Written By: Ben Cosgrove
Donald Sutherland, who died on June 20, 2024, at the age of 88, was of Hollywood’s unlikeliest leading men, and one of its most enduring actors. In the seventies he made his name playing Hawkeye Pierce in Robert Altman’s M*A*S*H and the title character in Klute, and he also starred in Nicolas Roeg’s cult favorite, Don’t Look Now and the brilliant remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Since then he has delivered memorable performances in an impressively varied collection of movies, including Ordinary People, Eye of the Needle, Six Degrees of Separation, Pride and Prejudice, and The Hunger Games movies.
Along the way Sutherland also gained a second sort fame as a father, when his son Kiefer built his own notable acting career, starring in films such as Stand by Me and The Lost Boys, and in the hit television series 24.
Here, LIFE.com offers a gallery of rare pictures (none of them ran in LIFE magazine) of Sutherland and his family, by photographer Co Rentmeester in 1970. Donald also shows his quirky side in a series of portraits taken in the process of shaving his beard. Sutherland and his wife at the time, the Canadian activist and actress Shirley Douglas, divorced not long after these photos were made.
Liz Ronk edited this gallery for LIFE.com. Follow her on Twitter @lizabethronk.
Donald Sutherland and his son, Kiefer, in New York, 1970.
Co Rentmeester The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock
Donald Sutherland and his son, Kiefer, in New York, 1970.
Co Rentmeester The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock
Donald Sutherland and his children, twins Kiefer and Rachel, in New York, 1970.
Co Rentmeester The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock
Donald Sutherland with his wife, Shirley Douglas, and their children (left to right): Kiefer Sutherland, Tom Douglas (Shirley’s son from her first marriage), Rachel Sutherland, in New York, 1970.
Co Rentmeester The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock
Donald Sutherland shaving, 1970.
Co Rentmeester The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock
Donald Sutherland, 1970.
Co Rentmeester The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock
Donald Sutherland, 1970.
Co Rentmeester The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock
Donald Sutherland, 1970.
Co Rentmeester The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock
Shirley Douglas looked at photos of her husband, Donald Sutherland, 1970.
Co Rentmeester The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock
Donald Sutherland with his twin daughter and son, Rachel and Kiefer, and his stepson, Tom (left), in New York, 1970.
Co Rentmeester The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock
Donald Sutherland and his children, 1970.
Co Rentmeester The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock
Donald Sutherland and his children, 1970
Co Rentmeester The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock
Donald Sutherland, 1970.
Co Rentmeester The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock
