T16:12:48Z")
He had a great role in Tin Cup as Earl. Huffing and wheezing carrying Roy McAvoy’s golf clubs he says, “I’m an observer by nature.” RIP Earl. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2013, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697/15 "2013-07-17T16:51:22Z")
I was thinking he was the big guy on the K&B Construction Crew from _Home Improvement_, but I see I was mistaken. ---
**Author:** ![Kimballkid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5a626/32.png) [@Kimballkid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimballkid)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2013, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697/16 "2013-07-17T18:15:50Z")
That was [Mickey Jones](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mickey_Jones) who is also a drummer in real life and was in the First Edition with Kenny Rogers. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2013, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-dennis-burkley-king-of-the-big-redneck-whats-his-name-actors/663697/17 "2013-07-17T19:27:39Z")
Well, I could be conflating a lot of my memories of Dennis and Mickey, then.