Ralph Waite

Ralph Waite

1928-06-22 White Plains, New York, USA 58 Credits

Biography

Ralph Waite (June 22, 1928 – February 13, 2014) was an American actor. His most famous role may be John Walton Sr. on the 1970s CBS TV series The Waltons, which he occasionally directed. He is also well known for his portrayal of the slave ship first mate Slater in the mini-series Roots. Later in his career, he appeared as Reverend Norman Balthus for 16 out of 24 episodes over the two seasons of the HBO series Carnivàle (2003–2005). He portrayed the recurring roles of Father Matt on the daytime...

Known For

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Complete Filmography

Gabe the Cupid Dog

Gabe the Cupid Dog

2012

as R.L. Dutton

7.0
Acting

When Eric and Marsha break off their long-term relationship, journalist Eric is able to weather it pretty well. He still has his long time canine comp...

25 Hill

25 Hill

2011

as Ed

6.1
Acting

This is the story of an 11-year-old boy whose derby dreams are left in pieces when his soldier father is killed in Afghanistan. The boy teams up with ...

Letters to God

Letters to God

2010

as Mr. Perryfield

6.9
Acting

A young boy fighting cancer writes letters to God, touching lives in his neighborhood and inspiring hope among everyone he comes in contact. An unsusp...

Ace Ventura Jr: Pet Detective

Ace Ventura Jr: Pet Detective

2009

as Grandpa Ventura

3.4
Acting

"I will try to be normal" 12-year-old Ace Ventura Jr. promises. Thats cool, except whats normal for him is finding missing mutts, kidnapped kitties or...

A Natural Born World-Shaker: The Making of 'Cool Hand Luke'

A Natural Born World-Shaker: The Making of 'Cool Hand Luke'

2008

as Self

Acting

A documentary on the making of 'Cool Hand Luke' (1967).

Generation Gap

Generation Gap

2008

as Chick

7.2
Acting

When a rebellious teenager is forced to spend the summer with his grandfather, their differences go deeper than just the years that separate them.

Murder 101: If Wishes Were Horses

Murder 101: If Wishes Were Horses

2007

as Jacob Brawley

7.4
Acting

Dr. Maxwell is called in to investigate the kidnapping of a prize race horse. When the case leads to murder, Maxwell and Detective Bryant suspect the ...

Silver City

Silver City

2004

as Casey Lyle

6.1
Acting

The discovery of a corpse and the ensuing probe by an idealistic journalist threatens to unravel a bumbling local politician's campaign for governor o...

Blessings

Blessings

2003

as Sheriff

6.0
Acting

Released from jail after a term basically served instead of friends he refused to rat out, Charles 'Skip' Cuddy is grateful his gentleman instinct get...

Timequest

Timequest

2003

as The Traveler

4.8
Acting

A story about a man who travels back in time to Fort Worth, Texas on Novemeber 22, 1963 and prevents the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

Sunshine State

Sunshine State

2002

as Furman Temple

6.4
Acting

A woman and her new husband returns to her hometown roots in coastal northern Florida, and must deal with family, business, and encroaching real estat...

Spirit

Spirit

2001

as Jacob Hardesty

6.2
Acting

When Kelly and her father move to New Orleans after the death of her mother, strange things start happening in their new home. Kelly is convinced that...

The President's Man

The President's Man

2000

as President Mathews

4.5
Acting

To many, Joshua McCord is a charismatic Asian studies professor. To the President of the United States, he's America's greatest secret weapon; a cover...

A Walton Easter

A Walton Easter

1997

as John Walton

6.5
Acting

In 1969, John-Boy is a TV news anchorperson in New York and he is in the throes of writing a new book. He and a very pregnant Janet are making plans t...

Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco

Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco

1996

as Shadow (voice)

6.6
Acting

When the pets accidentally get separated from their vacationing owners, Chance, Shadow, and Sassy navigate the mean streets of San Francisco, trying t...

A Walton Wedding

A Walton Wedding

1995

as John Walton

Acting

In 1964, John-Boy Walton is planning his wedding to Janet Gilchrist, the editor of a New York fashion magazine and the daughter of a diplomat. The two...

A Season of Hope

A Season of Hope

1995

as Sam Hackett

3.5
Acting

When trees in their only source of income, a lemon grove, start showing signs of disease, a burdened Californian family reaches their breaking point. ...

