Fred Thompson Biography

Fast Facts

• Graduated from Memphis State University in 1964 and earned his law degree from Vanderbilt University in 1967
• Joined a law firm after finishing law school and was appointed an assistant U․S․ attorney in Nashville in 1969
• Quote: "I think everybody wants to be able to optimize their character, but that doesn't necessarily mean dominating screen time․"
• Represented Tennessee in the United States Senate from 1994 to 2003
• Best known as a politician and actor who played District Attorney Arthur Branch in "Law & Order․"
• Played many government figures in films and television shows, including a White House chief of staff, a director of the CIA, an FBI agent, a rear admiral and a senator
• Was on the special committee convened by the U․S․ Senate to investigate the Watergate scandal
• Was the first member of his family to attend a university
• Announced that he was running for President of the United States in 2007, but withdrew from the race in early 2008