Brian Dennehy Brian Mannion Dennehy ( born July 9 , 1938 ) is an American actor of film , stage , and television . Early life . Dennehy was born in Bridgeport , Connecticut , the son of Hannah and Edward Dennehy , who was a wire service editor for the Associated Press ; he has two brothers , Michael and Edward . Dennehy is of Irish ancestry and was raised Roman Catholic . The family relocated to Long Island , New York , where Dennehy attended Chaminade High School in the town of Mineola . Rather than immediately chase his dreams of stage and screen , Dennehy enlisted in the U . S . Marine Corps in 1959 , actively serving until 1963 . Although he said in numerous interviews that he had spent five years fighting in Vietnam during the Vietnam War , even telling harrowing tales of being hit by shrapnel , it was revealed in the 1998 book " Stolen Valor " by B . G . Burkett that Dennehy had never served overseas at all during his time in the military . Later that year , Dennehy admitted to the tabloid " The Globe " " I lied about serving in Vietnam and I ' m sorry . That was very wrong of me . There is no real excuse for that . I was a peace - time Marine , and I got out in 1963 without ever serving in Vietnam . I started the story that I had been in ' Nam , and I got stuck with it . Then I didn ' t know how to set the record straight . " Nonetheless , in 2007 Dennehy once again told a reporter that he had served in Vietnam , this time Joanne Kaufman of the " Wall Street Journal " . He went on to attend Columbia on a football scholarship to major in history , where he also became a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity , before moving on to Yale to study dramatic arts . He played rugby union for Old Blue RFC . Career . Film . Dennehy is primarily known as a dramatic actor . His breakthrough role was as the overzealous Sheriff Will Teasle in " First Blood " ( 1982 ) opposite Sylvester Stallone as Rambo . His earlier films did include several comedies like " Semi - Tough " with Burt Reynolds ( in which he portrayed a pro football player ) , " 10 " with Dudley Moore ( as an Acapulco bartender ) and " Foul Play " with Chevy Chase . He later portrayed a corrupt sheriff in the western " Silverado " and an alien in " Cocoon " , both released in 1985 . Memorable supporting parts featured Dennehy in such films as " Split Image " ( 1982 ) , " Legal Eagles " ( 1986 ) , " F / X : Murder By Illusion " ( 1986 ) , " Presumed Innocent " ( 1990 ) and " F / X2 : The Deadly Art of Illusion " ( 1991 ) . Dennehy gradually became a valuable character actor but also achieved leading - man status in the thriller " Best Seller " ( 1987 ) co - starring James Woods . He also starred in the Peter Greenaway film " The Belly of an Architect " , for which he won the Best Actor Award at the 1987 Chicago International Film Festival . Commenting upon this unusual venture , Dennehy said , " I ' ve been in a lot of movies but this is the first film I ' ve made . " He went on to star as Harrison in the Australian film " The Man from Snowy River II " in 1988 . One of his most well - known roles came in the 1995 Chris Farley - David Spade comedy " Tommy Boy " as Big Tom Callahan . He also was reunited with his " 10 " co - star Bo Derek in " Tommy Boy " , in which she played his wife . Dennehy had a voice role in the animated movie " Ratatouille " as Django , the rat chef Remy ' s father . He appeared as the superior officer of Robert De Niro and Al Pacino in the 2008 cop drama " Righteous Kill " and as the father of Russell Crowe in the 2010 suspense film " The Next Three Days " . Dennehy starred as Clarence Darrow in " Alleged " , a film based on the Scopes Monkey Trial , the famous court battle over the teaching of evolution in American public schools . Television . Dennehy began his professional acting career in small guest roles in such 1970s and 1980s series as " Kojak " , " Lou Grant " , " Dallas " and " Dynasty " . He also appeared in an episode of " Miami Vice " during the 1987 – 88 season . Dennehy portrayed Sergeant Ned T . " Frozen Chosen " Coleman in the television movie " A Rumor of War " ( 1980 ) opposite Brad Davis . He continued to appear in such high - profile television movies as " Skokie " ( 1981 ) , " Split Image " ( 1982 ) , " Day One " , ( 1989 ) , " A Killing in a Small Town " ( 1990 ) opposite Barbara Hershey , " In Broad Daylight " ( 1991 ) , " Scott Turow ' s The Burden of Proof " and the miniseries " A Season in Purgatory " . He also played the title role in HBO ' s " " . Dennehy had a lead role as fire chief / celebrity dad Leslie " Buddy " Krebs in the short - lived 1982 series " Star of the Family " . Despite