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Ford Rainey (August 8, 1908 – July 25, 2005) was a movie, stage and television actor. Rainey was a familiar face in motion pictures, including his film debut White Heat (1949), The Sand Pebbles with Steve McQueen and Two Rode Together with James Stewart. He also appeared many times on television shows, guest starring on Bonanza, Gunsmoke, Perry Mason, The Bionic Woman and The Untouchables. The tall austere, authoritative-looking actor was a natural at playing leaders. He played a general on M*A*S*H, and a judge on both The Waltons and Matlock. He played presidents on Lost in Space, The Time Tunnel, and on Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea. Later television appearances, in the 1990s and 2000s, include showing up on ER and recurring roles on Ned and Stacey and The King of Queens.

Personal life

Born in Mountain Home, Idaho, USA, Rainey graduated from Centralia Junior College in Washington state and the Cornish Drama School in Seattle. He first acted on the stage while in high school. Growing up in the outdoors and learning to ride horses helped him in his career as a tough-guy film presence later in life.

Like many young actors, he worked odd jobs including logger, fisherman, fruit picker, carpenter, clam digger and working on an oil tanker before becoming a successful actor. He worked as a radio actor as well as a touring stage actor before breaking into films. He served in the U.S. Coast Guard during World War II.

In 1954 Rainey married Sheila Hayden and settled in New York, where sons Robert and James were born. The family moved to Malibu, where a daughter, Kathy was born. Rainey remained in Malibu with his wife while he acted and enjoyed hobbies such as beekeeping and bird breeding until his death in 2005 of a stroke, at age 96.

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