Billy Green Bush

Veteran character actor Billy Green Bush is best known for his offbeat roles in the 1970s. The flinty, folksy actor began his career working on many notable shows of the 1960s, including the sci-fi anthology "The Outer Limits" as well as the Western staples "Bonanza" and "Gunsmoke." His first notable film role came in 1971 with his standout performance as Elton, a redneck oil-rig worker, and Jack Nicholson's only friend, in the landmark drama "Five Easy Pieces." Bush followed it up playing another dullard opposite an established actor: Robert Blake's Highway Patrol partner in 1973's "Electra Glide in Blue."

The following year brought another meaty part in a classic 1970s film, "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore," as Ellen Burstyn's no-good but much-grieved trucker husband. For the remainder of the decade, Bush moved firmly into television, with appearances on the motorcycle-cop show "CHiPs," the war comedy "M*A*S*H," and the good-ol'-boy lark "The Dukes of Hazzard," among many others.