his star power , that show was canceled after a half a season . Dennehy was nominated for Emmy Awards six times for his television movies . He was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or TV Movie for his performance as John Wayne Gacy in " To Catch a Killer " , and he was nominated that same year in a different category , Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or TV Movie , for " The Burden of Proof " ( 1992 ) . Other Emmy nominatations were for his work in " A Killing in a Small Town " , " Murder in the Heartland " ( 1993 ) and for the Showtime cable TV movie " Our Fathers " ( 2005 ) , which was about the Roman Catholic Church sex abuse scandal . In 2000 , Dennehy was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or TV Movie for a television presentation of his performance as Willy Loman in Arthur Miller ' s " Death of a Salesman " which he had performed on Broadway . The performance did , however , precipitate a Golden Globe Award . He has starred in the popular crime drama " Jack Reed " TV movies . He also appeared as a recurring character in the NBC sitcom " Just Shoot Me ! " . Dennehy was parodied in " " ( 1999 ) and an episode of " The Simpsons " . In January 2007 , he starred in the episode " " of " " as a retired criminal who wants to reconnect with his daughter and admit his crimes before dying of a terminal disease thus eventually clearing a wrongfully imprisoned inmate . In April 2008 , Dennehy guest - starred as a Teamster boss in an episode of " 30 Rock " . Dennehy guest - starred in a 2008 episode of " Rules of Engagement " as the father of the main character , Jeff . Dennehy has also narrated many television programs . He narrated Canadian - Irish docudrama " Death or Canada " . Theatre . Dennehy has won two Tony Awards , both times for Best Lead Actor in a Play . The first win was for " Death of a Salesman " ( for which he also won a Laurence Olivier Award for the production ' s London run ) , in 1999 , and the second was for Eugene O ' Neill ' s " Long Day ' s Journey into Night " in 2003 . Both productions were directed by Robert Falls and were originally produced at the Goodman Theatre company in Chicago . On stage , Dennehy has made frequent performances in the Chicago theater world , and made his Broadway debut in 1995 in Brian Friel ' s " Translations " . In 1999 , he was the first male performer to be voted the Sarah Siddons Award for his work in Chicago theater . He made a return to Broadway in 2007 as Matthew Harrison Brady in " Inherit the Wind " opposite Christopher Plummer , then returned again opposite Carla Gugino in a 2009 revival of Eugene O ' Neill ' s Desire Under the Elms . In fall 1992 , he played the lead role of Hickey in Robert Falls ' s production of Eugene O ' Neill ' s " The Iceman Cometh " at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin . In 2008 , Dennehy appeared at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival , in Stratford , Ontario , Canada , appearing in All ' s Well That Ends Well as the King of France , and a double bill of plays , one by Samuel Beckett , " Krapp ' s Last Tape " and Eugene O ' Neill ' s play " Hughie " , where Dennehy reprised the role of Erie Smith . In 2010 , he was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame . In December 2010 , he returned to Ireland to play the Bull McCabe in the Olympia Theatre of Dublin ' s stage version of John B . Keane ' s " The Field " . In 2011 , Dennehy returned to the Stratford Shakespeare Festival in the role of Sir Toby Belch in Shakespeare ' s Twelfth Night . He also played Max in Harold Pinter ' s The Homecoming , which is the first Pinter work to be produced there . In April through June 2012 , he played the role of Larry Slade in the Eugene O ' Neill play " The Iceman Cometh " at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago . In 2013 for the Stratford Shakespeare Festival ' s 60th season , Mr . Dennehy returned to play the Earl of Shrewsbury in " Mary Stuart " and Pozzo in " Waiting for Godot " . Influence in popular media . In the comic book series " Ultimate Spider - Man " , that series ' version of the villain Norman Osborn was rendered by artist Mark Bagley to resemble actor Brian Dennehy , as per writer Brian Michael Bendis ' instructions . Personal life . He is the father of actresses Elizabeth Dennehy and Kathleen Dennehy . He resides in Woodstock , Connecticut . His son Cormac Dennehy graduated from Pomfret School in 2011 , while his daughter , Sarah , attends Woodstock Academy . He gave a commencement address at Pomfret School on May 29 , 2011 , when Cormac graduated . He and his wife , Jennifer , adopted a child .