Sioux City

Sioux City

1994

as Drew McDermott

5.1
Acting

A young Lakota Sioux, adopted by a wealthy Jewish couple in Beverly Hills, gets in touch with his cultural roots and solves a mystery in this thriller...

Sin and Redemption

1994

as Cal Simms

4.0
Acting

Taking a short-cut home from work, high-schooler Billie Simms is raped. Not only does the incident cause an unwanted pregnancy that damages her colleg...

Sin & Redemption

1994

as Cal Simms

Acting

A rape victim learns the truth about her husband when their daughter has a life-threatening illness.

Keys

Keys

1994

as Dr. C.J. Halligan

3.7
Acting

A one-time investigator gets back in the game when a family suffers a trauma similar to her own.

A Walton Thanksgiving Reunion

A Walton Thanksgiving Reunion

1993

as John Walton

7.5
Acting

The fourth Waltons reunion TV movie is set in the 1960s , with John-Boy still living in New York, trying to persuade his fiancée to marry him. Meanwhi...

Cliffhanger

Cliffhanger

1993

as Frank

6.5
Acting

A year after losing his friend in a tragic 4,000-foot fall, former ranger Gabe Walker and his partner, Hal, are called to return to the same peak to r...

The Bodyguard

The Bodyguard

1992

as Herb Farmer

6.7
Acting

A former Secret Service agent grudgingly takes an assignment to protect a pop idol who's threatened by a crazed fan. At first, the safety-obsessed bod...

Wild by Law

1991

as Aldo Leopold (voice)

6.3
Acting

Tells about the Wilderness Act of 1964 and the three men responsible for its passage: forester/philosopher Aldo Leopold, author of the bestselling San...

Crash and Burn

Crash and Burn

1990

as Lathan Hooks

4.4
Acting

Unicom is a powerful organization overseeing most of the world after its economic collapse. They have banned computers and robots in an attempt to ins...

Sparks: The Price of Passion

Sparks: The Price of Passion

1990

as Orville Lemon

5.5
Acting

A female mayor (Victoria Principal) of Albuquerque gets embroiled in a fight over the development of a new economic center. In the midst of this, she ...

Snake Treaty

1989

Acting

Guy Pehrsson is summoned by his grandfather to return to the farming community of his childhood. He arrives from the City to find that his mother has ...

The River Pirates

The River Pirates

1988

as Narrator (voice)

6.0
Acting

A timeless story of a boy's adventures growing up in a small Southern town, Yazoo City, in the 1940s during World War II, roaming with his friends, pl...

Crime of Innocence

Crime of Innocence

1985

as Frank Hayward

5.5
Acting

Two teenage girls are locked up for a minor offence by a harsh judge who thinks a night in jail will do them good. It's a traumatizing experience that...

A Good Sport

A Good Sport

1984

as Tommy O'Bannon

Acting

The stylish editor of a fashion magazine and a rumpled sports reporter endeavor to keep their somewhat offbeat romance on a purely platonic level.

A Good Sport

A Good Sport

1984

Executive Producer

Producing

The stylish editor of a fashion magazine and a rumpled sports reporter endeavor to keep their somewhat offbeat romance on a purely platonic level.

A Day for Thanks on Waltons Mountain

A Day for Thanks on Waltons Mountain

1982

as John Walton

5.3
Acting

Most of the Waltons have split up in the days approaching Thanksgiving 1947. But most of the family begins to arrive at Walton's Mountain begging with...

Mother's Day on Waltons Mountain

Mother's Day on Waltons Mountain

1982

as John Walton

5.0
Acting

Mary Ellen marries Jonesy but they don't exactly have a good start.

A Wedding on Waltons Mountain

A Wedding on Waltons Mountain

1982

as John Walton

5.0
Acting

Erin Walton is considering marrying her boyfriend Paul but her old boyfriend Ashley, who left for the war and married someone else, lived through his ...

The Gentleman Bandit

The Gentleman Bandit

1981

as Father Bernard Pagano

4.8
Acting

Based on the real-life ordeal of Baltimore priest Bernard Pagano, who was accused of several armed robberies in the late Seventies.

Angel City

Angel City

1980

as Jared Teeter

5.8
Acting

Jared Teeter has to work in a forced labor camp in Florida to make ends meet. "Angel City" is no place for the faint of heart.

On the Nickel

On the Nickel

1980

as C.G.

6.0
Acting

Sam, a recovering alcoholic, feels dissatisfied with his life of sobriety and goes back in search of the good times he enjoyed with his wino friends o...

