G. W. Bailey (born August 27, 1944) is an American actor. His roles include Staff Sergeant Luther Rizzo in ''

M*A*S*H ''M*A*S*H'' (an acronym for Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American media franchise consisting of a series of novels, a film, several television series, plays, and other properties, and based on the semi-autobiographical fiction of Richa ...

'' (TV series 1979–1983), Lieutenant/Captain Thaddeus Harris in the ''

Police Academy A police academy, also known as a law enforcement training center, police college, or police university, is a training school for police cadets, designed to prepare them for the law enforcement agency they will be joining upon graduation, or to o ...

'' films (1984–1994), and Captain Felix Maxwell in ''

Mannequin A mannequin (sometimes spelled as manikin and also called a dummy, lay figure, or dress form) is a doll, often articulated, used by artists, tailors, dressmakers, window dressers and others, especially to display or fit clothing and show off dif ...

'' (1987). He played Detective Lieutenant Louie Provenza on

TNT Troponin T (shortened TnT or TropT) is a part of the troponin complex, which are proteins integral to the contraction of skeletal and heart muscles. They are expressed in skeletal and cardiac myocytes. Troponin T binds to tropomyosin and helps ...

's television crime drama ''

The Closer ''The Closer'' is an American police procedural television series starring Kyra Sedgwick as Brenda Leigh Johnson, a Los Angeles Police Department Chief of police#United States, deputy chief. A CIA-trained interrogator originally from Atlanta, G ...

'' and its spin-off series '' Major Crimes'' from 2005 to 2018.

Life and career

Bailey was born in

Port Arthur, Texas Port Arthur is a city in the state of Texas, United States of America, located east of metro Houston. Part of the Beaumont–Port Arthur metropolitan area, the city lies primarily in Jefferson County, with a small extension in Orange County. ...

, where he went to Thomas Jefferson High School with

Janis Joplin Janis Lyn Joplin (January 19, 1943 – October 4, 1970) was an American singer and songwriter. One of the most iconic and successful Rock music, rock performers of her era, she was noted for her powerful mezzo-soprano vocals and her "electric" ...

and Jimmy Johnson. He started college at

Lamar University Lamar University (Lamar or LU) is a public university in Beaumont, Texas, United States. Lamar has been a member of the Texas State University System since 1995. It was the flagship institution of the former Lamar University System. As of the ...

in nearby Beaumont and transferred to

Texas Tech University Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public university, public research university in Lubbock, Texas, United States. Established on February 10, 1923, and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the flagship instit ...

Lubbock Lubbock ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Lubbock County. With a population of 272,086 in 2024, Lubbock is the 10th-most populous city in Texas and the 84th-most populous in the United States. The city is in the ...

. Bailey left college and spent the mid-1960s working at local theater companies before moving to

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

in the mid-1970s. He broke into television with a small recurring role as a crime scene police officer on the short-lived detective show ''

Harry O ''Harry O'', sometimes spelled ''Harry-O'', is an American private detective series that aired for two seasons on ABC from 1974 to 1976. The series starred David Janssen, and Jerry Thorpe was executive producer. ''Harry O'' followed the broad ...

''. He then landed one-shot episodic roles on

television programs A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via Terrestrial television, over-the-air, Satellite television, satellite, and cable te ...

of the day such as ''

Starsky and Hutch ''Starsky & Hutch'' is an American action television series, which consisted of a 72-minute pilot movie (originally aired as a '' Movie of the Week'' entry) and 92 episodes of 50 minutes each. The show was created by William Blinn (inspired ...

'' and ''

Charlie's Angels ''Charlie's Angels'' is an American crime drama television series created by Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts for ABC. It originally aired from September 22, 1976, to June 24, 1981, airing for five seasons consisting of 115 episodes. It was produ ...

''. His film debut was in ''

A Force of One ''A Force of One'' is a 1979 American martial arts action-thriller film directed by Paul Aaron and starring Chuck Norris, with Jennifer O'Neill, Ron O'Neal, Clu Gulager, and martial artist Bill Wallace in his film debut. Norris plays karate ...

'' (1979), an early

Chuck Norris Carlos Ray "Chuck" Norris (born March 10, 1940) is an American martial artist and actor. Born in Oklahoma, Norris first gained fame when he won the amateur Middleweight Karate champion title in 1968, which he held for six consecutive years. H ...

film. By the late 1970s, he got his breakout role as the conniving, cigar-chomping goldbricker Sgt. Luther Rizzo in ''

''. He also appeared as

Tom Berenger Tom Berenger (born Thomas Michael Moore; May 31, 1949) is an American actor. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of the Staff Sergeant Bob Barnes in ''Platoon'' (1986). He is also known for playing ...

