Ralph Waite Net Worth

May 2024 · 13 minute read

Ralph Waite net worth is
$2 Million

Ralph Waite Wiki Biography

Ralph Harold Waite Jr. was born on 22nd June 1928, in White Plains, New York State USA, and was an actor, director and politician as well, possibly best known to the world for appearing in the role of John Walton, Sr. in the popular TV series “The Waltons” (1972-1981), and in films “The Bodyguard” (1992) as Herb Farmer, and as Frank in “Cliffhanger” (1993), among other roles. Ralph passed away in 2014.

Have you ever wondered how rich Ralph Waite was, at the time of his death? According to authoritative sources, it has been estimated that Ralph`s net worth was as high as $2 million, earned through his successful career in the entertainment industry, during which he made more than 80 film and TV appearances. Also, Ralph also tried himself in politics, but without any major success.

Ralph Waite Net Worth $2 Million

Ralph is the first born child of Ralph H. Waite and his wife Esther. He served in the US Marine Corps for two years, before he enrolled at Bucknell University, located in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. After graduation he found a job as a social worker, but then furthered his education, obtaining a master`s degree from Yale University Divinity School. He was then ordained a Presbyterian minister, while also working as a religious editor for Harper & Row.

Ralph decided to become an actor in the early ‘60s, and began with the Peninsula Players summer theater program through the 1963 season, and later started to feature on stage, before making his Broadway debut in “Blues for Mister Charlie” (1964). He remained active on stage during the ‘60s, but eventually became more focused on films and TV.

He made his first TV appearance in the series “Hawk” (1966), and just a year later made his film debut in the Stuart Rosenberg`s Oscar-winning “Cool Hand Luke”. Before the end of the decade, Ralph also had roles in “A Lovely Way to Die” (1968), starring Kirk Douglas, among other appearances, which only increased his net worth.

Ralph started the ‘70s quite successfully, landing appearances in such films as “The Pursuit of Happiness” (1971), “Chato`s Land” (1972) with Charles Bronson, and “Trouble Man” (1972), before he got the role of John Walton, Sr in “The Waltons” (1972-1981), which role celebrated him as an actor, and increased his net worth by a large margin, as he appeared in 196 episodes. While the show lasted, Ralph stayed active on the map, and made numerous film appearances, including in such films as “Kid Blue” (1973), then a lead role in “The Secret Life of John Chapman” (1976), and his directorial debut with “On the Nickel” (1980).

In the early 80s, Ralph had featured as John Walton in television films about the famous fictional family, such as “A Wedding on Walton`s Mountain” (1982), “Mother`s Day on Walton Mountain” (1982), “A Day for Thanks on Walton`s Mountain” (1982), but also had many other roles throughout the decade, including in such productions as “The Mississippi” (1983-1984) as Ben Walker, then “Crime of Innocence” (1985) starring Andy Griffith, and the “The River Pirates” in 1988, with Richard Farnsworth and Ryan Francis in lead roles. His net worth was rrising.

The next decade was one of the most successful ones for Ralph as he appeared in several high profile films, such as Mick Jackson`s Oscar-nominated “The Bodyguard” (1992) next to Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner, then Renny Harlin`s “Cliffhanger” (1993), which also received Oscar Award nominations, with Sylvester Stallone and John Lithgow, “A Season of Hope” (1995), and the TV series “Murder One” (1996), in which he portrayed Malcolm Dietrich.

Ralph started the new millennium with a role in action thriller “The President`s Man” (2000), with Chuck Norris in the lead role, and two years later featured in the romantic drama “Sunshine State”. In 2003 he was cast as Reverend Norman Balthus in the TV series “Carnivale” (2003-2005), and had small roles in low-budget films such as “Silver City” (2004), and “Murder 101: If Whises Were Horses.

In 2008 he re-emerged as Jackson Gibbs in the popular crime drama TV series “NCIS” (2008-2013), while also securing the role of Father Matt in the soap opera “Days of Our Lives”, which he played from 2009 until 2014, increasing his net worth by a large margin. Ralph also had roles in films such as Bill Norton`s “Generation Gap” (2008), “Letter to God” (2010), and Corbin Bernsen`s “25 Hill” (2011), all of which added further to his net worth.

Regarding his personal life, Ralph was married three times. His first wife was Beverly Hall(1951-66); the couple had three children. Secondly, he married Kerry Shear Waite in 1977 and divorced four years later. Just a year later he married Linda East, with whom he remained until his death. Ralph passed away on 13th February 2014 at 85 years of age.


