Editing George Clooney (section)

===Early work (1978–1993)===
[[File:George Clooney 1995.jpg|thumb|upright|right|Clooney in 1995]]

Clooney's first role was as an [[Extra (acting)|extra]] in the television miniseries ''[[Centennial (miniseries)|Centennial]]'' in 1978, which was based on the [[Centennial (novel)|novel of the same name]] by [[James A. Michener]] and was partly filmed in Clooney's hometown of Augusta, Kentucky.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Kimberly Potts |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=q6EHHXqbXpQC&q=george+clooney%2C+Centennial&pg=PA284 |title=George Clooney : The Last Great Movie Star |date=2011 |publisher=Applause Theatre & Cinema Books |isbn=978-1-55783-785-1 |edition=Rev. and updated |location=Montclair, NJ |page=217 |access-date=June 17, 2014 |archive-date=May 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240525092306/https://books.google.com/books?id=q6EHHXqbXpQC&q=george+clooney%2C+Centennial&pg=PA284#v=snippet&q=george%20clooney%2C%20Centennial&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Mark Browning |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BXaA1mCr93IC&q=george+clooney%2C+Centennial&pg=PA1 |title=George Clooney: an actor looking for a role |date=2012 |publisher=Praeger |isbn=978-0-313-39621-2 |location=Santa Barbara, Calif. |page=1 |access-date=June 17, 2014 |archive-date=May 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240525092351/https://books.google.com/books?id=BXaA1mCr93IC&q=george+clooney%2C+Centennial&pg=PA1 |url-status=live }}</ref> Clooney's first major role came in 1984 in the short-lived [[CBS]] sitcom ''[[E/R]]'' (not to be confused with ''[[ER (TV series)|ER]]'', the long-running medical drama). He played a handyman on the series ''[[The Facts of Life (TV series)|The Facts of Life]]'' and appeared as Bobby Hopkins, a detective, on an episode of ''[[The Golden Girls]]''. In 1986, Clooney made his theater debut in the play ''[[Vicious (play)|Vicious]]'' about [[Sex Pistols]] musician [[Sid Vicious]].<ref name=P>{{cite web|magazine=[[People (magazine)|People]]|title=George Clooney Admits Memorizing His Lines for Broadway's Good Night, and Good Luck Is 'a Nightmare': 'I'm Scared!'|url=https://people.com/george-clooney-memorizing-his-lines-for-broadway-is-a-nightmare-11682190|date=February 19, 2025|author=Quinn, Dave}}</ref>

Clooney's first prominent role was a semi-regular supporting role in the sitcom ''[[Roseanne]]'', playing [[Roseanne Barr]]'s supervisor Booker Brooks, followed by the role of a construction worker on ''[[Baby Talk (TV series)|Baby Talk]]'', a co-starring role on the CBS drama ''[[Bodies of Evidence (TV series)|Bodies of Evidence]]'' as Detective Ryan Walker, and then a year-long turn as Det. James Falconer on ''[[Sisters (U.S. TV series)|Sisters]]''. In 1988, Clooney played one of the lead roles in the comedy-horror film ''[[Return of the Killer Tomatoes]]''.<ref>{{Cite news |date=July 9, 2000 |title=George Clooney; Wrong 'Tomatoes' |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/07/09/movies/l-george-clooney-wrong-tomatoes-090387.html |access-date=July 28, 2014 |archive-date=August 10, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140810164936/http://www.nytimes.com/2000/07/09/movies/l-george-clooney-wrong-tomatoes-090387.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1990, he starred in the short-lived [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] police drama ''[[Sunset Beat]]''.<ref>Terrace, Vincent. ''Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2007'' (Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Co., 2008), pp.1468–9.</ref> During this period, Clooney was a student at the [[Beverly Hills Playhouse]] acting school for five years.<ref>{{Cite web |title=George Clooney on the Beverly Hills Playhouse Acting School |url=http://www.bhplayhouse.com/george-clooney |access-date=July 28, 2014 |archive-date=August 11, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140811044950/http://www.bhplayhouse.com/george-clooney |url-status=dead }}</ref>