William Albert Henry (November 10, 1914 – August 10, 1982) was an American actor who worked in both films and television.

Biography

William Henry-Virginia Gilmore in Jennie

Born in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

, California, Henry started as a

child actor The term child actor or child actress is generally applied to a child acting on stage or in movies or television. An adult who began their acting career as a child may also be called a child actor, or a "former child actor". Closely associated t ...

, then was a hero in B-movies (mainly westerns), and ended his career as a

character actor A character actor is a supporting actor who plays unusual, interesting, or eccentric characters.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrieved 7 August 2014, "..a breed of actor who has the ability to b ...

. He appeared in various roles on episodes of many television series. He was a member of the John Ford Stock Company and appeared twelve times for Ford. He also appeared in

John Wayne Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne and nicknamed The Duke or Duke Wayne, was an American actor who became a popular icon through his starring roles in films made during Hollywood's Go ...

's ''

The Alamo The Battle of the Alamo (February 23 – March 6, 1836) was a pivotal event in the Texas Revolution. Following a 13-day siege, Mexican troops under President General Antonio López de Santa Anna reclaimed the Alamo Mission near San Ant ...

'' (1960); in this version of the famous siege, Henry's character, Dr. Sutherland, is the last of the defenders to be killed. Henry was active with the Pasadena Community Playhouse. In 1952, Henry was cast as the San Francisco lawyer Lew Barry in the episode, "Self Made Man," of the syndicated television

anthology series An anthology series is a radio, television, video game or film series that spans different genres and presents a different story and a different set of characters in each different episode, season, segment, or short. These usually have a dif ...

, ''

Death Valley Days ''Death Valley Days'' is an American old-time radio and television anthology series featuring true accounts of the American Old West, particularly the Death Valley country of southeastern California. Created in 1930 by Ruth Woodman, the program ...

'', hosted by

Stanley Andrews Stanley Andrews (born Stanley Martin Andrzejewski; August 28, 1891 – June 23, 1969) was an American actor perhaps best known as the voice of Daddy Warbucks on the radio program ''Little Orphan Annie'' and later as "The Old Ranger", the first ...

. Bill guest starred twice in Gene Barry's TV Western ''

Bat Masterson Bartholemew William Barclay "Bat" Masterson (November 26, 1853 – October 25, 1921) was a U.S. Army scout, lawman, professional gambler, and journalist known for his exploits in the 19th and early 20th-century American Old West. He was born to ...

'', once in 1958 as crooked "Sheriff Griff Hanley" (S1E7's "A Noose Fits Anyone") and again in 1960 as stalwart "Sheriff Brady" (S2E23's "The Snare"). Henry's brother was the character actor Thomas Browne Henry. Henry was married and twice divorced. His first marriage was to Grace Durkin, with whom he had a son, Michael, and a daughter, Michele. He and his second wife,

Barbara Knudson Barbara Ann Knudson (December 4, 1927 – May 11, 2014) was an American film and television actress with more than forty professional credits, including starring roles in '' Meet Danny Wilson'' in 1952, ''The Cry Baby Killer'' in 1958, and '' T ...

, were the parents of William "Bill" Henry, Jr. (b. 1958).

Selected filmography

* ''

Lord Jim ''Lord Jim'' is a novel by Joseph Conrad originally published as a serial in ''Blackwood's Magazine'' from October 1899 to November 1900. An early and primary event in the story is the abandonment of a passenger ship in distress by its crew, i ...

'' (1925) - Street Urchin (uncredited) * '' Adorable'' (1933) - Minor Role (uncredited) * '' Best of Enemies'' (1933) - College Student (uncredited) * ''

Coming Out Party ''Coming Out Party'' is a 1934 American Pre-Code Hollywood, Pre-Code drama film directed by John G. Blystone starring Frances Dee, Gene Raymond, Alison Skipworth and Nigel Bruce. It was produced and distributed by the Fox Film Corporation. Syno ...

