Some athletes find fame on screen

On paper, the leap from athletic excellence to cinema stardom might not seem that far. After all, professional athletes are paid to perform, and, if we're being completely honest, movie stars don't need to be particularly talented to be famous.

Few athletes, however, make the leap from field to film, and those who do often are left with an embarrassment on their rsum. For instance, I'm sure Olympic decathlete Bruce Jenner, even 25 years later, still regrets his participation in The Village People musical Can't Stop the Music.

Some athletes have managed to successfully navigate the career shift, though. Former NFL great Alex Karras, for example, is as well-known for being the simple-minded Mongo in Mel Brooks' Blazing Saddles as he is for his gridiron achievements. Here's a short list of some other actor- athletes:

KAREEM ABDUL-JABBAR: This former Los Angeles Laker is best remembered cinematically as Roger Murdock, one of the flight crew members in the air disaster spoof Airplane! (1980). Martial arts fans also might remember he threw down with and took a beating from Bruce Lee in Game of Death (1978).

JIM BROWN: After playing nine seasons with the Cleveland Browns, this Hall of Famer was able to adapt his fullback skills to knocking off Nazis. His daring dash at the climax of The Dirty Dozen (1967) remains one of that classic war film's more emotional moments, and certainly earns him a few forgiveness points for the best forgotten Ice Station Zebra, which was released a year later.

JOHNNY WEISSMULLER: Before adopting the loincloth, cinema's most famous Tarzan was an Olympic swimmer who earned five gold medals for the United States. Over the course of 12 movies in 14 years, Mr. Weissmuller came to embody what most film fans think of as the noble jungle savage. He so identified with the role that - at his request - his famous Tarzan yell was played as his casket was lowered into the ground at his funeral.

VINNIE JONES: Although he has appeared in 20 films in less than 10 years, English soccer star Vinnie Jones is best known for his collaborations with director Guy Ritchie in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch. His roles, which play off his image as a "hard" man in soccer, often find him playing the hired muscle for unsavory characters.

ANDRE THE GIANT: Some might disagree with the definition of professional wrestlers as athletes, but I would never debate the point with the late Andre Ren Roussimoff, better known as Andre the Giant. While most of his career was spent in the wrestling ring, Andre the Giant began acting in 1975, playing Bigfoot on The Six Million Dollar Man. He is most fondly remembered for his portrayal of Fezzik, the gentle giant in The Princess Bride (1987).