Jack Garner

Jack Garner (born Jack Edward Bumgarner; September 19, 1926 – September 13, 2011) was an American actor, best known for The Rockford Files and numerous other television roles. He was the elder brother of James Garner. 2Early life and career Garner was born in Norman, Oklahoma, the son of Mildred Scott (née Meek) and Weldon Warren "Bill" Bumgarner. He was the second of three boys including actor James Garner (youngest) and Charles Bumgarner (oldest). The family operated a general store on Denver Corner in eastern Norman. The boys were sent to live with relatives after their mother died, while Garner's father remarried several times.Garner was a star athlete at Norman High School, playing on the state championship basketball team in 1945. Jack Garner played as a minor league baseball pitcher for a team affiliate with the Pittsburgh Pirates for eleven years. He then worked for several golf courses in Florida after leaving the minor leagues. Years later, brother James Garner wrote about Garner's athletic abilities in his memoir, "At Norman High, he was a point guard on a championship basketball team and quarterbacked an all-state football team...But his best sport was baseball: Jack was a pitcher in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization for 11 years. He was a better athlete than I was and a lot more outgoin