's sidekick in ''

Rustler's Rhapsody ''Rustlers' Rhapsody'' is a 1985 American comedy–Western film. It is a parody of many Western conventions, most visibly of the singing cowboy films that were prominent in the 1930s and the 1940s. The film was written and directed by Hugh Wils ...

'' (1985). He returned to college in 1993, and graduated from

Southwest Texas State University Texas State University (TXST) is a public research university with its main campus in San Marcos, Texas, United States, and another campus in Round Rock. Since its establishment in 1899, the university has grown to be one of the largest univer ...

, now Texas State, in

San Marcos, Texas San Marcos () is a city and the county seat of Hays County, Texas, United States. The city is a part of the Greater Austin, Greater Austin Metropolitan Area. San Marcos's limits extend into Caldwell County, Texas, Caldwell and Guadalupe County, T ...

in May 1993, with a Bachelor of Fine Arts,

Theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a Stage (theatre), stage. The performe ...

. For the 1999–2000 school year, he was the Artist-in-Residence. In the late 1990s, he starred in three of the seventeen television films and miniseries in the ''

Bible Collection The ''Bible Collection'' is a series of films produced for the TNT television network, starting with ''Abraham'' in April 1994 and ending with ''Thomas'' in April 2001. The Bible Collection consists of a 27-part miniseries in 17 volumes. The seri ...

'' series produced for the

television network: ''

Solomon Solomon (), also called Jedidiah, was the fourth monarch of the Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy), Kingdom of Israel and Judah, according to the Hebrew Bible. The successor of his father David, he is described as having been the penultimate ...

'' (1997), ''

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

'' (1999), and ''Paul'' (2000). From 2001 to 2019, Bailey served as the executive director of the Sunshine Kids Foundation, which provides trips and activities for hundreds of young cancer patients annually. He first volunteered with the organization after his goddaughter was diagnosed with

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...

Filmography (film and TV)

* ''

'' (1976, S1 E10: "Consenting Adults") - Mumford * '' How The West Was Won'' (1977, S1 E2: "Erika") - Ivie * ''

CHiPs ''CHiPs'' is an American crime drama television series created by Rick Rosner and originally aired on NBC from September 15, 1977, to May 1, 1983. After the final first-run telecast on NBC in May 1983, the series went into reruns on Sundays fr ...

'' (1978, TV Series, S1 E14: "Rustling") - Drunk Driver * ''

Starsky & Hutch ''Starsky & Hutch'' is an American action television series, which consisted of a 72-minute pilot movie (originally aired as a '' Movie of the Week'' entry) and 92 episodes of 50 minutes each. The show was created by William Blinn (inspired ...

'' (1976–1978) - Hotel Clerk / Slade * ''

Soap Soap is a salt (chemistry), salt of a fatty acid (sometimes other carboxylic acids) used for cleaning and lubricating products as well as other applications. In a domestic setting, soaps, specifically "toilet soaps", are surfactants usually u ...

'' (1978, TV Series) - The Hobo * ''

Laverne & Shirley ''Laverne & Shirley'' is an American television sitcom that ran for eight seasons on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from January 27, 1976, to May 10, 1983. A spin-off of ''Happy Days'', ''Laverne & Shirley'' stars Penny Marshall and Cindy Wi ...

'' (1979, S4 E23: "There's a Spy in My Beer") - Rocko * ''

'' (1979) - Erwin * ''

Lou Grant Lou Grant is a fictional character played by Ed Asner in two television series produced by MTM Enterprises for CBS. The first was ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' (1970–1977), a half-hour light-hearted situation comedy in which the character ...

'' (1979) - Water Man / Arlo Karp * ''

Happy Days ''Happy Days'' is an American television sitcom that aired first-run on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC network from January 15, 1974, to July 19, 1984, with a total of 255 half-hour episodes spanning 11 seasons. Created by Garry Marsha ...

'' (1979, S7 E9: "Joanie Busts Out") - Jack Whitman * '' The French Atlantic Affair'' (1979, TV Mini-Series) - Jake (uncredited) * ''

Angie Angie may refer to: People * Angie (given name) * Ängie, a Swedish pop singer * Angie Vázquez, Mexican singer Arts and entertainment * ''Angie'' (Angela Bofill album), 1978 * ''Angie'' (Spill Tab album), 2025 * "Angie" (song), a 1973 single ...

'' (1979, S2 E11: "Mary, Mary Marries") * '' Benson'' (1979–1980) - Bartender / Gus * ''

Palmerstown, U.S.A. ''Palmerstown, U.S.A.'' (shortened to ''Palmerstown'' in March 1981) is a television drama series that aired on CBS from March 20, 1980 to June 9, 1981. It was created by Norman Lear and Alex Haley, whose childhood was the basis for the series. ...

