Charles Harrelson might have become infamous for the
assassination of John H. Wood Jr., the first federal judge to be murdered in
the 20th century, had it not been for his progeny. On May 29, 1979 Judge Wood
was shot in the back. Harrelson was later convicted of the contract killing.
However, an act he engaged in sometime in October of 1960 would transcend
anything else Harrelson would ever do. He became the sperm donor, temporary
father, and later friend of actor Woody Harrelson. Woody is quoted as having
said in interviews that “My father is one of the most articulate, well-read,
charming people I’ve ever known. Still, I’m just now gauging whether he merits
my loyalty or friendship. I look at him as someone who could be a friend more
than someone who was a father.”
Born in Huntsville, Texas in 1939, the elder Harrelson spent
little of his adult life as a traditionally productive member of American
society. He was convicted of armed robbery and other crimes in addition to
another murder for hire in Texas. At one time, he was suspected of being one of
the three ‘bums’ arrested behind Dealey Plaza in Dallas just after the Kennedy
assassination. He even confessed to involvement in Kennedy’s murder at one
point, but in the end, the three ‘bums’ were all identified and he wasn’t one
of them.
Woody Harrelson worked to have Charles’ conviction for the
murder of Judge Wood overturned and apparently financed the legal work that
never accomplished its goal. Notwithstanding the fact that his prison sentence
for killing Judge Wood was served in federal prison, Charles Harrelson has
become one of the Texas Prison System’s iconic characters. Some memorabilia
reportedly taken from his cell while in the Walls and Eastham Units of the
Texas Prison System are even on display at the Texas Prison Museum in
Huntsville. His infamy in Texas prison history is likely to be primarily
because of his son’s fame as an actor rather than his own rather miserable
criminal career.
During his life, Charles Harrelson was described as many
things, including a prison snitch, cowardly killer and opportunist. It is
difficult to find any positive comments about the man’s life, but for those of
us who have enjoyed Woody Harrelson’s television and movie roles, Charles
Harrelson did one good thing sometime in October of 1960.
Charles Harrelson died in federal prison on March 15, 2007.
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