Bill Thurman (November 4, 1920 – April 13, 1995) was an American film and television actor. From the early 1960s until his death in 1995, he frequently appeared in

B movie A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double feat ...

s and independent films, often playing "redneck types" or sheriffs. He worked with low-budget-director

Larry Buchanan Larry Buchanan (January 31, 1923 − December 2, 2004), born Marcus Larry Seale Jr., was a film director, producer and writer, who proclaimed himself a "B movies (exploitation boom), schlockmeister". Many of his extremely low-budget films have lan ...

on numerous films, for example '' In the Year 2889'' and '' It's Alive!''. Thurman was one of those Southern actors who specialized in "regional" pictures, films made exclusively for distribution in the Southern States.Bill Thurman
'

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' However, Thurman also appeared in two movies by Hollywood star director

Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spi ...

and played Coach Popper, the apparently homosexual husband of

Cloris Leachman Cloris Leachman (April 30, 1926 – January 27, 2021) was an American actress and comedian whose career spanned nearly eight decades. She won List of awards and nominations received by Cloris Leachman, many accolades, including eight Primetime ...

, in

Peter Bogdanovich Peter Bogdanovich (July 30, 1939 – January 6, 2022) was an American director, writer, actor, producer, critic, and film historian. One of the " New Hollywood" directors, Bogdanovich started as a film journalist until he was hired to work on ...

's '' The Last Picture Show'' (1971). The character actor also appeared in popular television shows like ''

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

'' and ''

Centennial {{other uses, Centennial (disambiguation), Centenary (disambiguation) A centennial, or centenary in British English, is a 100th anniversary or otherwise relates to a century, a period of 100 years. Notable events Notable centennial events at a ...

''. One of his later roles was Reverend McWiley in the horror film '' Mountaintop Motel Massacre'' (1983).

Selected filmography

* ''

The Yesterday Machine ''The Yesterday Machine'' is a regional American science fiction film written, produced, and directed by Russ Marker. Various sources give the film's release date as 1963, 1965, and 1966. It stars Tim Holt, James Britton, Ann Pellegrino, and Jack H ...

'' (1963) - Police detective * '' The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald'' (1964) - Witness * '' High Yellow'' (1965) - Major Bates * ''Hot Blooded Woman'' (1965) - Railroad Tough * ''The Black Cat'' (1966) - Bartender * ''

Zontar, the Thing from Venus ''Zontar, the Thing from Venus'' (also known as ''Zontar: The Invader from Venus'') is a 1967 American made-for-television horror science fiction film directed by Larry Buchanan and starring John Agar and Susan Bjurman. It is based on the telepl ...

'' (1966, TV Movie) - Sheriff Brad Crenshaw * '' Curse of the Swamp Creature'' (1966, TV Movie) - Driscoll West / The Swamp Creature * ''Spiked Heels and Black Nylons'' (1967) - Abel * '' In the Year 2889'' (1967) - Lt. Lang * ''Shameless Desire'' (1967) - Cal * ''

Night Fright ''Night Fright'' is a 1967 American science-fiction horror film directed by James A. Sullivan that was shot near Dallas, Texas. In the early 1980s, the film was re-titled in the United Kingdom for VHS release as ''E.T.N.: The Extraterrestrial Nas ...

'' (1967) - Deputy Ben Whitfield * ''

Sam Sam, SAM or variants may refer to: Places * Sam, Benin * Sam, Boulkiemdé, Burkina Faso * Sam, Bourzanga, Burkina Faso * Sam, Kongoussi, Burkina Faso * Sam, Iran * Sam, Teton County, Idaho, United States, a populated place People and fictional ...

'' (1967) * ''

The Other Side of Bonnie and Clyde ''The Other Side of Bonnie and Clyde'' is a 1968 docudrama film directed and produced by Larry Buchanan.

'' (1968) - Policeman (uncredited) * '' It's Alive!'' (1969, TV Movie) - Greely / Monster * ''

A Bullet for Pretty Boy ''A Bullet for Pretty Boy'' is a 1970 American action film from director Larry Buchanan. It stars Fabian Forte as gangster Pretty Boy Floyd and co-stars Jocelyn Lane in her final performance before retiring from acting. Plot Oklahoma farmer Cha ...

