Background and career
Burton Gilliam (born August 9, 1938) is an American actor. He is best known for memorable roles in several popular 1970s movies such as Blazing Saddles and Paper Moon, as well as comedic cameos in Back to the Future, Part III (1990) and Honeymoon in Vegas.
Before acting, Gilliam was a member of the Coast Guard's boxing team, where he won 201 out of 217 fights. He remained in the boxing world for decades, working as a referee in California. While working as a firefighter for the city of Dallas, Gilliam appeared in the role of "Floyd", the desk clerk, in the film Paper Moon. He then went on to appear in such popular movies as Blazing Saddles and Back to the Future Part III. Performing in Blazing Saddles was difficult for him, since he played a despicable racist who repeatedly hurls racial insults (including "nigger") at the black characters, especially the hero, played by Cleavon Little. Gilliam was so uncomfortable with his use of that slur that he apologized to Little, who had to remind him that it simply was a word in the script and that the racial insults were treated unambiguously negatively since he was playing a villain. Gilliam was also embarrassed by being the main protagonist in the infamous campfire (eating baked beans and farting) scene. Gilliam also has had roles in movies such as Honeymoon in Vegas, Thunderbolt and Lightfoot, Farewell, My Lovely (1975 film), Fletch, Gator, Telefon and The Terror Within II. His television appearances include Alice, Charlie's Angels, Mama's Family, The A-Team, The Dukes of Hazzard and The Fall Guy, and he appeared as a regular on Evening Shade.
Gilliam was born in Dallas, Texas. He lives with his wife, Susan, in Allen, Texas, just north of Dallas. He has two children and four grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. His granddaughter Hollie Vise is an American former world champion artistic gymnast. Gilliam graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School in 1956 and was inducted into the school's hall of fame in 2004. In 2018, he was the grand marshal of the Dallas St. Patrick's Day parade.
1980 The Girl, the Gold Watch & Everything as Hoover Hess 1981 The Girl, the Gold Watch & Dynamite as Hoover Hess III 1986 North and South Book II as Corporal Strock 1986 Dream West as Martineau 1990-1994 Evening Shade as Virgil 1997 The Love Bug as Mechanic Race Announcer
1975 The Waltons as J.D. Paulsen 1977 Charlie's Angels as Ulmer 1976-1978 Alice as Buford Baker / Jimmie Joe Castleberry 1979 Soap as Buck 1979 Young Maverick as Barbary Kid 1979 B. J. and the Bear as Lacy 1980 Flo as J.J. Castleberry 1979-1982 The Dukes of Hazzard as Heep / Tom Colt 1983 Knight Rider as Gene, Trucker 1983 Gun Shy as Jeremiah Jones 1983 The A-Team as Sheriff Jeff Lewis 1983 The Fall Guy as Sheriff 1985 Hail to the Chief as Clovis Montgomery 1987 Mama's Family as Bud 1995 Weird Science as "Snake" 1999 Sliders as Stage Driver 1999 Walker, Texas Ranger as Frank
1996 Redneck Rampage as Leonard (voice) 1998 Redneck Rampage Rides Again as Leonard (voice)
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth (October 2026), in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
