Jack Garner (born Jack Edward Bumgarner; September 19, 1926 – September 13, 2011) was an American actor. He was the elder brother of James Garner. ^{[1] [2] [3] [4]}

Early life and career

Garner was born in Norman, Oklahoma, the son of Mildred Scott (née Meek) and Weldon Warren "Bill" Bumgarner. ^{[1] [3] [5]} He was the second of three boys including actor James Garner (youngest) and Charles Bumgarner (oldest). ^{[3] [5]} The family operated a general store on Denver Corner in eastern Norman. ^[3] The boys were sent to live with relatives after their mother died, while Garner's father remarried several times. ^[1]

Garner was a star athlete at Norman High School, playing on the state championship basketball team in 1945. ^[3] Jack Garner played as a minor league baseball pitcher for a team affiliated with the Pittsburgh Pirates for eleven years. ^{[1] [5] [6]} He then worked for several golf courses in Florida after leaving the minor leagues. ^[5]Years later, brother James Garner wrote about Garner's athletic abilities in his memoir, "At Norman High, he was a point guard on a championship basketball team and quarterbacked an all-state football team...But his best sport was baseball: Jack was a pitcher in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization for 11 years. He was a better athlete than I was and a lot more outgoing. I was always in his footsteps." ^[3]

Garner became a longtime member of the Professional Golfers' Association, played competitively, and later became a golf pro at ^[7] Oakmont Country Club in Glendale, California. ^{[2] [5]} His golf experience allowed him to coach at the country club and elsewhere. ^[4] Garner taught Dan Aykroyd, his brother's co-star in the 1996 film My Fellow Americans, to properly swing a golf club for a scene in that movie. ^[4]

Acting

Jack and James eventually moved to Los Angeles to reconnect with their father, who had relocated to southern California. ^{[1] [2] [4]} Both changed their names to Garner after the move west. ^[3] The third brother, Charles Bumgarner, who died in 1984 at the age of 60, remained in Norman and became a school administrator. ^[3] Jack Garner entertained as the lead singer for the Coconut Grove nightclub, located in the now defunct Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles early in his career. ^[5]

Garner began acting in television during the late 1960s. ^[1] His roles included guest appearances on Love, American Style; The Bionic Woman; The Doris Day Show; Daniel Boone; The Green Hornet; Mannix; Medical Center and Murder, She Wrote. ^{[1] [4]} He appeared in The Rockford Files in more than twenty episodes of the show, ^[1] usually in bit roles, though he assumed the recurring supporting role of the indecisive, fence-sitting Captain McEnroe in the show's final season. Garner later appeared in Bret Maverick portraying Jack the Bartender from 1981 to 1982. ^[1] Garner reprised his Rockford Files role of McEnroe in a series of television movies based on the series from 1996 to 1999. ^[2]

Garner's film roles included Wild Rovers in 1971, Maverick in 1994, My Fellow Americans in 1996 and Sunset in 1988. ^[1]

Garner suffered a fall in September 2011, which resulted in a broken hip. ^{[3] [4]} Doctors determined that his heart was not strong enough to withstand surgery to repair the hip so Garner was transferred to a facility for long-term care. ^[3] However, his condition suddenly worsened within one week. ^[3] Garner died at a hospice in Rancho Mirage, California, near his home in Palm Desert, on September 13, 2011, six days shy of his 85th birthday. ^[2] He was survived by his former wife, Betty Bumgarner; his daughter, Liz Bumgarner, and son-in-law, Don Dykstra (they have no children); and younger brother, James Garner. ^{[1] [2]} His memorial service was held at the Wiefels Mortuary in Palm Springs, California. ^[4]

Selected filmography

References

External links

• Jack Garner at IMDb