Trivia: The son of an amateur musician, Jerry Reed spent his formative years laboring in the cotton fields of Georgia, teaching himself the guitar in his spare time. At 18, Reed was hired by Capitol Records as a staff songwriter. One of his first compositions, "Crazy Legs," proved to be a hit for C&W star Gene Vincent; likewise, Elvis Presley scored successes with Reed's "Guitar Man" and "U.S. Males." After army service, Reed established himself as one of the most highly sought-after studio guitarists in the business. He made his mark as a singer in his own right with his best-selling 1967 rendition of "Guitar Man." Reed went on to win a Grammy award for his 1970 chart-topper "Amos Moses"; his later number-one hits included 1971's "When You're Hot, You're Hot" and 1982's "She Got the Goldmine (I Got the Shaft)." He augmented his recording fame as a regular on the TV series The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour, then as star of his own summer-replacement variety weekly, 1972's The Jerry Reed When You're Hot You're Hot Hour. By 1977, Reed had pretty much put his recording activities on the back burner in favor of his blossoming film career. He made his movie bow in Burt Reynolds' W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings (1975), then went on to co-star as Cletus in Reynolds' two Smokey and the Bandit outings, composing the musical score for both films. Reed was elevated to second billing in the Reynolds-less Smokey and the Bandit III (1983), but only after the film had been unsuccessfully previewed with Jackie Gleason playing both Smokey and the Bandit. Jerry Reed made his film directorial debut with 1981's What Comes Around.

Trivia: Leading man and sex symbol, Selleck has a gentle, humorous manner. He attended college on an athletic scholarship, majoring in business. A drama coach suggested he become an actor; soon he began making the rounds of auditions. He won a part in the disastrous film Myra Breckinridge (1970), his screen debut, then appeared in small roles in a handful of films during the '70s. Meanwhile, Selleck was signed to a seven-year contract with Fox, leading to a great many TV roles, including appearances as a recurring character on the TV series "The Rockford Files." Eventually he was chosen as the lead for the TV series "Magnum P.I.;" the show became a hit, staying on the air from 1980-88, and he became a star and sex symbol, winning an Emmy, a Golden Globe award, and a star on Hollywood Boulevard. He suffered a serious career setback in 1981, when he was chosen to star in the Lucas-Spielberg blockbuster Raiders of the Lost Ark, but couldn't get released from his TV responsibilities. Beginning in 1983 he tried to break back into films, finally landing a major hit in a co-starring role in Three Men and a Baby (1987); although he appeared in a dozen films after 1983 he never firmly established himself as a screen star. He has also been active as a TV producer. He is married to English dancer Jillie Mack.

Trivia: Learned to read music and play the accordion by the age of 5. At 11, demonstrated the steel guitar at a music trade show in Chicago, where she was discovered by country performer Joe Maphis. Her family formed its own group when she was 14. A member of the band was drummer Ken Dudney, whom she would later marry. Signed with Columbia Records in 1969, scoring her first hit with a cover of Otis Redding's "I've Been Loving You Too Long." Inducted into the Grand Ole Opry in 1972. After her family band broke up, she formed the Do-Rites with her sisters, Louise and Irlene. In 1979, won Country Music Association's Female Vocalist of the Year. Headlined the NBC variety series Barbara Mandrell & the Mandrell Sisters (1980-82). Was the first artist to win CMA Entertainer of the Year for two consecutive years (1980 and '81). Penned her autobiography, Get to the Heart: My Story (1990), which was later made into a TV movie, Get to the Heart: The Barbara Mandrell Story (1997).

Trivia: Trained at Northwestern University's drama department, onetime salesman Claude Akins was a Broadway actor when he was selected by a Columbia talent scout for a small role in the Oscar-winning From Here to Eternity (1953). With a craggy face and blunt voice that evoked memories of Lon Chaney Jr., Akins was a "natural" for villainous or roughneck roles, but was versatile enough to play parts requiring compassion and humor. A television actor since the "live" days, Akins achieved stardom relatively late in life via such genial adventure series as Movin' On (1974), B.J. and the Bear (1979), The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo (1979) and Legmen (1984). In his last decade, Claude Akins was a busy-and most genial-commercial spokesperson.

Trivia: Benson is a plump Southern character actress with a down-home accent. She did some film and TV work.

Trivia: A professional actor since his teens, Gene Evans made his first film appearance in 1947's Under Colorado Skies. Evans' gritty, no-nonsense approach to his craft attracted the attention of like-minded director Sam Fuller, who cast the actor in several of his 1950s film projects. Many consider Evans' portrayal as the grim, born-survivor sergeant in Fuller's The Steel Helmet (1951) to be not only the actor's best performance, but also one of the best-ever characterizations in any war film. Active in films until 1984, Gene Evans also co-starred in the TV series My Friend Flicka (1956), Matt Helm (1975) and Spencer's Pilots (1976).

Trivia: Actress Morgan Fairchild was born Patsy McClenny, the daughter of an engineer father and high-school teacher mother. At age 14, she competed for the Miss Teenage Dallas crown by performing a scene from St. Joan (she lost). After a brief marriage, McClenny set her cap on professional show business; she chose the stage name "Morgan" from the 1966 British film of same name and "Fairchild" because it sounded nice. After a few seasons on the New York stage, Morgan Fairchild was cast as the truculent Jennifer Phillips on the Manhattan-based TV serial Search for Tomorrow. From there, she headed to LA, where, despite not having an agent or any tangible connections, she landed a TV job in less than two months. Briefly cast as Jenna Wade on the prime-time series Dallas, Fairchild chose not to be tied down to dramatics (at least not yet) and polished her comedy skills with several sitcom guest spots. She then was cast in her first starring TV role, as Constance Semple on the 1981 series Flamingo Road. After the series ran its course, Fairchild delivered a well-received star performance in the 1982 Broadway play Geniuses. Later series-TV assignments included the role of testy model agency owner Racine on Paper Dolls (1984) and the scheming Jordan Roberts on Falcon Crest (1985-86). Fairchild's TV-movie and miniseries credits include Honey Boy (1982), North and South, Book 2 (1986), and a return to comedy in The Zany Adventures of Robin Hood (1985). Morgan Fairchild's theatrical film work has been by and large unremarkable, save for an amusing extended cameo in 1985's Pee-Wee's Big Adventure.

Trivia: Bob Hannah played supporting roles in a number of major dramas during the '80s and early '90s. He specialized in playing Southerners in films such as Norma Rae (1979), Coal Miner's Daughter (1980), and Fried Green Tomatoes (1991), where he played a defense attorney.

Trivia: Burly character actor, onscreen from the '60s. He was Elvis Presley's bodyguard.

Trivia: To say that Grace Zabriskie has specialized in maternal roles is hardly adequate. Many of the mothers portrayed by Zabriskie in films and on TV are the sort of parents that you wouldn't wish on your worst enemy: clinging, castrating, and constantly jabbering away about nothing in particular (to be fair, she has essayed a few benign, likeable moms). She has been prominently featured in such films as Norma Rae (1979), Drugstore Cowboy (1988), and The Big Easy (1989). Her TV work includes the roles of Laura Palmer's hysterical mother in Twin Peaks (1990) and the recurring part of Thada Duvall in the NBC daytimer Santa Barbara. Undoubtedly, Zabriskie's most bizarre screen assignment was her S&M sex scene in Chain of Desire (1991). As brash and outspoken as ever, Grace Zabriskie played Granny in first-time director Anjelica Huston's controversial Bastard out of Carolina (1996).