Full NameRalph Waite
Net Worth$2 Million
Date Of BirthJune 22, 1928
DiedFebruary 13, 2014, Palm Desert, California, United States
Place Of BirthWhite Plains, New York, United States
ProfessionActor
EducationBucknell University, Yale Divinity School
NationalityAmerican
SpouseLinda East (m. 1982–2014), Kerry Shear Waite (m. 1977–1981), Beverly Waite (m. 1951–1966)
ParentsRalph H. Waite, Esther Mitchell
Nicknames拉尔夫·韦特
IMDBhttp://www.imdb.com/name/nm0906627/
AwardsOutstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series The Waltons (1971) For playing: "John Walton, Sr."., Outstanding Single Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Comedy or Drama Series Roots (1977) For playing "Third mate Slater".
NominationsPrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Single Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Comedy or Drama Series
MoviesThe Waltons, NCIS, Cool Hand Luke, Carnivàle, The Bodyguard, Cliffhanger, On the Nickel, A Walton Thanksgiving Reunion, Lawman, Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco, The Grissom Gang
TV ShowsCarnivàle, The Mississippi, The Waltons, NCIS, Roots
#Trademark
1The role of John Walton Sr. on _"The Waltons" (1972)_.
2Deep grouchy voice
3Father roles post The Waltons as having been widowers.
4Playing fathers of families/children, and fathers of the church,
#Quote
1I'm not any more moral than my neighbors.
2I was never taken to a play or concert or church. Yet I was a show-off, a dreamer, a storyteller.
3I have vanity and greed enough for one person. But at the same time, I feel in my bones you lose a lot of life's value if you don't see yourself as a member of the family of man.
4The beauty of life is in people who feel some obligation to enhance life. Without that, we're only half alive.
5'The Waltons' was profoundly important after years of wandering around. I was 44 and cut off from family and friends. It nurtured me back to a sense of family and who I am. It was a transforming experience.
6You only mature when you face problems you can't deal with.
7Just as theater has to be where people live, actors have to go out in the marketplace - not be cut off by a lens. Either an artist grows or he stagnates.
#Fact
1Father of Sharon, Kathleen and Suzanne.
2Began The Waltons (1971) at age 44.
3Acting mentor and friends of Richard Thomas and Mary McDonough.
4Did not want to play the lead role in The Waltons (1971) series, because he didn't want to be committed in doing a long-running TV series, but Earl Hamner Jr. encouraged him to do so.
5Graduated from White Plains High School in White Plains, New York, in 1946.
6Friends with: Michael Learned, Ellen Corby, Will Geer, Joe Conley, Ronnie Claire Edwards, Noble Willingham, Wilford Brimley, William Schallert, Mary Jackson, Jack Warden, Edward Asner, Earl Hamner Jr., Harry Harris, Larry Hagman, Hal Williams, Nora Marlowe, Mark Harmon, David McCallum, Dinah Shore, John Ritter, Mariclare Costello, Lewis Arquette, Lynn Hamilton, Pearl Shear, John Aniston, and E.G. Marshall.
7Best remembered by the public for his starring role as John Walton Sr. on The Waltons (1971).
8Ralph Waite passed away on February 13, 2014, at age 85, and within five months of three other legends, also born in 1928, aged 85 or 86: Shirley Temple, James Garner and Maya Angelou. The Last of Whom he co-starred in the first episode of Roots (1977).
9He was physically healthy and active until contracting pneumonia, which caused his death at age 85.
10His grandson Jackson Waite is a successful producer.
11Classmate of former news editor Milt Hoffman.
12Was a staunch Democrat.
13In 2008, veteran actor James Garner was planning to come out of retirement from on camera roles when he was cast in NCIS (2003), but having a stroke soon after being cast, prevented him from doing it. The role was ultimately given to Waite, who was also born in 1928, but whose health was holding up rather better at that time. In the end, Waite passed away five months before Garner.
14Is almost 3 months younger than James Garner. He guest-starred with him on an episode of Nichols (1971), and died 5 months before him.
15When Waite's class had a 40th reunion in 1986, but he was starring in a play in New Haven. Unable to attend the main reunion dinner, he showed up for a brunch the following day.