'' (1970) - Huddy * '' The Last Picture Show'' (1971) - Coach Popper * '' Encounter with the Unknown'' (1973) - Second Man * ''

The Sugarland Express ''The Sugarland Express'' is a 1974 American crime drama film directed by Steven Spielberg in his directorial debut. The film follows a woman (Goldie Hawn) and her husband ( William Atherton) as they take a police officer ( Michael Sacks) hostage ...

'' (1974) - Hunter * ''Ride in a Pink Car'' (1974) - Barlow * '' 'Gator Bait'' (1974) - Sheriff Joe Bob Thomas * '' Where the Red Fern Grows'' (1974) - Sam Bellington * ''The Florida Connection'' (1976) - Deke * ''

Creature from Black Lake ''Creature from Black Lake'' is a 1976 American horror film written and directed by Joy N. Houck Jr. and starring Jack Elam, Dub Taylor, Dennis Fimple, John David Carson, and Bill Thurman. It follows two anthropology students from the Universi ...

'' (1976) - Sheriff Billy Carter * '' Slumber Party '57'' (1976) - Mr. Willis * ''

Charge of the Model T's ''Charge of the Model T's'' is a 1977 American comedy spy film directed by Jim McCullough Sr. with the screenplay by Jim McCullough Jr. based upon the novel of the same name by Lee Somerville. Starring John David Carson, Carol Bagdasarian, Loui ...

'' (1977) - Sgt. Bond * ''

Close Encounters of the Third Kind ''Close Encounters of the Third Kind'' is a 1977 American science fiction film written and directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Richard Dreyfuss, Melinda Dillon, Teri Garr, Bob Balaban, Cary Guffey, and François Truffaut. It tells the story ...

'' (1977) - Air Traffic #2 * ''Keep My Grave Open'' (1977) - Hitchhiker * ''

The Beasts Are on the Streets ''The Beasts Are on the Streets'' is a 1978 American made-for-television thriller film produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions (although known as an animation studio, this was one of several live-action Hanna-Barbera productions), directed by Peter ...

'' (1978, TV Movie) - Carl Evans * ''

The Evictors ''The Evictors'' is a 1979 American crime-horror film written and directed by Charles B. Pierce, and starring Vic Morrow, Michael Parks, and Jessica Harper. A period piece set in 1942, it follows a couple who are terrorized by a mysterious man ...

'' (1979) - Preacher Higgins * ''

Tom Horn Thomas Horn Jr., (November 21, 1860 – November 20, 1903) was an American scout, cowboy, soldier, range detective, and Pinkerton agent in the 19th-century and early 20th-century American Old West. Believed to have committed 17 killings as a ...

'' (1980) - Ora Haley * '' Skyward'' (1980, TV Movie) - Pilot #1 * '' Raggedy Man'' (1981) - Sheriff * '' Mountaintop Motel Massacre'' (1983) - Reverend Bill McWilley * '' Places in the Heart'' (1984) - Homer * ''

Innocent Prey ''Innocent Prey'' is an Australian erotic thriller film which was shot in 1984 but was released in 1991.David Stratton, ''The Avocado Plantation: Boom and Bust in the Australian Film Industry'', Pan MacMillan, 1990 p290 Plot Cathy Willis arrives ...

'' (1984) - Jim Gardner * '' Alamo Bay'' (1985) - Sheriff * ''

Silverado Silverado may refer to: Places *Silverado, California, United States, an unincorporated community *Silverado Canyon, Orange County, California, near the above community; associated with Silverado Creek * Silverado Trail, a scenic route in Napa V ...

'' (1985) - Carter * ''Hawken's Breed'' (1987) - Jeb Kline * '' It Takes Two'' (1988) - Bus Driver * ''Painted Hero'' (1997) - Old Man Bolen (final film role)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Thurman, Bill 1920 births 1995 deaths American male film actors 20th-century American male actors Male actors from Texas