What did Ralph Waite pass away from?

Served in the United States Marine Corps. He was physically healthy and active until contracting pneumonia , which caused his death at age 85. His problems with alcohol began when his 9-year-old daughter, Sharon, passed away.

What kind of person was Ralph Waite?

He was at various times a Marine, a social worker, an ordained Presbyterian minister, a book editor and a three-time Democratic candidate for Congress from California .

Did Ralph Waite have a brother?

With his brother Donald and other family members, Waite opened Don and Sweet Sue's Café in Cathedral City.

Did Ralph Waite ever marry?

Waite died in Palm Desert, California on February 13, 2014, at age 85. He is survived by his third wife, Linda East, whom he married in 1982 and two daughters from his first marriage.

Was Ralph Waite a good man?

“ Ralph was a good honest actor and a good honest man ,” said Learned. “He was my spiritual husband. We loved each other for over 40 years.

Was Ralph Waite on Grey's Anatomy?

Grey's Anatomy (TV Series 2005– ) - Ralph Waite as Irving Waller - IMDb.

Were Mark Harmon and Ralph Waite friends?

It started with a phone call. Mark Harmon received a call that his co-worker and friend, Ralph Waite, had passed away.

How many of The Waltons are still alive?

All but three are still alive. Will Geer (Grandpa Walton) passed away in 1978, while the show was still running. Ellen Corby (Grandma Walton) passed away in 1999 and Ralph Waite (John Walton...

What religion were The Waltons?

Jefferson County sheriff Ep Bridges, who fought alongside John in World War I and was awarded the Medal of Honor, keeps law and order in Walton's Mountain. The entire family (except for John) attends a Baptist church , of which Olivia and Grandma Esther are the most regular attendees.

What did Ralph Waite do after leaving The Waltons?

Following "The Waltons," he had little trouble finding work on television—he had recurring roles on "The Days of Our Lives," "Murder One," "Bones" and "NCIS"—though he never matched the success of that series. He also returned to the theatre .

Ralph Waite Facts for Kids (2024)

Quick facts for kids Ralph Waite
Waite at the 40th anniversary of The Waltons on September 29, 2012
Born	June 22, 1928 White Plains, New York, U.S.
Died	February 13, 2014 (aged85) Palm Desert, California, U.S.
Resting place	White Plains Rural Cemetery
Almamater	Bucknell University and Yale Divinity School
Occupation	Actor, political activist
Yearsactive	1954–2014
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Beverly Waite (m.1951; div.1966) Kerry Shear Waite (m.1977; div.1981) Linda East (m.1982)
Children	3

Military career
Allegiance	United States of America
Service/branch	United States Marine Corps

Ralph Waite (June 22, 1928 – February 13, 2014) was an American actor, best known for his lead role as John Walton Sr. on The Waltons (1972–1981), which he occasionally directed. He also had recurring roles in NCIS as Jackson Gibbs, the father of Leroy Jethro Gibbs, and Bones, as Seeley Booth's grandfather. Waite had supporting roles in movies such as Cool Hand Luke (1967), Five Easy Pieces (1970), The Grissom Gang (1971), The Bodyguard (1992), and Cliffhanger (1993).

Early life
Film work
Later stage work
Personal life
- Political involvement
  - Electoral history
Death
Filmography
- Film
- Television
- As director
- As producer
- As writer
Theatre
See also

Early life

Waite, the eldest of five children, was born in White Plains, New York, on June 22, 1928, to Ralph H. Waite, a construction engineer, and Esther (née Mitchell) Waite. He graduated from White Plains Senior High School in 1946. Too young for World War II, Waite served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1946 to 1948, then graduated from Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. He worked briefly as a social worker. Waite earned a master's degree from Yale University's Divinity School and was an ordained Presbyterian minister and religious editor at , before deciding on an acting career. He was a member of the Peninsula Players summer theater program during the 1963 season.

Film work

From The Waltons (1972), L-R: Ralph Waite, Richard Thomas, and Michael Learned

Later stage work

Waite scored a personal triumph when he created the role of Will Kidder in the Pulitzer Prize-winning The Young Man from Atlanta, by playwright Horton Foote, in 1995.

Personal life

Waite was married three times, two marriages ending in divorce. He had three daughters from his first marriage. His eldest daughter, Sharon Waite, died of leukemia when she was 9 years old in 1964. Liam Waite, one of Waite's stepsons, is also an actor. After 50 years away from organized religion, Waite returned in 2010 and became an active member of Spirit of the Desert Presbyterian Fellowship in Palm Desert, California.

Political involvement

Waite ran unsuccessfully for Congress in California as a Democrat on three occasions: In 1990, he challenged veteran GOP incumbent Al McCandless in the Riverside County-based 37th district, losing by 5%. In 1998, Waite ran in the special election for the then-Palm Springs-based 44th district left vacant by the death of incumbent Sonny Bono. He was defeated in that election by Mary Bono, Sonny's widow, and lost to her again that November.

On October 21, 1991, Waite introduced former California Governor Jerry Brown prior to the latter's speech announcing his candidacy for the 1992 Democratic presidential nomination.

Electoral history

Year	Office	Democrat	Votes	Pct	Republican	Votes	Pct
1990	U.S House of Representatives District 37	Jeffrey Jacobs 29% Ralph Waite 71%	103,961	44.8%	Bud Mathewson 27% Al McCandless 73%	115,469	49.8%
1998	U.S House of Representatives District 44 (special election)	Ralph Waite	24,228	28.8%	Mary Bono	53,755	64%
1998	U.S House of Representatives District 39 (general election)	Ralph Waite	57,697	35.7%	Mary Bono	97,013	60.1%

Death

On February 13, 2014, Waite died in Palm Desert, California, of natural causes at age 85. He is buried in White Plains Rural Cemetery in New York.

