Actor Ralph Waite passed away on Thursday at age 85.
Waite was best known for playing patriarch John Walton, Sr. on The Waltons, a family-oriented hit drama that ran from 1972 to 1981.
After the series ended, Waite maintained a steady slew of television and film work, appearing on the big screen opposite Sylvester Stallone in Cliffhanger and Kevin Costner in The Bodyguard — in each case, playing the father of the film’s protagonist.
Most recently, Waite could be see seen in recurring roles on Bones as the grandfather of Seeley Booth (David Boreanaz) and NCIS as father to Jethro Gibbs (Mark Harmon).
Before becoming an actor in the 1960s, Waite was an ordained Presbyterian minister, worked for a time as a social worker and served in the United States Marine Corps.
“Ralph was a good honest actor and a good honest man,”; said Michael Learned, who played his Waltons wife for more than a decade. “He was my spiritual husband. We loved each other for over 40 years. He died a working actor at the top of his game. He was a loving mentor to many and a role model to an entire generation.”;
