Bill Williams

Acting

Bill Williams

Born 1915-05-21 · Brooklyn, New York, USA

William Herman Katt (born Herman August Wilhelm Katt; May 15, 1915 – September 21, 1992), known as Bill Williams, was an American television and film actor. He is best known for his starring role in the early television series The Adventures of Kit Carson, which aired in syndication from 1951 to 1955. Williams was born in Brooklyn, New York to German immigrant parents. He attended the Pratt Institute, and became a professional swimmer, performing in underwater shows. He landed a walk-on role as a theater usher in King Kong (1933). He enlisted in the United States Army during World War II, but was discharged before the end and became an actor. His credited debut was in The Blue Room in 1944, using the professional name Bill Williams. His first starring role was opposite Susan Hayward in Deadline at Dawn (1946). Williams appeared in ten films before he landed the lead role in television's The Adventures of Kit Carson, which ran for 105 episodes. When the series ended, Williams' star power faded. It was revived in 1957 when he co-starred with Betty White on television in Date with the Angels. Williams portrayed Federal agent Martin Flaherty in The Scarface Mob (1959), the pilot for ABC's The Untouchables. However, when the series was accepted, the role went to Jerry Paris. Williams turned down the lead in Sea Hunt in 1958, believing that an underwater show would not work on television. Lloyd Bridges accepted the part and turned it into a hit. Williams did star as a former Navy frogman in Assignment: Underwater, which ran for just one season. He played a variety of roles on Perry Mason, in which his wife Barbara Hale co-starred as Raymond Burr's secretary Della Street. In a 1962 episode, "The Case of the Crippled Cougar," he played defendant Mike Preston. In 1963, he was murder victim Floyd Grant in "The Case of the Bluffing Blast." In 1965 Williams played murderer Charles Shaw in "The Case of the Murderous Mermaid," and was murderer Burt Payne in "The Case of the 12th Wildcat". Williams appeared with his son in a final season episode of Ironside, bringing him together again with Raymond Burr. He also made numerous guest appearances on television and worked in low-budget science fiction films until his retirement.

Acting credits

King Kong poster
7.6

Adventurous filmmaker Carl Denham sets out to produce a motion picture unlike anything the world has seen before. Alongside his leading lady Ann Darrow and his first mate Jack Driscoll, they arrive on an island and discover a legendary creature said to be neither beast nor man. Denham captures the monster to be displayed on Broadway as King Kong, the eighth wonder of the world.

King Kong

1933

Rio Lobo poster
6.5

After the Civil War, a former Union colonel searches for the two traitors whose perfidy led to the loss of a close friend.

Rio Lobo

1970

The Giant Spider Invasion poster
4.1

A black hole hits North Wisconsin and opens a door to other dimensions. Giant 15 meter spiders emerge from it, who have an appetite for human flesh! Two NASA scientists try to save the world.

The Giant Spider Invasion

1975

Rookie Fireman poster
7.5

Merchant seaman Joe Blake, in love with Peggy Walters, takes the job of a rookie fireman in a big city department. His commander is strict-disciplinarian Fire Captain Jess Henshaw.

Rookie Fireman

1950

Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo poster
6.7

In the wake of Pearl Harbor, a young lieutenant leaves his expectant wife to volunteer for a secret bombing mission which will take the war to the Japanese homeland.

Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo

1944

The Body Snatcher poster
7.0

Edinburgh, 1831. Among those who undertake the illegal trade of grave robbery is Gray, ostensibly a cab driver. Formerly a medical student convicted of grave robbery, Gray holds a grudge against Dr. MacFarlane who had escaped detection and punishment.

The Body Snatcher

1945

Tickle Me poster
6.0

A singing rodeo rider takes a job at an all-female dude ranch, where he gets involved with a physical trainer and a treasure hunt for gold in a ghost town, leading to a showdown with kidnappers.

Tickle Me

1965

Back to Bataan poster
6.1

A U.S. Army colonel leads local fighters in a guerrilla campaign against the Japanese in the Philippines.

