W. Benson Terry; Stage, Screen, TV Character Actor

W. Benson Terry, 76, character actor on stage, screen and television. Reared in Cincinnati, Terry worked as a professional boxer, railroad switchman and union organizer before turning to acting. He studied the craft at Columbia College in Chicago and started his performing career in small theaters there. After moving to New York in 1966, he appeared frequently in off-Broadway and off-off-Broadway productions. Ten years ago, he achieved critical acclaim for his performance in “The Cherry Orchard” at the Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. Terry’s most recent motion picture appearance was in 1994’s “Forrest Gump,” in which he portrayed the shrimper who sold his boat to Gump, played by Tom Hanks. On March 24 in New York City of cancer.