Country singer Jerry Reed, who later found fame as an actor through his friendship with Burt Reynolds, died 1 September 2008 of emphysema. Born Jerry Reed Hubbard on 20 March 1937, in Atlanta, Georgia, he first picked up a guitar in elementary school, and dropped out of high school at age 16 to start his music writing and recording career. He won two Grammy awards, for When You’re Hot, You’re Hot in 1971, and for Sneakin’ Around in 1993. He was also the Country Music Association’s musician of the year in 1970 and 1971.
He found fame on the big screen as Burt Reynolds’s sidekick Cledus Snow in the Smokey and the Bandit films of the 1970s and 1980s. His genre appearances include The New Scooby-Doo Movies (1972) and Radio Free Steve (2000).
Reed is survived by his wife of 49 years, Priscilla, their two daughters, and two grandchildren.