Earl John Hindman (; October 20, 1942 – December 29, 2003) was an American actor, best known for his role as the kindly unseen neighbor Wilson W. Wilson, Jr. on the television

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ...

Home Improvement The concept of home improvement, home renovation, or remodeling is the process of renovating or making additions to one's home. Home improvement can consist of projects that upgrade an existing home interior (such as electrical and plumbing), ...

'' (1991–99).

Early years

Hindman was born in

Bisbee, Arizona Bisbee is a city in and the county seat of Cochise County in southeastern Arizona, United States. It is southeast of Tucson and north of the Mexican border. According to the 2020 census, the population of the town was 4,923, down from 5,575 ...

, the son of Eula and Burl Latney Hindman, who worked in the oil pipeline business. He studied acting at the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first ...

Career

Hindman played villains in two 1974 thrillers, '' The Taking of Pelham One Two Three'' and ''

The Parallax View ''The Parallax View'' is a 1974 American political thriller film produced and directed by Alan J. Pakula, and starring Warren Beatty, Hume Cronyn, William Daniels and Paula Prentiss. The screenplay by David Giler and Lorenzo Semple Jr. was base ...

''. He also appeared in the films '' Who Killed Mary What's 'Er Name?'' (1971), ''

Greased Lightning ''Greased Lightning'' is a 1977 American biographical film starring Richard Pryor, Beau Bridges, and Pam Grier, and directed by Michael Schultz. The film is loosely based on the true life story of Wendell Scott, the first Black NASCAR race winn ...

'' (1977), ''

The Brink's Job ''The Brink's Job'' is a 1978 American crime comedy drama film directed by William Friedkin and starring Peter Falk, Peter Boyle, Allen Garfield, Warren Oates, Gena Rowlands, and Paul Sorvino. It is based on the Brink's robbery of 1950 in Bos ...

'' (1978), '' Taps'' (1981), ''Murder in Coweta County'' (1983), and played the part of J.T. in the Lawrence Kasdan film '' Silverado'' (1985). Hindman's most famous pre-''Home Improvement'' role was as Bob Reid in ''

Ryan's Hope ''Ryan's Hope'' is an American soap opera created by Claire Labine and Paul Avila Mayer, airing for 13 years on ABC from July 7, 1975, to January 13, 1989. It revolves around the trials and tribulations within a large Irish-American family in ...

''. He played the role from 1975 to 1984 and later returned for its final episodes in 1988–89. Hindman's wife (

Molly McGreevy Molly Wheaton McGreevy (June 11, 1936 – November 1, 2015) was an American actress and later ordained priest, known for her role as Polly Longworth on the daytime television soap opera ''Ryan's Hope''. Biography Born Mary Wheaton Paine and ...

) was also on the soap 1977–81 as Polly Longworth, best friend to media tycoon Rae Woodard.

Personal life and death

On May 21, 1976, Hindman married Molly McGreevy, with whom he later acted on ''

''. McGreevey later became an Episcopal priest. Hindman died of lung cancer on December 29, 2003, at the age of 61, in

Stamford, Connecticut Stamford () is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut, outside of Manhattan. It is Connecticut's second-most populous city, behind Bridgeport. With a population of 135,470, Stamford passed Hartford and New Haven in population as of the 202 ...

Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hindman, Earl 1942 births 2003 deaths 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors American male film actors American male soap opera actors American male television actors Burials in Connecticut Deaths from cancer in Connecticut Deaths from lung cancer Male actors from Arizona Male actors from Stamford, Connecticut People from Bisbee, Arizona University of Arizona alumni