Acting
William Smith
EN, DE cinema · 145 credits
Born
24 March 1933
Died
5 July 2021 (aged 88)
Birthplace
Columbia, Missouri, USA
Also known as William E. Smith · Bill Smith · Big Bill Smith · William Smith II · William Emmett Smith Jr. · William Emmett Smith
William Smith was an American film and television actor who appeared in more than 300 feature films and television productions, best known for playing Anthony Falconetti on the TV mini series "Rich Man, Poor Man". He held a BA from Syracuse and an MA in Russian Studies from UCLA. Born in Columbia, Missouri, Smith began his acting career at the age of eight in 1942; he entered films as a child actor in such films as The Ghost of Frankenstein, The Song of Bernadette and Meet Me in St. Louis. He was a regular on the 1961 ABC television series The Asphalt Jungle, portraying police Sergeant Danny Keller. One of his earliest leading roles was as Joe Riley, a Texas Ranger on the NBC western series Laredo. In 1967, Smith guest starred as Jude Bonner on James Arness's long-lived western Gunsmoke. Smith was cast as John Richard Parker, brother of Cynthia Ann Parker, both taken hostage in Texas by the Comanche, in the 1969 episode "The Understanding" of the syndicated television series Death Valley Days, which was hosted by Robert Taylor. In the story line, Parker contracts the plague, is left for dead by his fellow Comanche warriors, and is rescued by his future Mexican wife, Yolanda (Emily Banks). He played outlaw turned temporary sheriff Hendry Brown in the 1969 episode "The Restless Man". In that story line, Brown takes the job of sheriff to tame a lawless town, begins to court a young woman (again played by Emily Banks), but soon returns to his deadly outlaw ways in search of bigger thrills. On Gunsmoke, Smith appeared in a 1972 episode, "Hostage!"; his character beats and rapes Amanda Blake's character Miss Kitty Russell and shoots her twice in the back. Smith has been described as the "greatest bad-guy character actor of our time".
Known for
Filmography
The Kill Machine
Director
Irresistible
as Hofbrau Bar Fly
Doses of Horror
as Neil Agar ("A Dose of Bee Stings" segment) (archive footage) (uncredited)
Rock n' Roll Cops Lite
as Rinaldi (archive footage)
The Boneyard Collection
as Bill, the First Director (segment "Her Morbid Desires")
Rapturious
as Sheriff
Fall Guy: The John Stewart Story
2007
Fall Guy: The John Stewart Story
as Man with Machine Gun
Hell to Pay
as Emil Brax
Y.M.I.
as Cal
Zombiegeddon
as Lord Zombie
God Has a Rap Sheet
as Lucifer
The Rock 'n Roll Cops
as Rinaldi
Deadly Memories
as Sheriff Taggart
The Erotic Rites of Countess Dracula
as Count Dracula
Conan Unchained: The Making of 'Conan'
as Conan's Father (archive footage)
Vice
as Spooky Harlow
Never Look Back
as Lee Clayton
Heat of Las Vegas
as Mario Verelli
Hollywood Cops
as Rinaldi
The Shooter
as Jerry Krants
Neon Signs
as Clyde
Uncle Sam
as Major
The Colony
as Theo Maxwell
Raw Energy
as Sam Stompkins
Big Sister 2000
as The Man
Maverick
as Riverboat Poker Player
Taken Alive
as L.E.
Manosaurus
as Sheriff Todd
GetEven
as Normad
Feast
as Det. George Bordelli
American Me
as Deacon
The Last Riders
as Hammer
Shadow of the Dragon
as Eric Brunner
Dark Secrets
as Robert
The Roller Blade Seven
as Pharoah
Cybernator
as Colonel Peck
Spirit of the Eagle
as Hatchett
Kiss and Be Killed
as Det. Murdoch
Merchant of Evil
1991
Merchant of Evil
as Victor Fortunetti
The Final Sanction
as Maj. Galashkin
Empire of Ash III
as Lucas
Forgotten Heroes
as General Gregori Zelenkov
Cartel
as Mason
L.A. Vice
as Capt. Joe Wilkes
East L.A. Warriors
as Martelli
Action U.S.A.
as Conover
Terror in Beverly Hills
as President
Jungle Assault
as General Mitchell
Deadly Breed
as Captain
B.O.R.N.
as Dr. Farley
Slow Burn
as Antonio Scarpelli
Hell Comes to Frogtown
as Captain Devlin / Count Sodom
Memorial Valley Massacre
as Gen. Mintz
Evil Altar
as Reed Weller
Bulletproof
as Russian Major
Maniac Cop
as Captain Ripley
Platoon Leader
as Major Flynn
Red Nights
as Phillip
The Phantom Empire
as Dr. Chambers
Moon in Scorpio
as Burt
Commando Squad
as Morgan Denny
Hell on the Battleground
as Colonel Meredith
The Badd One
as Badd
Eye of the Tiger
as Blade
Fever Pitch
as Panama Hat
The Mean Season
as Albert O'Shaughnessy
Red Dawn
as Strelnikov
The Jerk, Too
as Suicide
The Outsiders
as Store Clerk
Rumble Fish
as Patterson the Cop
Conan the Barbarian
as Conan's Father
Tales of the Apple Dumpling Gang
as Monk Hardwick
Any Which Way You Can
as Jack Wilson
Fast Company
as Lonnie 'Lucky Man' Johnson
The Frisco Kid
as Matt Diggs
Seven
as Drew
Blackjack
as Andy Mayfield
Blood & Guts
as Dan O'Neil
Hollywood Man
as Rafe Stoker, Writer, Producer
Scorchy
as Carl Henrich
Crackle of Death
as Shaman Jim Elkhorn
The Ultimate Warrior
as Carrot
Boss Nigger
as Jed Clayton, Stunts
Dr. Minx
as Gus Dolan
Death Among Friends
as Sheldon Casey
Black Samson
as Johnny Nappa
The Sex Symbol
as Butch Wischnewski
Policewomen
as Karate Instructor
The Rockford Files: Backlash of the Hunter
as Jerry Grimes
Invasion of the Bee Girls
as Neil Agar
Sweet Jesus, Preacherman
as Martelli
The Deadly Trackers
as Schoolboy
The Last American Hero
as Kyle Kingman
Prologue to Wounded Knee
as Camper John Allen, Producer
A Taste of Hell
as Jack Lowell
Grave of the Vampire
as James Eastman
The Thing with Two Heads
as Hysterical Condemned Man (uncredited)
Hammer
as Brenner
Piranha
as Caribe
The Man Hunter
as Clel Bocock
Darker Than Amber
as Terry
C.C. and Company
as Moon
The Losers
as Link Thomas
Crowhaven Farm
as Patrolman Hayes
Run, Angel, Run!
as Angel
Backtrack!
as Texas Ranger Joe Riley (archive footage)
The Over the Hill Gang
as Amos (as Bill Smith)
Three Guns for Texas
as Texas Ranger Joe Riley
Mail Order Bride
as Lank
36 Hours
as Guy (uncredited)
Atlantis: The Lost Continent
as Captain of the Guard
Girls Town
as Man (uncredited)
Never So Few
as MP Officer #1
The Mating Game
as Barney
The Gazebo
as Actor Tripping Over Camera (uncredited)
Ask Any Girl
as Young Man (uncredited)
The Boy with Green Hair
as Boy (uncredited), Actor
I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now
as Young Boy (uncredited)
Gilda
as Man (uncredited)
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
as Boy (uncredited)
Meet Me in St. Louis
as Little Boy (uncredited)
Going My Way
as Choir Member (uncredited)
The Ghost of Frankenstein
as Boy (uncredited)