Donald Alan Diamond (June 4, 1921 – June 19, 2011) was an American radio, film, and

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

who portrayed "Crazy Cat", the sidekick and heir apparent to Chief Wild Eagle on the popular 1960s television sitcom, ''

F Troop ''F Troop'' is a satirical American television Western sitcom about U.S. soldiers and American Indians in the Wild West during the 1860s. The series originally aired for two seasons on ABC. It debuted in the United States on September 14, 1965 ...

'' (1965–1967). He also co-starred as "El Toro", the sidekick of Bill Williams' main character of

Kit Carson Christopher Houston Carson (December 24, 1809 – May 23, 1868) was an American frontiersman, fur trapper, wilderness guide, Indian agent and United States Army, U.S. Army officer. He became an American frontier legend in his own lifetime ...

in 105 episodes of the popular early television series, ''

The Adventures of Kit Carson ''The Adventures of Kit Carson'' is an American Westerns on television, Western television series that aired from 1951 to 1955 and consisted of 104 episodes. While airing, the show was shown in over 130 markets and was sold to the Coca-Cola Bott ...

'', from 1951 to 1955 .

Early years

Don Diamond was born in New York City on June 4, 1921. His father, Benjamin, emigrated to the United States from Russia in 1906 with his parents. Benjamin Diamond served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and then became a prosperous clothing merchant. Benjamin and Ruth Diamond had another son, Neal, three years younger than Don, and a daughter, Muriel, nine years younger than Don. Diamond graduated from the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

, with a degree in drama supplemented by studies in Spanish. He then enlisted in the

United States Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical ri ...

. He studied Spanish further while he was stationed in the Southwest.

Career

Discharged in 1946 as a first lieutenant, he began acting on radio and became known for his dialect portrayals of Spaniards and Mexicans. He played El Toro in ''The Adventures of Kit Carson'' syndicated

television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...

(1951–1955). Diamond additionally performed as Corporal Reyes on

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney ( ; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer, voice actor, and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the Golden age of American animation, American animation industry, he introduced several develop ...

's television series ''

Zorro Zorro ( or , Spanish for "fox") is a fictional character created in 1919 by American Pulp magazine, pulp writer Johnston McCulley, appearing in works set in the Pueblo de Los Ángeles in Alta California. He is typically portrayed as a dashin ...

'' and Crazy Cat on ''F Troop''. In 1968, Diamond appeared as Diego on ''

The Big Valley ''The Big Valley'' is an American Western television series that originally aired from September 15, 1965, to May 19, 1969 on ABC. The series is set on the fictional Barkley Ranch in Stockton, California, from 1884 to 1888. The one-hour epis ...

'' in the episode titled "Miranda." He appeared on more than 100 television shows and in many feature films. He performed extensive voice-over work in commercials and cartoons, most notably as the voice of Toro in the DePatie-Freleng Enterprises cartoon series ''

Tijuana Toads ''Tijuana Toads'' is a series of 17 theatrical cartoons produced by DePatie–Freleng and released through United Artists. Plot The series concerns two toads, El Toro and Pancho, who live in the Mexican city of Tijuana. Throughout the cartoon ...

.'' On radio, Diamond was heard on the NBC crime drama ''Confession''.

Death

Diamond died due to heart failure in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, on June 19, 2011, at age 90.

Personal

His wife, Louisa, was a teacher.

Filmography

References

External links

*
Obituary in ''Los Angeles Times''
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Diamond, Don 1921 births 2011 deaths American male film actors United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II American people of Russian descent American male radio actors American male television actors United States Army Air Forces officers University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance alumni Yiddish-speaking people 20th-century American male actors American male voice actors Male actors from Brooklyn Western (genre) television actors