Charles Bronson

 Charles Bronson, born Charles Dennis Buchinsky (November 3, 1921 – August 30, 2003), was a legendary film actor best known for his tough-guy roles. In 1943, he enlisted in the United States Army Air Forces, serving as an aerial gunner in the 760th Flexible Gunnery Training Squadron. By 1945, he was part of a Boeing B-29 Superfortress crew with the 39th Bombardment Group based on Guam, flying 25 missions and earning a Purple Heart for wounds sustained in battle.

Bronson’s film career included iconic roles in Once Upon a Time in the West, The Magnificent Seven, The Dirty Dozen, The Great Escape, Rider on the Rain, The Mechanic, and the Death Wish series. He was often cast as a police officer, gunfighter, or vigilante, frequently in revenge-driven stories, and collaborated closely with directors Michael Winner and J. Lee Thompson. In 1965, he appeared as Major Wolenski in Battle of the Bulge.

Bronson was married three times, most notably to actress Jill Ireland from 1968 until her death from breast cancer in 1990. His health declined in later years, and he retired from acting after hip-replacement surgery in 1998. He spent his final years battling Alzheimer’s disease and passed away from pneumonia at age 81. Charles Bronson is interred at Brownsville Cemetery in West Windsor, Vermont.