Woody and his two brothers were raised by their mother, Diane Harrelson, in Texas and Ohio. He became interested in acting in high school and studied English and theater arts at Hanover College. After moving to New York City, he caught his big break when he was cast as Woody Boyd in Cheers in 1985.
Though he made his name and reputation on his own, there’s more to the Harrelson family than meets the eye. Here’s a look into Woody Harrelson’s father and what he’s famous for.
When did Woody Harrelson’s parents get married?
Charles and Diane Harrelson married in the 1950s, sometime while Charles was on leave from the Navy, according to Texas Monthly. The pair moved to Los Angeles in 1959 where he sold encyclopedias. That same year, he was charged with robbery but got off with five years probation by serving as a jailhouse “snitch,” per the Houston Chronicle.
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“I think they separated when I was 7,” Woody said in a 2012 interview with The Guardian. “But he was gone a lot before that, in prison. Away and back. Away and back. It wasn’t like he was there all the time prior to that.”
Was Woody Harrelson’s dad a hitman?
Charles Harrelson was a convicted hitman. He was charged three times with murder and convicted twice, spending two long stints in prison and ultimately dying there of a heart attack in 2007.
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(Original Caption) Convicted hit man Charles Harrelson, prime suspect in the 1979 assassination of U.S. District Judge John Wood, was convicted 10/22 of being an ex-felon in possession of guns and was sentenced to 20 years in prison and fined $10,000. After the sentence was made, deputy sheriffs lead Harrelson (far right) out of the courtroom and back into prison.Bettmann/Getty Images
Woody heard the news on the radio, according to Texas Monthly, and would’ve been 7 to 10 years old at the time. His father was acquitted by a jury in September 1970.
The streak of good behavior that got him out of prison may not have lasted, however, as he was soon charged with the 1979 murder of federal judge John Wood. Jimmy Chagra, a drug trafficker in Texas, allegedly paid Charles $250,000 to commit the murder, as Judge Wood was about to preside over his trial.
Who did Charles Harrelson kill?
Charles Harrelson was charged with three murders and found guilty of two. The two men he was convicted for killing were Texas grain dealer Sam Degelia (killed in 1968) and federal judge John Wood (killed in 1979).
In 1995 Charles Harrelson and two other inmates at a federal prison in Atlanta attempted to escape. They used a makeshift rope to try to make it over a wall, but surrendered after a guard fired a warning shot, per the Orlando Sentinel.
What does Woody Harrelson think of his father?
Woody has said before he doesn’t think of Charles as a good father, but he also doesn’t seem to have hated him.
Both Woody and his brother Brett think the final murder their father was sent to prison for – the 1979 killing of Judge John Wood – was tried unfairly.
He told The Guardian in 2012 that he spent millions in legal fees to help his father. “I tried for years to get him out. To get him a new trial,” he said.
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