Ralph Waite Movies and Career Information

Ralph Waite (born June 22, 1928) is an American actor. His most famous role may be John Walton Sr. on the 1970s CBS program The Waltons and he is also well known for his portrayal of the slaver first mate Slater in the mini-series Roots. More recently, he appeared as Reverend Norman Balthus for 16 out of 24 episodes over the two seasons of the HBO series Carnivàle (2003–2005). Currently, he has been portraying the recurring roles of Father Matt on the daytime serial Days of our Lives, of Jethro Gibbs' (Mark Harmon) father, Jackson Gibbs, on NCIS and of Seeley Booth' (David Boreanaz) grandfather, Hank Booth on Bones. Waite, the oldest of five children, was born in White Plains, New York, the son of Esther (née Mitchell) and Ralph H. Waite, a construction engineer. Before becoming an actor, Waite, who served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1946 to 1948, graduated from Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, and briefly became a social worker. He then earned a master's degree from Yale University Divinity School and was a Presbyterian minister and religious editor at Harper & Row in New York City before deciding on a career in acting. He was a member of the Peninsula Players