Stanton was born in West Irvine, Kentucky, to Ersel, a cook, and Sheridan Harry Stanton, a tobacco farmer and barber. His parents divorced when Stanton was in high school; both later remarried.
Stanton had two younger brothers, Archie, and Ralph, and a younger half-brother, Stan. His family had a musical background.
In a career that spanned more than six decades, Stanton made notable appearances in the films Cool Hand Luke (1967), Kelly’s Heroes (1970), Dillinger (1973), The Godfather Part II (1974), Alien (1979), Escape from New York (1981), Christine (1983), Repo Man (1984), Paris, Texas (1984), Pretty in Pink (1986), The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), Wild at Heart (1990), The Straight Story (1999), The Green Mile (1999), Alpha Dog (2006), Inland Empire (2006), and Lucky (2017), and had smaller roles in many others.
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