'' (1934) - Party Guest (uncredited) * '' The Thin Man'' (1934) - Gilbert Wynant * '' Operator 13'' (1934) - Young Lieutenant Kissing Blonde (uncredited) * '' A Wicked Woman'' (1934) - Curtis * '' China Seas'' (1935) - Rockwell * ''

Society Doctor ''Society Doctor'' is a 1935 American drama film directed by George B. Seitz and starring Robert Taylor, Chester Morris, and Virginia Bruce. It was produced and distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was inspired by an unproduced play by Theodo ...

'' (1935) - Frank Snowden * ''The Perfect Tribute'' (1935) - Wounded soldier (uncredited) * '' Exclusive Story'' (1936) - James Witherspoon Jr. * '' Tarzan Escapes'' (1936) - Eric Parker * ''

Double or Nothing Double or nothing (UK often double or quits) is a gamble to decide whether a loss or debt should be doubled. The result of a "double or nothing" bet is either the subject doubled to twice the amount as the original ''or'' the doubling of a debt. It ...

'' (1937) - Egbert Clark * ''

Madame X ''Madame X'' (original title ''La Femme X'') is a 1908 play by French playwright Alexandre Bisson (1848–1912). It was novelized in English and adapted for the American stage; it was also adapted for the screen twelve times over sixty-fiv ...

'' (1937) - Hugh Fariman Jr. * '' Mama Runs Wild'' (1937) - Paul Fowler * '' Four Men and a Prayer'' (1938) - Rodney Leigh * '' Yellow Jack'' (1938) - Breen * ''

Campus Confessions ''Campus Confessions'' is a 1938 American comedy film directed by George Archainbaud, featuring Betty Grable in her first starring role, and American basketball player Hank Luisetti in his only film appearance. Plot Wayne Atterbury Sr. is pr ...

'' (1938) - Wayne Atterbury, Jr. * ''

A Man to Remember ''A Man to Remember'' is a 1938 American drama film directed by Garson Kanin, his first film credit as a director. The picture was based on the short story ''Failure'', written by Katharine Haviland-Taylor, and the screenplay was penned by Dalto ...

'' (1938) - Howard Sykes * ''

Ambush An ambush is a long-established military tactic in which a combatant uses an advantage of concealment or the element of surprise to attack unsuspecting enemy combatants from concealed positions, such as among dense underbrush or behind moun ...

'' (1939) - Charlie Hartman * '' Persons in Hiding'' (1939) - Agent Dan Waldron * '' The Arizona Wildcat'' (1939) - Donald Clark * '' I'm from Missouri'' (1939) - Joel Streight * '' Television Spy'' (1939) - Douglas Cameron * ''

Geronimo Geronimo ( apm, Goyaałé, , ; June 16, 1829 – February 17, 1909) was a prominent leader and medicine man from the Bedonkohe band of the Ndendahe Apache people. From 1850 to 1886, Geronimo joined with members of three other Central Apache b ...

'' (1939) - Lt. John Steele, Jr. * '' Emergency Squad'' (1940) - Peter Barton * ''

Parole Fixer ''Parole Fixer'' is a 1940 American crime film directed by Robert Florey. Federal Bureau of Investigation Director J. Edgar Hoover is credited for the source material, the 1938 book called ''Persons in Hiding'', a purported expose of corruptio ...

'' (1940) - Scott Britton * '' The Way of All Flesh'' (1940) - Paul Kriza Jr. * ''

Queen of the Mob ''Queen of the Mob'' is a 1940 American film (also known as ''The Woman from Hell''), directed by James P. Hogan. The source material here was a book attributed to Federal Bureau of Investigation Director J. Edgar Hoover entitled ''Persons in ...

'' (1940) - Bert Webster * ''

Cherokee Strip The Cherokee Outlet, or Cherokee Strip, was located in what is now the state of Oklahoma in the United States. It was a 60-mile-wide (97 km) parcel of land south of the Oklahoma-Kansas border between 96 and 100°W. The Cherokee Outlet wa ...