16His former mother-in-law, Pearl Shear, died in 2009 and lived to be age 91. Shear guest-starred on The Waltons (1971) with him.
17Until his death, he resided in Palm Desert, California.
18Served in the United Marine Corps for 2 years.
19His eldest daughter, Sharon Waite, died of leukemia when she was 9 years old in 1964.
20Met his first wife, Beverly Hall, in college. She inspired him to go into social work in New York's Westchester County.
21He was an active member of Spirit of the Desert Presbyterian Fellowship in Palm Desert, California.
22His father, Ralph H. Waite, was a construction engineer, and his mother, Esther (née Mitchell) Waite, was a housewife.
23Graduated from Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Social Work, and a Master's Degree from Yale University Divinity School.
24Became an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church and the United Church of Christ.
25Before he was a successful actor and a political activist, he was a bartender.
26His problems with alcohol began when his 9-year-old daughter, Sharon, passed away.
27Met his second wife, Kerry Shear Waite, when she showed up as a volunteer stage manager/actress at the Los Angeles Actors Theatre.
28Was a longtime volunteer and board member of the ABC Alcohol and Recovery Center in Indio, California, serving for years as president.
29Just before his death, he attended the book signing of his ex-The Waltons (1971) co-star, Mary McDonough, in Los Angeles, California.
30Before he was a successful actor, ordained minister and political activist, he was also a social worker.
31Acting ran in his family.
32Was named after his father.
33Didn't start acting until he was age 32.
34Founder of the Los Angeles Actors Theater, which he financed in large part by himself.
35Up until the ninth and final season, Waite had appeared in each and every episode of The Waltons (1971).
36Had conducted a memorial service for his aunt, Grace Haviland Waite, at the Quaker Meeting House in Purchase, New York, in 1989.
37Made his Broadway debut in Blues for Mister Charlie.
38Founder of the popular eatery Don and Sweet Sue's Cafe in Cathedral City, California.
39Survived by his wife, one child, one stepson, three grandchildren and two step-grandchildren.
40Upon his death, he was cremated. His remains were buried at the White Plains Rural Cemetery, White Plains, Westchester County, New York.
41Longtime friend of Hal Williams.
42In On the Nickel (1980), Waite played a recovering alcoholic, in real-life, he was also a former alcoholic.
43Between Norman Lloyd, Angela Lansbury, Dick Van Dyke, Ernest Borgnine, Mickey Rooney, Betty White and Larry Hagman, Waite was one of the stars in Hollywood never to retire.
44After his divorce, at age 38, he moved to Los Angeles, California, in 1966, to pursue a career in acting. His two daughters stayed with his ex-wife in New York.
45He also became active in politics, picketing for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.
46Before he was a successful actor, ordained minister and political activist, he was the religious editor for book publisher Harper & Row.
47Served in the United States Marine Corps.
48The eldest of five children.
49Appeared on the front cover of TV Guide 5 times.
50Once owned a house in Rancho Mirage, California.
51Executive Producer of Ralph Waite Productions from 1983 to 1984.
52Ralph Waite passed away on February 13, 2014. Just before his death, his final role was on Days of Our Lives (1965).
53Did not attend the funeral of Ellen Corby, when the actress passed away in 1999.
54Ex-son-in-law of Pearl Shear.
55Grandfather of Jackson Waite and Charlie Ray.
56Stepgrandfather of two boys, by stepson Liam Waite, Tristan River Waite, born October 12, 1998, and Asher Sky Waite, born September 2001. The mother of both boys was Liam's then fiancée Natasha Henstridge.
57Stepfather of Liam Waite.
58John Walton Sr., Waite's character on The Waltons (1971), was ranked #3 by TV Guide in its list of the "50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time" [20 June 2004 issue].
59First ran for congress in 1990, as the Democratic nominee, only to lose against incumbent Representative Al McCandless (R).
60Unsuccessfully ran for Congress in California to fill the unexpired term of the late Sonny Bono, achieving the Democratic nomination, then defeated by Mary Bono (Sonny's widow), April 7, 1998.

