Though not Hispanic, Autry's parents named him "Carlos" after aLouisiana politician admired by his father. The couple soon divorced,however, and Autry's mother took him to be with her family in centralCalifornia. Carlos Autry now became Carlos Brown. Autry played sportsin high school and earned a scholarship to the University of thePacific where he played quarterback and then tight end on the footballteam. He attracted attention in the 1975 football draft and wound upplaying for the Green Bay Packers. He started three games asquarterback but his efforts were disappointing and coachBart Starr cut him from the team in 1977.Autry then moved into acting and played small parts inNorth Dallas Forty (1979) andPopai (1980) under the name "CarlosBrown". While filmingSouthern Comfort (1981) inLouisiana in 1981, he again made contact with his father and afterwardsdecided to change his name back to Autry. He also dropped the "Carlos"and began to use his middle name -- Alan. His acting career peaked whenhe played a small-town Mississippi policeman in theIn the Heat of the Night (1988)TV series which ran from 1988 to 1995. Later, Autry moved into politicsand was elected mayor of Fresno, California, in 2000. In 2004, he wasre-elected.