Sorrell Booke - Biography

Sorrell Booke (January 4, 1930 – February 11, 1994) was an American actor who performed on stage, screen, and television. He is best known for his role as the heavyset, corrupt politician "Boss" Hogg in the television show The Dukes of Hazzard.

Early life

Booke was born in Buffalo, New York, a cousin of Max Yasgur of Woodstock fame. Fluent in five languages (including Japanese), Booke earned degrees from both Columbia and Yale Universities, and later served in the Korean War as a counterintelligence officer.

Career

During his early Hollywood acting career, Booke gained acclaim for notable supporting parts in noteworthy 1960s films such as Black Like Me, A Fine Madness, and Fail-Safe. In 1962, he was in Fiorello! and starred as the namesake's character. In 1965 he co-starred as Sgt. Herschel Aronson in episode 19 "Faith, Hope, and Sergeant Aronson" of 12 O-Clock High. However, he began focusing primarily on television roles in the 1970s and 1980s, and voice acting roles in the 1980s and early 1990s. Booke also once conducted the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra.

Booke earned an Emmy nomination for his appearance in the TV series Dr. Kildare in the episode "What's God to Julius?". He can also be seen in an episode of Mission: Impossible from the first season in 1966. Booke appeared in two early episodes of M*A*S*H, as General Barker in "Requiem For A Lightweight" and "Chief Surgeon Who?", the latter marked the debut of the character Corporal Klinger, with whom Booke's character had previously dealt. Additionally, Booke had a recurring role in Norman Lear's groundbreaking sitcom All in the Family as Mr. Sanders, personnel manager at Archie Bunker's workplace, Prendergast Tool and Die Company. Booke was also featured on an episode of the '70s classic sitcom Good Times. Booke also had a recurring role as the Jewish mob boss Lefkowitz on Soap.

The Dukes of Hazzard (1979–1985)

Booke's most notable role was in The Dukes of Hazzard as the humorously wicked antagonist to Bo and Luke Duke, Jefferson Davis "Boss" Hogg. The series ran on CBS-TV for seven seasons, from 1979–85 and spawned an animated series, The Dukes (1983), two reunion TV specials, and a feature film (2005). Booke was actually only slightly overweight and wore a fat suit during the entire run of the series, which caused his girth to measure five feet around. He threw himself into the role to the point of eating real raw liver-Boss Hoggs favorite dish-in scenes that called for him to consume it.

In his final years, Booke had stopped appearing physically in acting roles, but he continued to perform voice work on several television shows and movies, occasionally as narrator, and sometimes as a cartoon character's voice, in such movies as Scooby-Doo Meets the Boo Brothers (1987 TV movie), Gravedale High (1990 television series), and Rock-A-Doodle (1991).

Later years

Booke continued to work until he succumbed to colorectal cancer in Sherman Oaks, California at age 64. He is interred in the Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery in Culver City, California. His tombstone reads, "Beloved Pa, Grandpa, Brother and Boss." (The "Boss" no doubt a reference to "Boss Hogg", a character he was loved for by his fans.)

Personal life

Booke was married to the former Miranda Knickerbocker (the daughter of Hubert Renfro Knickerbocker (1898–1949), a Pulitzer prize-winning war correspondent) from 1958 to 1973. They had two children, Alexandra and Nicholas. Booke has a brother, Fred.

Filmography

• Gone are the Days! (1963)
• Les Félins (1964)
• Fail-Safe (1964)
• Black Like Me (1964)
• A Fine Madness (1966)
• Matchless (1966)
• Up the Down Staircase (1967)
• Bye Bye Braverman (1968)
• Slaughterhouse-Five (1972)
• What's Up, Doc? (1972)
• The Iceman Cometh (1973)
• Bank Shot (1974)
• Devil Times Five (1974)
• The Take (1974)
• The Manchu Eagle Murder Caper Mystery (1975)
• Freaky Friday (1976)
• Special Delivery (1976)
• Mastermind (1976)
• The Other Side of Midnight (1977)
• The Cat from Outer Space (1978)
• Record City (1978)
• Rock-A-Doodle (1991)

Television work

• The Guiding Light (1952)
• Brenner (1959)
• The Iceman-Cometh (1960)
• The Million Dollar Incident (1961)
• Naked City Beyond This Place There Be Dragons (1963)
• twelve oclock high (1964)
• New York Television Theatre (1965)
• Mission: Impossible (1967)
• The Borgia Stick (1967)
• Ironside Shell Game (1968)
• Hawaii Five-O The Double Wall (1970)
• All in the Family (1971)
• Owen Marshall, Counsellor at Law (1971)
• M*A*S*H (1972)
• The Manhunter (1972)
• Gunshot (1972)
• Alias Smith and Jones (1972)
• Adventures of Nick Carter (1972)
• The Last Angry Man (1974)
• The New Dick Van Dyke Show (1974)
• Dr. Max (1974)
• Columbo: Swan Song (1974)
• Kolchak: The Night Stalker (1974)
• The Streets of San Francisco (1975)
• Adventures of the Queen (1975)
• The Streets of San Francisco (1975)
• Rich Man, Poor Man Book II (1976)
• Brenda Starr (1976)
• The Bob Newhart Show (1976)
• The Greatest Thing that Almost Happened (1977)
• Columbo: The Bye-Bye Sky High I.Q. Murder Case (1977)
• The Amazing Howard Hughes (1977)
• Baa Baa Black Sheep: Season 1, episode 21 (1977)
• Soap (1977)
• Greatest Heroes of the Bible (1978)
• Soap (1978)
• Good Times (1978)
• Little House on the Prairie (1978)
• What's Happening!! (1978)
• The Rockford Files (1978)
• Bigfoot and Wildboy (1979)
• The Dukes of Hazzard (1979–85)
• The Love Boat (1980)
• The Smurfs (1981)
• The Dukes (1983)
• Alice (1983)
• The Pound Puppies (1985)
• You Again? (1986)
• Crazy Like a Fox (1986)
• Scooby-Doo Meets the Boo Brothers (1987)
• Full House (1988)
• Fantastic Max (1988)
• Yogi and the Invasion of the Space Bears (1988)
• Don Coyote & Sancho Panda (1990)
• Tom and Jerry Kids Show (1990)
• Gravedale High (1990)
• Civil Wars (1991)
• Tiny Toon Adventures: How I Spent My Vacation (1992)
• Capitol Critters (1992)
• Bonkers (1993)
• The New Adventures of Captain Planet (1993)
• Droopy, Master Detective (1993)

Stage appearances

• The Sleeping Prince (1956)
• Nature's Way (1957)
• Heartbreak House (1959)
• Fiorello! (1959–61) (replacement)
• Finian's Rainbow (1960)
• Caligula (1960)
• Purlie Victorious (1961–62)
• The White House (1964)
• Come Live with Me (1967)
• Morning, Noon and Night (1968)

External links

• More about Sorrell and his character, "Boss Hogg"
• Hazzardnet.com, dedicated to the TV series The Dukes of Hazzard, has information about Sorrell Booke and the rest of the cast