'' (1940) - Tom Cross * '' Jennie'' (1940) - George Schermer * '' Blossoms in the Dust'' (1941) - Allan Keats * ''

Dance Hall Dance hall in its general meaning is a hall for dancing. From the earliest years of the twentieth century until the early 1960s, the dance hall was the popular forerunner of the discothèque or nightclub. The majority of towns and cities in ...

'' (1941) - Joe Brooks * ''

Scattergood Meets Broadway ''Scattergood Meets Broadway'' is a 1941 American comedy film directed by Christy Cabanne and written by Michael L. Simmons and Ethel B. Stone. It is the sequel to the 1941 film ''Scattergood Pulls the Strings''. The film stars Guy Kibbee, Mildre ...

'' (1941) - David Drew * ''

Pardon My Stripes ''Pardon My Stripes'' is a 1942 American comedy film directed by John H. Auer and written by Lawrence Kimble and Stuart Palmer. The film stars William "Bill" Henry, Sheila Ryan, Edgar Kennedy, Harold Huber, Paul Hurst and Cliff Nazarro. The ...

'' (1942) - Henry Platt * ''

Klondike Fury ''Klondike Fury'' is a 1942 American drama film directed by William K. Howard, produced by the King Brothers, and released through Monogram. It stars Edmund Lowe. It was a remake of '' Klondike''. Plot A neurosurgeon is thrown out of the medic ...

'' (1942) - Jim Armstrong * ''

A Gentleman After Dark ''A Gentleman After Dark'' is a 1942 crime/drama film starring Brian Donlevy and Miriam Hopkins. Plot We pick up the story when the editor of the ''New York Chronicle'' sits on New Year's Eve 1923 awaiting news on the theft of legendary Mrs. Reg ...

'' (1942) - Paul Rutherford * ''

Stardust on the Sage ''Stardust on the Sage'' is a 1942 American Western film directed by William Morgan and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, William Henry, and Edith Fellows. Written by Betty Burbridge, based on a story by Dorrell and Stuart E. McGowan, th ...

'' (1942) - Jeff Drew * ''

There's One Born Every Minute ''There's One Born Every Minute'', also known as ''Man or Mouse'', is a 1942 American Universal Pictures comedy film directed by Harold Young. It was Elizabeth Taylor's first film and one of her only films with Universal Studios. The film is ...

'' (1942) - Lester Cadwalader Jr. * ''

Rubber Racketeers ''Rubber Racketeers'' is a 1942 American crime film directed by Harold Young and starring Ricardo Cortez and Rochelle Hudson. The film was inspired by tire rationing. Plot summary Gilin is a gangster who has just gotten out of prison. One ...

'' (1942) - Bill Barry * ''

Sweater Girl The term "sweater girl" was made popular in the 1940s and 1950s to describe Hollywood actors like Lana Turner, Jayne Mansfield, and Jane Russell, who adopted the popular fashion of wearing tight, form-fitting sweaters that emphasized the woman's ...

'' (1942) - Happy Dudley * '' Calaboose'' (1943) - Tom Pendergrast * ''

I Escaped from the Gestapo ''I Escaped from the Gestapo'' is a 1943 film from King Brothers Productions, directed from Harold Young about a forger forced to work for Nazi spies. It stars Dean Jagger, Mary Brian and John Carradine. The film was also known as ''No Escape ...

'' (1943) - Gordon - Gestapo Agent * ''

Sarong Girl ''Sarong Girl'' is a 1943 American comedy film directed by Arthur Dreifuss and written by Charles R. Marion, Arthur Hoerl and Tim Ryan. The film stars Ann Corio, Tim Ryan, Irene Ryan, Mantan Moreland, William Henry, Damian O'Flynn and Johnnie ...

'' (1943) - Jeff Baxter * '' False Faces'' (1943) - Don Westcott * ''

Alaska Highway