'' (1980, S1 E5: "The Black Travelers: II") * '' Alcatraz: The Whole Shocking Story'' (1980, TV Series) - Holfeld * ''

Flo Flo or FLO may refer to: People * Flo (name), a list of people with the name Flo * Flo, nickname of LB1, a ''Homo floresiensis'' fossil Places * Flo, Norway, a village near Stryn, Vestland * Flo, Sweden, a historic parish near Grästorp, ...

'' (1980–1981) - Lonnie Castleberry / Bull * ''

Murder in Texas Murder in Texas law constitutes the intentional killing, under circumstances defined by law, of people within or under the jurisdiction of the U.S. state of Texas. The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that in the ...

'' (1981, TV film) - Richard 'Racehorse' Haynes * '' Bitter Harvest'' (1981, TV film) - Lazlo * ''Fog'' (1981, TV film) - Mr. Carrion * ''Hardcase'' (1981, TV film) - Paul Morgan * '' The Capture of Grizzly Adams'' (1982, TV film) - Tom Quigley * ''

'' (1979–1983, TV Series) - Sergeant Luther Rizzo / The G.I. * ''

St. Elsewhere ''St. Elsewhere'' is an American medical drama television series created by Joshua Brand and John Falsey that originally ran on NBC from October 26, 1982, to May 25, 1988. The series stars Ed Flanders, Norman Lloyd, and William Daniels as ...

'' (1982–1983, TV Series) - Dr. Hugh Beale * ''

Murder, She Wrote ''Murder, She Wrote'' is an American crime drama television series, created by Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson and William Link, starring Angela Lansbury, and produced and distributed by Universal Television for the CBS network. The series f ...

'' (1984) - Lt. Thibodeau * ''

Simon & Simon ''Simon & Simon'' is an American crime drama television series that originally ran from November 24, 1981, to September 16, 1989. The series was broadcast on CBS, and starred Gerald McRaney and Jameson Parker as two disparate brothers who ope ...

'' (1984) - Police Chief Don Potter / Dr. Kyle Stepney - Surgery * ''

'' (1984) - Lt. Thaddeus Harris * ''Earthlings'' (1984, TV Series) - Bobo * ''

Runaway Runaway, Runaways or Run Away may refer to: Engineering * Runaway reaction, a chemical reaction releasing more heat than what can be removed and becoming uncontrollable * Thermal runaway, self-increase of the reaction rate of an exothermic proce ...

'' (1984) - Chief * '' Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment'' (1985) - Wedding Guest (uncredited) * ''

Rustlers' Rhapsody ''Rustlers' Rhapsody'' is a 1985 American comedy–Western film. It is a parody of many Western conventions, most visibly of the singing cowboy films that were prominent in the 1930s and the 1940s. The film was written and directed by Hugh Wil ...

'' (1985) - Peter * ''

Warning Sign A warning sign is a type of sign which indicates a potential hazard, obstacle, or condition requiring special attention. Some are traffic signs that indicate hazards on roads that may not be readily apparent to a driver. While warning traffic ...

'' (1985) - Tom Schmidt * ''

Newhart ''Newhart'' is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS from October 25, 1982, to May 21, 1990, with a total of 184 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons. The series stars Bob Newhart and Mary Frann as an author and his wife, respe ...

'' (1985, TV Series, S3 E20: "R.I.P. Off") - Kyle Nordoff * ''

Short Circuit A short circuit (sometimes abbreviated to short or s/c) is an electrical circuit that allows a current to travel along an unintended path with no or very low electrical impedance. This results in an excessive current flowing through the circuit ...

'' (1986) - Captain Skroeder * ''

'' (1987) - Felix * ''

Don't Mean Nothing "Don't Mean Nothing" is the debut single by singer/songwriter/producer Richard Marx from his triple platinum 1987 eponymous album. It hit No. 1 on ''Billboard''s Album Rock Tracks chart and No. 3 on the Hot 100. With the chart success of "Don't M ...

'' (1987 Music Video by Richard Marx) - Slime Ball Apartment Manager * ''

Burglar Burglary, also called breaking and entering (B&E) or housebreaking, is a property crime involving trespass to land, the illegal entry into a building or other area without permission, typically with the intention of committing a further criminal ...

'' (1987) - Ray Kirschman * '' Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol'' (1987) - Capt. Thaddeus Harris * ''Hawaiian Dream'' (1987) - Captain Pierce * '' Police Academy 5: Assignment Miami Beach'' (1988) - Capt. Thaddeus Harris * ''

War and Remembrance ''War and Remembrance'' is a novel by Herman Wouk, published in October 1978 as the sequel to Wouk's '' The Winds of War'' (1971). ''The Winds of War'' covers the period 1939 to 1941, and ''War and Remembrance'' continues the story of the exten ...

