William Sanderson (born January 10, 1944) is an American retired actor. He played J. F. Sebastian in the feature film ''

Blade Runner ''Blade Runner'' is a 1982 science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott, and written by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples. Starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, and Edward James Olmos, it is an adaptation of Philip K. Dick' ...

'' (1982), and had regular roles on several television series such as Larry on ''

Newhart ''Newhart'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on CBS from October 25, 1982, to May 21, 1990, with a total of 184 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons. The series stars Bob Newhart and Mary Frann as an author and his wife, ...

'' (1982–1990),

E. B. Farnum Ethan Bennett Farnum (November 10, 1826 – after 1900) was one of the first residents of Deadwood, South Dakota, Deadwood (then in the Dakota Territory) who was not a miner or Prospecting, prospector; he was the owner of a general store. He was ...

on '' Deadwood'' (2004–2006,

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

), and Sheriff Bud Dearborne on ''

True Blood ''True Blood'' is an American fantasy horror drama television series produced and created by Alan Ball. It is based on ''The Southern Vampire Mysteries'', a series of novels by Charlaine Harris. A reboot is currently in development. The serie ...

'' (2008–2010, 2012).

Early life

Sanderson was born in

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

on January 10, 1944 to an elementary school teacher mother and a landscape designer father. He is a 1962 graduate of Memphis Central High School. Sanderson volunteered for the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

when he was 18 years old. After his discharge, he attended college using the

G.I. Bill The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, commonly known as the G.I. Bill, was a law that provided a range of benefits for some of the returning World War II veterans (commonly referred to as G.I.s). The original G.I. Bill expired in 1956, bu ...

, first at

Southern Methodist University , mottoeng = "The truth will make you free" , established = , type = Private research university , accreditation = SACS , academic_affiliations = , religious_affiliation = United Methodist Church , president = R. Gerald Turner , prov ...

for a year, then at the

University of Memphis } The University of Memphis (UofM) is a public university, public research university in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 22,000 students. The university maintains the Herff College of Engineering ...

. He earned business ( BBA, 1968) and law ( J.D., 1971) degrees there (then known as Memphis State University), though he did not take the

bar exam A bar examination is an examination administered by the bar association of a jurisdiction that a lawyer must pass in order to be admitted to the bar of that jurisdiction. Australia Administering bar exams is the responsibility of the bar associa ...

Career

Sanderson appeared as one of the mechanics and regulars of the diner in ''

The Rocketeer The Rocketeer is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books originally published by Pacific Comics. Created by writer/artist Dave Stevens, the character first appeared in 1982 and is an homage to the Saturday matinee serial heroes ...

'', who defies Nazi agents looking for the top secret rocket pack. He also portrayed a character named Deuce in an episode of ''

Babylon 5 ''Babylon 5'' is an American space opera television series created by writer and producer J. Michael Straczynski, under the Babylonian Productions label, in association with Straczynski's Synthetic Worlds Ltd. and Warner Bros. Domestic Tel ...

'' and later reprised the role in '' Babylon 5: Thirdspace''. Sanderson voiced Dr. Karl Rossum in '' Batman: The Animated Series''. Sanderson starred in '' Fight for Your Life'', which has a strict ban in the United Kingdom. He also played a supporting role as JF Sebastian in Ridley Scott's 1982 cyberpunk-noir film ''

''. As a guest, he made appearances in television shows, and his credits include '' The Pretender'', ''

The X-Files ''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation ...

'', ''

Knight Rider ''Knight Rider'' is an American entertainment franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The core of ''Knight Rider'' is its three television series: the original ''Knight Rider'' (1982–1986) and sequel series ''Team Knight Rider'' (1997–1998) ...

'', '' Married... with Children'', ''

'', '' ER'', ''

Coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

'', and ''

Walker, Texas Ranger ''Walker, Texas Ranger'' is an American action crime television series created by Leslie Greif and Paul Haggis. It was inspired by the film ''Lone Wolf McQuade'', with both this series and that film starring Chuck Norris as a member of the Texa ...

''. He plays a key role in an audio dramatization of

Ursula K. Le Guin Ursula Kroeber Le Guin (; October 21, 1929 – January 22, 2018) was an American author best known for her works of speculative fiction, including science fiction works set in her Hainish universe, and the '' Earthsea'' fantasy series. She was ...

's ''

Vaster than Empires and More Slow "Vaster than Empires and More Slow" is a science fiction story by American author Ursula K. Le Guin, first published in the collection '' New Dimensions 1'', edited by Robert Silverberg. It is set in the fictional Hainish universe, where Earth i ...

'' in NPR's

2000X ''2000X'' is a dramatic anthology series released by National Public Radio and produced by the Hollywood Theater of the Ear. There were 49 plays of various lengths in 26 one-hour programs broadcast weekly and later released on the Internet. Plays ...

series. In 2001, Sanderson played the courageous bartender Dewey in the

TNT Trinitrotoluene (), more commonly known as TNT, more specifically 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, and by its preferred IUPAC name 2-methyl-1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, is a chemical compound with the formula C6H2(NO2)3CH3. TNT is occasionally used as a reagen ...

film ''

Crossfire Trail ''Crossfire Trail'' is a 2001 American made-for-television western film directed by Simon Wincer and starring Tom Selleck, Virginia Madsen, and Wilford Brimley. Based on the 1954 Louis L'Amour Western novel of the same name, the film is about a w ...

''. Sanderson played Larry in ''

'' from 1982 to 1990, famous for the catchphrase, "Hi. I'm Larry. This is my brother Darryl. This is my other brother Darryl." Sanderson had a minor role as the abusive and cruel junkyard dealer Ray in ''

Man's Best Friend "Man's best friend" is a common phrase used to describe domestic dogs, referring to their millennia-long history of close relations, loyalty, friendship, and companionship with humans. The first recorded use of a related phrase is by Frederick t ...

''. He returned to television playing

in the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

television series '' Deadwood'' from 2004 to 2006, later reprising the role in its film continuation. In 2008, Sanderson joined the cast of ''

'', playing Sheriff Bud Dearborne. He played Oldham, the resident interrogation expert of the

DHARMA Initiative The Dharma Initiative, also written DHARMA (Department of Heuristics and Research on Material Applications), is a fictional research project and organization featured in the television series ''Lost''. It was introduced in the second season epis ...

in an episode of the fifth season of the ABC series ''

Lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography *Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland * Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...

''. In May 2019, Sanderson released an autobiography about his career, ''Yes, I'm That Guy: The Rough-and-Tumble Life of a Character Actor''. Following the release of his book, Sanderson and Nick "Saucey" Katsouros released a six-episode limited-run podcast, ''Sanderson Says'', to discuss and expound on the autobiography. Sanderson announced his retirement from acting on his Facebook page on May 13, 2020.

Personal life

William lives in

Harrisburg Harrisburg is the capital city of the Pennsylvania, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the List of c ...

, Pennsylvania with his wife. He has one son and two grandchildren.

Filmography

Television

References

External links

Official website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sanderson, William 1944 births Living people American male comedians American male film actors American male television actors University of Memphis alumni Male actors from Tennessee People from Memphis, Tennessee 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors 20th-century American comedians 21st-century American comedians