Bo Hopkins

Bo Hopkins, the actor who has appeared in classics like "American Graffiti" and "The Wild Bunch," has died. He was 80 years old.

Although he began his career playing heavy, trigger-happy cowboys or sadistic rednecks, he later evolved into more “law-abiding” roles as he got older. After his father died when he was only nine years old, Hopkins was raised by his mother and grandmother. He later changed his name to “Bo” in reference to the character he played in “Bus Stop,” his first off-Broadway play.

Hollywood actor Bo Hopkins, best known for his roles in films like "American Graffiti" and "Wild Bunch," has died at the age of 80.

In that film, he played the supporting character role of Joe “Little Joe” Young, a gang leader. A few years later in 1973, he appeared in George Lucas’ breakout film “American Graffiti.” One of the actor’s earliest film roles was playing Clarence “Crazy” Lee in the 1969 Sam Peckinpah film “The Wild Bunch.”

Hopkins died at a hospital in Van Nuys, California, after suffering a heart attack on May 9, his wife, Sian Hopkins, told The Hollywood Reporter. His death was ...

“George Lindsey always said he was the one who started my career.” “I don’t know how my mother and grandmother put up with me,” Hopkins once said. “I go to car shows because ‘American Graffiti’ is the national anthem of car shows,” Hopkins said in a 2012 interview with Shock Cinema magazine.

Hopkins' hugely acclaimed career spanned more than 50 years and saw him feature in more than 100 TV and film roles. Renowned for his ability to switch between ...