William Hinnant (born John F. Hinnant; August 28, 1935 – February 17, 1978) was an American actor. His younger brother is actor and comedian Skip Hinnant.

Biography

Hinnant was born John F. Hinnant in Chincoteague Island, Virginia. He attended the

Yale School of Drama The David Geffen School of Drama at Yale University is a graduate professional school of Yale University, located in New Haven, Connecticut. Founded in 1924 as the Department of Drama in the School of Fine Arts, the school provides training in e ...

, but left after his sophomore year in 1958 to originate the role of the navigator in the

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

play, '' No Time for Sergeants''. He later returned to

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the w ...

and graduated in 1959. After completing college, Hinnant appeared in the Julius Monk revue ''Dressed to the Nines''. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, he appeared in few theatre roles and guest starred on various television programs, including four episodes of the CBS sitcom, ''

Pete and Gladys ''Pete and Gladys'' is an American sitcom television series starring Harry Morgan and Cara Williams that aired on CBS on Mondays at 8:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific time for two seasons, beginning on September 19, 1960. The last episode was ...

''. He was cast as Bruce Carter, a 26-year-old college student (though he had already graduated from Yale in real life) who lives temporarily in

Westwood, Los Angeles, California Westwood is a commercial and residential neighborhood in the northern central portion of the Westside region of Los Angeles, California. It is the home of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Bordering the campus on the south ...

, with his aunt, Gladys (

Cara Williams Cara Williams (born Bernice Kamiat; June 29, 1925 – December 9, 2021) was an American film and television actress. She was best known for her role as Billy's Mother in ''The Defiant Ones'' (1958), for which she was nominated for the Academy A ...

), and her husband, insurance salesman, Pete Porter (

Harry Morgan Harry Morgan (born Harry Bratsberg; April 10, 1915 – December 7, 2011) was an American actor and director whose television and film career spanned six decades. Morgan's major roles included Pete Porter in both ''December Bride'' (1954–1959 ...

). Hinnant also appeared on the long-running CBS game show, '' To Tell the Truth''. He was cast in the revues, ''All Kinds of Giants'' and ''Put it in Writing'' in 1962 and 1963.William Hinnant profile at IMDb
/ref> Hinnant's most successful role came in March 1967, when he was cast as

Snoopy Snoopy is an anthropomorphic beagle in the comic strip ''Peanuts'' by Charles M. Schulz. He can also be found in all of the ''Peanuts'' films and television specials. Since his debut on October 4, 1950, Snoopy has become one of the most recog ...

in the

off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer th ...

production of

Clark Gesner Clark Gesner (March 27, 1938 – July 23, 2002)Clark Gesner
at the

You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown'', after voicing the character on Gesner's ten-song

concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Some ...

."Biography of Clark Gesner, Clark Gesner Papers, 1940-2005"
Princeton University Library Hinnant (whose younger brother Skip was cast as Schroeder in the same production) was praised as the "most strikingly talented of the cast" and won a

Drama Desk Award The Drama Desk Award is an annual prize recognizing excellence in New York theatre. First bestowed in 1955 as the Vernon Rice Award, the prize initially honored Off-Broadway productions, as well as Off-off-Broadway, and those in the vicinity. F ...

for his performance.

Theatre critic Theatre criticism is a genre of arts criticism, and the act of writing or speaking about the performing arts such as a play or opera. Theatre criticism is distinct from drama criticism, as the latter is a division of literary criticism whereas t ...

Steven Suskin wrote, "As in Snoopy's showstopper 'Suppertime' - you totally forgot the teensy scale. When Bill Hinnant leapt from atop his doghouse and went into a cakewalk, the spirit and the show soared." After ''...Charlie Brown'', Hinnant appeared in

Norman Kline Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Nor ...

's ''The American Hamburger League'' off-Broadway in September 1969. He then appeared in the 1971

Broadway musical Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), 130 of the 144 extant and extinct Broadway venues use (used) the spelling ''Th ...

Frank Merriwell Frank Merriwell is a fictional character appearing in a series of novels and short stories by Gilbert Patten, who wrote under the pseudonym Burt L. Standish. The character appeared in over 300 dime novels between 1896 and 1930 (some between 1927 a ...

''. When ''You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown'' was adapted for a ''

Hallmark Hall of Fame ''Hallmark Hall of Fame'', originally called ''Hallmark Television Playhouse'', is an anthology program on American television, sponsored by Hallmark Cards, a Kansas City-based greeting card company. The longest-running prime-time series in ...

television special A television special (often TV special, or rarely television spectacular) is a standalone television show which may also temporarily interrupt episodic programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Some specials provide a full range of e ...

in 1973, Hinnant reprised his role as Snoopy. Hinnant was the only member of the original off-Broadway cast to reprise his role in the special.

Death

Hinnant died at age 42 on February 17, 1978. He drowned while vacationing in the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...

.Notice of death in "Caskets On Parade - Book of the Dead" website
In February 1990, archival footage posthumously showed Hinnant singing "Suppertime" in the ''

Peanuts ''Peanuts'' is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz. The strip's original run extended from 1950 to 2000, continuing in reruns afterward. ''Peanuts'' is among the most popular and inf ...

'' documentar
"You Don't Look 40, Charlie Brown!"

References

External links

Bill Hinnant profile at Lortel Archives
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hinnant, Bill 1935 births 1978 deaths Male actors from Virginia American male television actors American male musical theatre actors American male film actors Yale University alumni People from Chincoteague, Virginia 20th-century American male actors Accidental deaths in the Dominican Republic Deaths by drowning 20th-century American singers 20th-century American male singers