Fred Dalton Thompson (born Freddie Dalton Thompson;[1][2] August 19, 1942), is an American politician, actor, attorney, lobbyist, columnist, and radio host. He served as a Republican U.S. Senator from Tennessee from 1994 through 2003.
Thompson served as chairman of the International Security Advisory Board at the United States Department of State, was a member of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and is a Visiting Fellow with the American Enterprise Institute, specializing in national security and intelligence.[3][4][5]
As an actor, Thompson has appeared in a large number of movies and television shows. He has frequently portrayed governmental figures.[6] In the final months of his U.S. Senate term in 2002, Thompson joined the cast of the long-running NBC television series Law & Order, playing Manhattan District Attorney Arthur Branch.[7]
In May 2007 he took a break from acting in order to run for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination. In 2009 he returned to acting with a guest appearance on television series; and is co-starring with Brian Dennehy in the movie Alleged, about the Scopes Monkey Trial.[8]
