Born May 25, 1926, in Nelson, GA; died of cancer, January 27, 1994, in Altadena, CA. Actor. After graduating from Northwestern University, Akins performedin such classic films as Rio Bravo, starring John Wayne, and How the West Was Won, featuring Jimmy Stewart. Akins also held supporting roles in From Hereto Eternity, The Caine Mutiny, and Inherit the Wind, working with notable performers Burt Lancaster, Humphrey Bogart, and Spencer Tracy respectively. Akins later became a popular figure on television playing amiable, down-to-earthcharacters. During the 1970s and 1980s he was featured as nomadic truck driver Sonny Pruitt in the series Movin' On and as the inept Sheriff Elroy P. Lobo on both the B. J. and the Bear show and the spin-off Lobo. He also played roles in the drama series Hunter and In the Heat of the Night.
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