Joe Don Baker, best known for portraying real-life Sheriff Buford Pusser in the 1973 classic Walking Tall, has died at the age of 89, his family announced on May 7, according to Deadline. In Walking Tall, Baker famously wielded a wooden club as Pusser, dishing out his own brand of Tennessee justice. The cause of death has not been revealed.
He was an American actor renowned for his portrayals of rugged, “tough guy” characters on both sides of the law. Born in 1936 in Groesbeck, Texas, Baker was raised by his aunt after his mother’s death when he was 12. He attended North Texas State College on a sports scholarship, graduating with a degree in business administration in 1958. Following two years of service in the U.S. Army, he pursued acting at the Actors Studio in New York City.
Baker’s early career included stage performances on Broadway and television appearances in series like Bonanza and Gunsmoke. His film debut came with an uncredited role in Cool Hand Luke (1967). He gained prominence with roles in Westerns such as Guns of the Magnificent Seven (1969) and Wild Rovers (1971).
His breakthrough role was as real-life Tennessee sheriff Buford Pusser in Walking Tall (1973), which became a box office success and solidified his status as a leading man. Baker continued to showcase his versatility in films like Charley Varrick (1973), Mitchell (1975), and The Natural (1984). In Fletch (1985), he played a corrupt police chief, and in Martin Scorsese’s Cape Fear (1991), he portrayed a private investigator.
In the James Bond franchise, Baker uniquely played both a villain and an ally. He was arms dealer Brad Whitaker in The Living Daylights (1987) and CIA agent Jack Wade in GoldenEye (1995) and Tomorrow Never Dies (1997)
On television, Baker’s notable performances included CIA agent Darius Jedburgh in the BBC miniseries Edge of Darkness (1985), earning him a BAFTA nomination, and Alabama Governor Big Jim Folsom in George Wallace (1997), for which he received a Satellite Award nomination.
Baker’s later work featured roles in Mars Attacks! (1996), The Dukes of Hazzard (2005), and Mud (2012). He retired from acting in 2012.
