Burt Reynolds after he posed naked in the April 1972 issue of "Cosmopolitan". Reynolds said he did it for "a kick. I have a strange sense of humor" and because he knew he had "Deliverance" coming out. He later expressed regret for posing for Cosmopolitan. "Deliverance" was a huge commercial and critical success and, along with the talk show appearances, helped establish Reynolds as a star. "The night of the Academy Awards, I counted a half-dozen Burt Reynolds jokes," he later said. "I had become a household name, the most talked-about star at the award show." He was then in "Fuzz" (1972),
Ned Nickerson introduced in the 1932 storyline, Nancy was sixteen, but it could be assumed that Ned was not greatly older, but possibly three to four years). Aside from being a good student, Ned also plays for three of his school's varsity teams - basketball, baseball, and football. In some stories, he pursues outdoor interests including rowing and swimming, as well as scuba diving. His best friends include Buck Rodman (in the earliest, original stories), and, in revised stories and books after 1950, Burt Eddleton and Dave Evans, who are also students at Emerson. Ned frequently sells insurance during the summer, although