Jim Brown, more than anyone, established the sports-to-Hollywood pipeline that Dwayne Johnson and LeBron James would later take for granted. Playing his share of tough guys in cowboy flicks, Blaxploitation movies, and even the occasional spoof like his self-parody in I’m Gonna Git U Sucka, the jock-turned-thespian made up with charisma what he lacked in range, never taking himself too seriously. With a movie career spanning six decades, Brown only broke into acting on a lark, making a name in star vehicles, then as a character actor. Not bad for a side gig in the off season.