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Actor

TitleYearStatusCharacter
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation2008TV SeriesSheriff Montgomery
Generation Gap2008TV MovieChick
The Cleaner2008TV SeriesJonus Mullins
Cane2007TV SeriesFather Mike
Cold Case2007TV SeriesFelton Metz '07
Murder 101: If Wishes Were Horses2007TV MovieJacob Brawley
Carnivàle2003-2005TV SeriesReverend Norman Balthus
Silver City2004Casey Lyle
The Practice2004TV SeriesWalter Josephson
Blessings2003TV MovieSheriff
Sunshine State2002Furman Temple
Spirit2001TV MovieJacob
All My Children2001TV SeriesBart
Timequest2000The Time Traveler
The President's Man2000TV MoviePresident Mathews
Chicken Soup for the Soul1999TV SeriesDad
Rocket Power1999TV SeriesDoc Freimouth
The Outer Limits1999TV SeriesGene Morton
The Third Twin1997TV MovieSenator Proust
A Walton Easter1997TV MovieJohn Walton
Orleans1997TV SeriesOtis Leblanc
Murder One1996TV SeriesMalcolm Dietrich
Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco1996Shadow (voice)
A Walton Wedding1995TV MovieJohn Walton
A Season of Hope1995TV MovieSam Hackett
Keys1994TV MovieDr. C.J. Halligan
Sioux City1994Drew McDermott
Sin & Redemption1994TV MovieCal Simms
Time Trax1994TV SeriesLamont Carson
A Walton Thanksgiving Reunion1993TV MovieJohn Walton
Cliffhanger1993Frank
The Bodyguard1992Herb Farmer
Crash and Burn1990VideoLathan Hooks
Shannon's Deal1990TV SeriesHarry
Sparks: The Price of Passion1990TV MovieOrville Lemon
Murder, She Wrote1989TV SeriesD.A. Paul Robbins
Red Earth, White Earth1989TV MovieMartin
The River Pirates1988Narrator
Crime of Innocence1985TV MovieFrank Hayward
Growing Pains1984TV MovieRob
The Mississippi1983-1984TV SeriesBen Walker
A Good Sport1984TV MovieTommy O'Bannon
A Day for Thanks on Walton's Mountain1982TV MovieJohn Walton
Mother's Day on Waltons Mountain1982TV MovieJohn Walton
A Wedding on Walton's Mountain1982TV MovieJohn Walton
The Gentleman Bandit1981TV MovieFather Bernard Pagano
The Waltons1972-1981TV SeriesJohn Walton, Sr.
Angel City1980TV MovieJared Teeter
The Waltons: A Decade of the Waltons1980TV MovieJohn Walton, Sr. / Himself
On the Nickel1980C.G.
OHMS1980TV MovieFloyd Wing
Waiting for Godot1977TV MoviePozzo
Red Alert1977TV MovieHenry Stone
Roots1977TV Mini-SeriesSlater
The Secret Life of John Chapman1976TV MovieJohn Chapman
The Thanksgiving Story1973TV Movie
The Stone Killer1973Detective Mathews
Kid Blue1973Drummer
Trouble Man1972Pete Cockrell
The Magnificent Seven Ride!1972Jim Mackay
Girls on the Road1972John
Chato's Land1972Elias Hooker
Nichols1971TV SeriesSam Burton
The Grissom Gang1971Mace
Lawman1971Jack Dekker
The Sporting Club1971Olson
The Pursuit of Happiness1971Detective Cromie
Five Easy Pieces1970Carl Fidelio Dupea
Bonanza1970TV SeriesHoby Miles
Last Summer1969Peter's Father (uncredited)
N.Y.P.D.1967-1968TV SeriesRobert Stryker
A Lovely Way to Die1968Sean Magruder
The Desperate Hours1967TV MovieLt. Fredericks
Cool Hand Luke1967Alibi
The Borgia Stick1967TV MovieMan from Toledo
Hawk1966TV SeriesChauffeur
Look Up and Live1954TV SeriesHost
Days of Our Lives2009-2014TV SeriesFather Matt Father Watt
NCIS2008-2013TV SeriesJackson Gibbs
Bones2009-2013TV SeriesHank Booth
Old Henry2013TV ShortHenry
Gabe the Cupid Dog2012R.L. Dutton
25 Hill2011Ed
Off the Map2011TV SeriesAbuelito
Letters to God2010Cornelius Perryfield
Grey's Anatomy2009TV SeriesIrving Waller
Ace Ventura: Pet Detective Jr.2009TV MovieGrandpa Ventura

Director

TitleYearStatusCharacter
The Mississippi1983TV Series 1 episode
On the Nickel1980
The Waltons1973-1980TV Series 16 episodes

Soundtrack

TitleYearStatusCharacter
The Waltons1974-1978TV Series performer - 2 episodes

Writer

TitleYearStatusCharacter
On the Nickel1980

Producer

TitleYearStatusCharacter
A Good Sport1984TV Movie executive producer

Thanks

TitleYearStatusCharacter
NCIS2014TV Series in memory of - 1 episode
Edición Especial Coleccionista2014TV Series in memory of - 1 episode
A Natural Born World-Shaker: Making 'Cool Hand Luke'2008Video documentary short special thanks

Self

TitleYearStatusCharacter
NCIS - Season 10: X Marks the Spot: A Look at Season X2013Video shortHimself
A Walton's Family Reunion2010TV Movie documentaryHimself - Actor
A Natural Born World-Shaker: Making 'Cool Hand Luke'2008Video documentary shortHimself
The West1996TV Series documentary
Wild by Law1991DocumentaryAldo Leopold (voice)
Reading Rainbow1987TV SeriesHimself
Good Morning America1978TV SeriesHimself
CBS: On the Air1978TV Mini-Series documentary
CBS Galaxy1977TV SpecialHimself - Guest
Dinah!1975-1977TV SeriesHimself
The Mike Douglas Show1976TV SeriesHimself - Actor

Archive Footage

Won Awards

YearAwardCeremonyNominationMovie
1980Special MentionTaormina International Film FestivalOn the Nickel (1980)

Nominated Awards

YearAwardCeremonyNominationMovie
1980Golden CharybdisTaormina International Film FestivalOn the Nickel (1980)
1978Primetime EmmyPrimetime Emmy AwardsOutstanding Lead Actor in a Drama SeriesThe Waltons (1971)
1977Primetime EmmyPrimetime Emmy AwardsOutstanding Single Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Comedy or Drama SeriesRoots (1977)

Known for movies


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