Filmography

Film

1967 Cool Hand Luke as "Alibi"
1968 A Lovely Way to Die as Sean Magruder
1969 Last Summer as Peter's Father (uncredited)
1970 Five Easy Pieces as Carl Fidelio Dupea
1971 The Pursuit of Happiness as Detective Cromie
1971 The Sporting Club as Olson
1971 Lawman as Jack Dekker
1971 The Grissom Gang as Mace
1972 Chato's Land as Elias Hooker
1972 Hot Summer Week as John
1972 The Magnificent Seven Ride! as Jim MacKay
1973 Trouble Man as Pete co*ckrell
1973 Kid Blue as Drummer
1973 The Stone Killer as Mathews
1977 Red Alert (TV movie) as Henry Stone
1980 OHMS (TV movie) as Floyd Wing
1980 On the Nickel as C.G.
1980 Angel City (TV movie) as Jared Teeter
1981 The Gentleman Bandit (TV movie) as Father Bernard Pagano
1988 Good Old Boy: A Delta Boyhood as The Narrator
1989 Red Earth, White Earth as Martin
1990 Crash and Burn as Lathan Hooks
1990 Desperate Hours
1992 The Bodyguard as Herb Farmer
1993 Cliffhanger as Ranger Frank
1994 Sioux City as Drew McDermott
1996 Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco as Shadow (voice)
2000 Timequest as The Time Traveler
2002 Sunshine State as Furman Temple
2003 Blessings (TV movie) as Sheriff
2004 Silver City as Casey Lyle
2010 Letters to God as Cornelius Perryfield
2011 25 Hill as Ed
2012 Gabe the Cupid Dog as R.L. Dutton

Television

1966 Look Up and Live as Host
1967 The Borgia Stick (TV movie) as The Man From Toledo
1967-1968 N.Y.P.D. as Robert Stryker
1970 Bonanza "The Lady and the Mark" as Hoby
1971 Nichols as Sam Burton
1972-1981 The Waltons as John Walton Sr.
1973 The Thanksgiving Story (TV movie)
1976 The Secret Life of John Chapman (TV movie) as John Chapman
1977 Roots as Slater, Third Mate
1977 Waiting for Godot (TV movie) as Pozzo
1978 CBS: On the Air as Himself
1980 Angel City (TV movie) as Jared Teeter
1981 The Gentleman Bandit (TV movie) as Father Bernard Pagano
1982 A Wedding on Walton's Mountain (TV movie) as John Walton Sr.
1982 Mother's Day on Waltons Mountain (TV movie) as John Walton Sr.
1982 A Day for Thanks on Walton's Mountain (TV movie) as John Walton Sr.
1983 The Mississippi as Ben Walker Sr.
1984 A Good Sport (TV movie) as Tommy O'Bannon
1984 Growing Pains (TV movie) as Rob
1985 Crime of Innocence (TV movie) as Frank Hayward
1987 Reading Rainbow
1989 Murder, She Wrote as District Attorney Paul Robbins
1990 Sparks: The Price of Passion (TV movie) as Orville Lemon
1993 A Walton Thanksgiving Reunion (TV movie) as John Walton Sr.
1994 Time Trax as Lamont Carson
1994 Sin & Redemption (TV movie) as Cal Simms
1994 Keys (TV movie) as Dr. C.J. Halligan
1995 A Season of Hope (TV movie) as Sam Hackett
1995 A Walton Wedding (TV movie) as John Walton Sr.
1996 Murder One as Malcolm Dietrich
1997 Orleans as Otis Leblanc
1997 A Walton Easter (TV movie) as John Walton Sr.
1997 The Third Twin (TV movie) as Senator Proust
1999 The Outer Limits as Gene Morton
1999 Chicken Soup for the Soul as Dad
1999 Rocket Power as Doc Freimouth (voice)
2000 The President's Man (TV movie) as President Mathews
2001 All My Children as Bart
2001 Spirit (TV movie) as Jacob
2003 Blessings (TV movie) as Sheriff
2003-2005 Carnivàle as Reverend Norman Balthus
2004 The Practice as Walter Josephson
2007 Cold Case as Felton Metz
2008 CSI "Young Man with a Horn" as Sheriff Montgomery
2008-2013 NCIS as Jackson Gibbs (8 episodes)
2008 The Cleaner as Jonus Mullins
2009 Ace Ventura Jr: Pet Detective (TV movie) as Grandpa Ventura
2011 Kickin' It as Principal Keener (7 episodes)
2009-2014 Days of Our Lives as Father Matt (recurring) (final appearance)
2009 Grey's Anatomy "Tainted Obligation" as Irving Waller
2009-2013 Bones as Hank Booth (3 episodes)
2011 Off the Map "On the Mean Streets of San Miguel" as Abuelito

As director

1973-1980 The Waltons (TV series)
1980 On the Nickel
1983 The Mississippi (TV series)

As producer

1984 A Good Sport (executive producer)

As writer

1980 On the Nickel

Theatre

Marathon '33 (1963)
Blues for Mister Charlie (1964)
Hogan's Goat (play) (1965)
The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald (1967)
Other People's Money (play, before the film) (1991, Trinity Repertory Company, Providence, RI)
The Young Man From Atlanta (1995)