About William Devane
William Joseph Devane (born September 5, 1939) is an American actor. He is known for his role as Greg Sumner on the primetime soap opera Knots Landing (1983–1993) and as James Heller on the Fox serial dramas 24 (2005–2007) and 24: Live Another Day (2014). He is also known for his work in films such as Family Plot (1976), Marathon Man (1976), Rolling Thunder (1977), Payback (1999), and Space Cowboys (2000). == Early life == Devane was born on September 5, 1939, in Albany, New York, the son of Joseph Devane, who had been Franklin D. Roosevelt's chauffeur when he was governor of New York. His father was of Irish descent and his mother Kate had Dutch and German ancestry. Devane graduated from Philip Schuyler High School in Albany, and then the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City in 1962. == Career == Devane began his acting career with the New York Shakespeare Festival, where he performed in fifteen plays. In 1966, Devane portrayed Robert F. Kennedy in the off-Broadway spoof MacBird. He gained acclaim for his role as President John F. Kennedy in a television docudrama about the Cuban Missile Crisis, The Missiles of October (1974) and again when he played blacklisted radio personality John Henry Faulk in the Emmy Award-winning TV movie Fear on Trial (1975). Devane starred as Master Sgt.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.