Watching Fred Thompson on the presidential campaign trail, it is easy to see how the former Republican senator carved out a successful acting career playing a succession of masculine, gruff characters in television dramas and films according to the Financial Times.
Standing 6ft 6in tall, with a craggy face and powerful physique, the 65-year-old exudes a natural authority, enhanced by his gravelly southern drawl.
“When they want someone to look mean and work cheap, they call me,” he joked to 200 people gathered to hear him speak at the Midtown Cafe in Newton, Iowa, this week.
Mr Thompson’s dalliance with acting, most notably in the role of district attorney Arthur Branch in Law & Order, a popular television drama, has invited comparisons with the last B-list actor to run for president: Ronald Reagan.
The parallel gives Mr Thompson a potentially powerful advantage in the race for the Republican nomination as the party, tarnished by its association with George W. Bush’s unpopular presidency, wallows in nostalgia for the Reagan era.
On the campaign trail in Iowa this week, however, grassroots Republicans made clear they were looking for evidence that his similarities with Mr Reagan ran deeper than modest acting ability.
“He looks presidential. He can act the part but can he do it for real?” asked Bob Hitchcroft, a retired teacher, at a campaign event in Iowa Falls. “Reagan was an actor but he also had substance. That’s what I want to find out about Fred.”
Mr Thompson officially entered the race last month, hoping to exploit widespread dissatisfaction among Republicans with the other main candidates bidding to represent the party in next year’s election.
Read it here: Thompson Finds Reagan Hard Act to Follow