On the Nickel

On the Nickel

1980

Director, Writer, Producer

6.0
Directing Writing Producing

Sam, a recovering alcoholic, feels dissatisfied with his life of sobriety and goes back in search of the good times he enjoyed with his wino friends o...

OHMS

OHMS

1980

as Floyd Wing

5.0
Acting

A conservative, Midwestern farmer rallies his neighbors against a power company planning to erect huge towers across their land, and a political activ...

Red Alert

Red Alert

1977

as Henry Stone

4.0
Acting

A computer at a nuclear power plant malfunctions and receives erroneous information of a radiation leak. It seals off the compound, trapping the crew ...

The Secret Life of John Chapman

The Secret Life of John Chapman

1976

as John Chapman

6.5
Acting

The true story of John Chapman, a college president who took a sabbatical and went out and got a job as a general laborer, to try to experience life o...

The Stone Killer

The Stone Killer

1973

as Mathews

6.2
Acting

A Los Angeles detective is sent to New York where he must solve a case involving an old Sicilian Mafia family feud.

Kid Blue

Kid Blue

1973

as Drummer

6.9
Acting

Bickford Waner, an apparently naive young man from Fort Worth, arrives in the tiny Texas town of Dime Box and takes on a variety of menial jobs. He's ...

Trouble Man

Trouble Man

1972

as Pete Cockrell

6.1
Acting

It seems that masked men are knocking over the floating crap games of Chalky and Pete. Chalky and Pete hire the cool, loose, elegant Mr. T to fix thin...

The Magnificent Seven Ride!

The Magnificent Seven Ride!

1972

as Jim Mackay

5.5
Acting

Marshal Chris Adams turns down a friend's request to help stop the depredations of a gang of Mexican bandits. When his wife is killed by bank robbers ...

Hot Summer Week

Hot Summer Week

1972

as John

2.0
Acting

Two girls pick up a crazed hitchhiker who may or may not be the serial killer murdering hippies in the area.

Chato's Land

Chato's Land

1972

as Elias Hooker

6.6
Acting

In 1870s New Mexico, a half-breed kills a bigoted sheriff in self-defense but the posse that eventually hunts him finds itself in dangerous territory.

The Grissom Gang

The Grissom Gang

1971

as Mace

6.6
Acting

The Grissom Gang is a remake of the notorious 1949 British melodrama No Orchids For Miss Blandish. Kim Darby plays a 1920s-era debutante who is kidnap...

Lawman

Lawman

1971

as Jack Dekker

6.5
Acting

While passing through the town of Bannock, a bunch of drunken cattlemen go overboard with their celebrating and accidentally kill an old man with a st...

The Sporting Club

The Sporting Club

1971

as Olson

3.9
Acting

The wealthy members of an exclusive backwoods retreat face an existential threat from both a disgruntled former manager as well as a subversive, anarc...

The Pursuit of Happiness

The Pursuit of Happiness

1971

as Detective Cromie

6.3
Acting

William Popper is the son of a stockbroker and is thoroughly disenchanted with "the system." So much so that even though he can prove that he ran over...

Five Easy Pieces

Five Easy Pieces

1970

as Carl Fidelio Dupea

7.1
Acting

A drop-out from upper-class America picks up work along the way on oil-rigs when his life isn't spent in a squalid succession of bars, motels, and oth...

Last Summer

Last Summer

1969

as Peter's father (uncredited)

6.3
Acting

During summer vacation on Fire Island, three young people become very close. When an uncool girl tries to infiltrate the trio's newly found relationsh...

A Lovely Way to Die

A Lovely Way to Die

1968

as Sean Magruder

4.5
Acting

A cop quits the force after too much disappointment in the system. He becomes a bodyguard of a rich recent widow. She is on trial for her husband's mu...

The Desperate Hours

The Desperate Hours

1967

as Lt. Fredericks

4.0
Acting

The Hilliards are a middle class family whose lives are put in danger when escaped convict Glenn Griffin invades their home. Griffin is crazed, tormen...

Cool Hand Luke

Cool Hand Luke

1967

as Alibi

7.7
Acting

When petty criminal Luke Jackson is sentenced to two years in a Florida prison farm, he doesn't play by the rules of either the sadistic warden or the...

The Borgia Stick

The Borgia Stick

1967

as Man from Toledo

7.8
Acting

A suburban couple discovers that they are pawns for a powerful crime syndicate. They try to break away from the cartel and go legitimate, but the synd...