'' (1988, TV Series) - Cmdr. Jim Grigg * '' Police Academy 6: City Under Siege'' (1989) - Capt. Thaddeus Harris * '' The Gifted One'' (1989, TV film) - Dr. Winslow * '' Fine Things'' (1990, TV film) - Grossman * ''Love and Lies'' (1990, TV film) - Sgt. Halsey * '' Q&A'' (1990) - Bartender (uncredited) * '' Doublecrossed'' (1991) - Camp * ''

Under Cover ''Under Cover'' is the ninth studio album by English Heavy metal music, heavy metal singer Ozzy Osbourne. The album consists entirely of cover version, cover songs, with an emphasis on rock music from the 1960s and 1970s. This is Osbourne's ...

'' (1991, TV Series) - Director Waugh * ''Write to Kill'' (1991) - Dean Sutton * ''A Mother's Justice'' (1991, TV film) - Joe Comminger * ''Before the Storm'' (1991, TV film) - Director Waugh * '' Bed of Lies'' (1992, TV film) - Zeke Zbranek * ''

Dinosaurs Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic Geological period, period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the #Evolutio ...

'' (1992, S2 E20: "Nuts to War: Part 2") - Sarge * ''An American Story - The Battle of Athens'' (1992, TV film) - Tom Cantrell * ''

Dead Before Dawn ''Dead Before Dawn'' (also known as ''Dead Before Dawn 3D'') is a 2012 Canadian adventure-horror comedy directed by April Mullen, written by Tim Doiron, and starring Devon Bostick, Martha MacIsaac, and Christopher Lloyd. It introduces "zemons", a ...

'' (1993, TV film) - Masterson * ''No Child of Mine'' (1993, TV film) - Lamar Jenkins * '' Police Academy: Mission to Moscow'' (1994) - Capt. Thaddeus Harris * '' Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls'' (1995) - Lieutenant (uncredited) * ''

The Siege at Ruby Ridge ''The Siege at Ruby Ridge'' is a 1996 drama television film directed by Roger Young and written by Lionel Chetwynd about the confrontation between the family of Randy Weaver and the US federal government at Ruby Ridge in 1992. It was based on t ...

'' (1996, TV film) - Ralph Coulter * ''Seduction in a Small Town'' (1997, TV film) - Pat Carter * ''

The Jeff Foxworthy Show ''The Jeff Foxworthy Show'' is an American sitcom television series created by Tom Anderson, starring comedian Jeff Foxworthy and based on Foxworthy's stand-up comedy routine. The series originally aired on ABC from September 12, 1995, to May ...

'' (1996–1997, Series) - Big Jim Foxworthy * ''

'' (1997) - Azarel * ''

'' (1999) - Livio * ''Brothers. Dogs. And God.'' (2000) - Luther Graham * ''St. Paul'' (2000) -Barnabas * ''The Thin Blue Lie'' (2000) - K.C. * '' Scorcher'' (2002) - General Timothy Moore * ''

Home on the Range "Home on the Range" ( Roud No. 3599) is an American folk song, sometimes called the "unofficial anthem" of the American West. Dr. Brewster M. Higley (also spelled Highley) of Smith County, Kansas, wrote the lyrics as the poem "My Western Hom ...

'' (2004) - Rusty, the Dog (voice) * ''

Nip/Tuck ''Nip/Tuck'' is an American medical drama television series created by Ryan Murphy that aired on FX in the United States for six seasons from 2003 to 2010. The series, which also incorporates elements of crime, black comedy, family drama, sati ...

'' (2005) - Wesley Kringle * ''

'' (2005–2012, TV Series) - Lt. Louie Provenza * '' Cake: A Wedding Story'' (2007) - Howard Canter * ''Left Turn Yield'' (2007) - Man at Crosswalk with Dog * ''Johnny's Gone'' (2011) - Chet * '' The Newest Pledge'' (2012) - Mr. Hodgkinson * ''

Cupcake Wars ''Cupcake Wars'' is an American reality competition series that premiered on December 27, 2009, on cable television network Food Network. The show, which is based on creating unique and professional-style cupcakes, was hosted by Justin Willma ...

Guest Judge'' (2012) * ''I Am Death'' (2013) - The Killer * ''Highly Functional'' (2017) - Dan * '' Major Crimes'' (2012–2018, TV Series) - Lt. Louie Provenza * ''Til Life Do Us Part'' (2020, short film) - Barnaby Barnes * '' Stargirl'' (2022, 1 episode) - Mr. Dugan

References

External links

*
The Sunshine Kids

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bailey, G.W. 1944 births Living people Male actors from Texas American male film actors American male stage actors American male television actors People from Port Arthur, Texas Lamar University alumni Texas Tech University alumni Texas State University alumni 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors