Fred Thompson was a lawyer, U.S. Senator and Republican presidential candidate who balanced his political career with a thriving career as an actor. As a performer he was best known for his role as D.A. Arthur Branch in four Law & Order series — the original, as well as Criminal Intent, Trial by Jury and Special Victims Unit — as well as the short-lived spinoff series, Conviction. He played the character from 2002 to ’07, accruing nearly 150 episode credits as the D.A.
Thompson also appeared in films, including No Way Out, starring Kevin Costner and Gene Hackman; Feds; Fat Man and Little Boy, starring Paul Newman; The Hunt for Red October; Days of Thunder, with Tom Cruise; Die Hard 2; Flight of the Intruder; Class Action; Cape Fear; Thunderheart; Born Yesterday; In the Line of Fire, with Clint Eastwood; Secretariat; Sinister; The Last Ride; and 90 Minutes in Heaven.
Additionally, Thompson appeared on the television series Wiseguy, China Beach, Roseanne, Matlock, Sex and the City, Life on Mars, The Good Wife and Allegiance. Also the TV movies Unholy Matrimony, Bed of Lies, Stay the Night, Day-O, Keep the Change, Evil Knievel and Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee.
Fred Thompson was a lawyer, U.S. Senator and Republican presidential candidate who balanced his political career with a thriving career as an actor. As a performer he was best known for his role as D.A. Arthur Branch in four Law & Order series — the original, as well as Criminal Intent, Trial by Jury and Special Victims Unit — as well as the short-lived spinoff series, Conviction. He played the character from 2002 to ’07, accruing nearly 150 episode credits as the D.A.
Thompson also appeared in films, including No Way Out, starring Kevin Costner and Gene Hackman; Feds; Fat Man and Little Boy, starring Paul Newman; The Hunt for Red October; Days of Thunder, with Tom Cruise; Die Hard 2; Flight of the Intruder; Class Action; Cape Fear; Thunderheart; Born Yesterday; In the Line of Fire, with Clint Eastwood; Secretariat; Sinister; The Last Ride; and 90 Minutes in Heaven.
Additionally, Thompson appeared on the television series Wiseguy, China Beach, Roseanne, Matlock, Sex and the City, Life on Mars, The Good Wife and Allegiance. Also the TV movies Unholy Matrimony, Bed of Lies, Stay the Night, Day-O, Keep the Change, Evil Knievel and Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee.
Thompson began his political career by running Senator Howard Baker’s re-election campaign in 1972. He then served as a lobbyist from '75 to ‘93. In 1973 he served on the Select Committee for the Watergate scandal and two years later he published a memoir about his experience, At That Point in Time: The Inside Story of the Senate Watergate Committee.
He acted intermittently while also pursuing a career in politics, and served as a Republican U.S. Senator from Tennessee for eight years, and resigned from the Senate in ‘03. While a representative he held positions on the Senate Finance Committee and the Government Affairs Committee. In 2007 he announced a bid for president, but dropped out the following year.
His acting career began in 1985, when he played himself in the movie Marie, starring Sissy Spacek and Jeff Daniels. The film told the story of a woman who was determined to reveal the truth about a political corruption. Thompson served as a lawyer on the real-life case, which had been turned into a book before being adpated for the screen.
Thompson died November 1, 2015 in Nashville, Tennessee. He was 73.
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