Back to Bataan

1945

Hell to Eternity poster
6.3

Based on the story about Guy Gabaldon, a Los Angeles Hispanic boy raised in the 1930s by a Japanese-American foster family. After Pearl Harbor, his foster family is interned at the Manzanar camp for Japanese Americans, while he enlists in the Marines, where his ability to speak Japanese becomes a vital asset. During the Battle of Saipan, he convinces 800 Japanese to surrender after their general commits suicide.

Hell to Eternity

1960

The Hallelujah Trail poster
6.1

A wagon train heads for Denver with a cargo of whisky for the miners. Chaos ensues as the Temperance League, the US cavalry, the miners and the local Indians all try to take control of the valuable cargo.

The Hallelujah Trail

1965

The Cariboo Trail poster
6.4

A cattleman fights to establish a ranch in the middle of gold country.

The Cariboo Trail

1950

The Stratton Story poster
6.7

Star major league pitcher Monty Stratton loses a leg in a hunting accident, but becomes determined to leave the game on his own terms.

The Stratton Story

1949

The Clay Pigeon poster
5.7

Jim Fletcher, waking up from a coma, finds he is to be given a court martial for treason and charged with informing on fellow inmates in a Japanese prison camp during WWII. Escaping from the hospital he tries to clear himself by enlisting the aid of Martha Gregory, widow of a service buddy he was accused of informing on. Helped also by Ted Niles, a surviving fellow prisoner, he gets closer to finding the answers he needs, and becomes ensnared in a grandiose scheme involving his Japanese ex-prison guard, $10,000,000 of US currency forged by the Japanese and a burgeoning crime network poised to wreak havoc throughout southern California.

The Clay Pigeon

1949

Torpedo Alley poster
10.0

After carrier pilot Lt Bingham is rescued at sea by a submarine when he crashes, he applies for submarine duty. During training he competes with Commander Heywood for the affection of Navy nurse Lt Susan Peabody. Heywood gets a new sub command at the outbreak of the Korean war and Bingham is assigned to his sub.

Torpedo Alley

1953

A Woman's Secret poster
5.6

A popular singer, Marian Washburn, suddenly and unexplainably loses her voice, causing a shake-up at the club where she works. Her worried but loyal piano player, Luke Jordan, helps to promote a new, younger singer, Susan Caldwell, to temporarily replace Marian. Susan finds some early acclaim but decides to leave the club after a few performances. Soon after Susan quits, she is gunned down, and Marian quickly becomes a suspect.

A Woman's Secret

1949

The Last Outpost poster
6.1

The cavalry defend a small town from indians.

The Last Outpost

1951

A Fire in the Sky poster
5.8

Astronomers discover a comet that they believe will crash into Phoenix, Arizona. They attempt to warn officials, but without 100% certainty, the governor of Arizona is reticent to cause a panic. Even after a television news reporter discovers the truth and threatens to go live with it, the response is understated enough to doom some residents of Phoenix to certain death.

A Fire in the Sky

1978

Those Endearing Young Charms poster
9.0

A soldier loses his girlfriend to his best buddy.

Those Endearing Young Charms

1945

A Dangerous Profession poster
5.7

A cop-turned-bail bondsman gets involved in a murder investigation involving a former flame.

A Dangerous Profession

1949

Till the End of Time poster
6.4

Three former marines have a hard time readjusting to civilian life. Perry can't deal with the loss of the use of his legs. William is in trouble with bad debts. And Cliff can't decide what he wants to do with his life, although he gets encouragement from war widow Pat Ruscomb.

Till the End of Time

1946

Wiretapper poster
5.5

A cash-strapped electrical engineer with a criminal past vows to go straight when he marries his longtime girlfriend, but he has second thoughts when the mob offers big money for his wiretapping services.

Wiretapper

1955

Law of the Lawless poster
6.5

A former gunfighter, now a circuit court judge, faces his father's killer in a small post-Civil War Kansas town.

Law of the Lawless

1964

Eight on the Lam poster
5.3

Bank teller and widower with seven kids, Bob Hope finds $10,000 in a parking lot.

Eight on the Lam

1967

Son of Paleface poster
6.4

Peter Potter Jr. returns to claim his father's gold, which is nowhere to be found.

Son of Paleface

1952