William Sylvester

William Sylvester

Birthday: 1922-01-31

Deathday: 1995-01-25

Place of birth: Oakland, California, USA

Also known as: William R. Sylvester

imdb_id: nm0843213

Biography:

William Sylvester (January 31, 1922 – January 25, 1995) was an American TV and film actor. His most famous film credit was Dr. Heywood Floyd in Stanley Kubrick's 2001 A Space Odyssey (1968). Born in Oakland, California and married at one time to the British actress Veronica Hurst, he moved to England after the Second World War and became a staple of British B films at a time when American and Canadian actors were much in demand in order to give indigenous films some appeal in the US. As a result, he gained top billing in one of his very first films, House of Blackmail (1953), directed by the veteran filmmaker Maurice Elvey, for whom he also made What Every Woman Wants the following year. He also starred in such minor films as The Stranger Came Home (1954, for Hammer), Dublin Nightmare (1958), Offbeat (1960), Information Received (1961), Incident at Midnight, Ring of Spies and Blind Corner (all 1963). There were also lead roles in four British horror films: Gorgo (1960), Devil Doll (1963), Devils of Darkness (1964) and The Hand of Night (1966). Among his many TV credits were a 1959 BBC version of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar (playing Mark Antony), The Saint, The Baron, The High Chaparral, Harry O and The Six Million Dollar Man. His later films included You Only Live Twice (1967) and, back in the USA after his prominent role for Kubrick, Busting (1973), The Hindenburg (1975) and Heaven Can Wait (1978). He died in Sacramento, California in 1995, aged 72.

Played in movies:

2001: A Space Odyssey

Score: 8.1

Albert R.N.

Score: 7.2

The 9th Wonder of the World: The Making of 'Gorgo'

Score: 7.0

Ring of Spies

Score: 6.9

Heaven Can Wait

Score: 6.6

2001: The Making of a Myth

Score: 6.5

The Hindenburg

Score: 6.3

Busting

Score: 6.3

Appointment in London

Score: 6.2

Whirlpool

Score: 6.2

Portrait of Alison

Score: 6.2

Don't Be Afraid of the Dark

Score: 6.1

Offbeat

Score: 6.1

They Were Not Divided

Score: 6.0

Red and Blue

Score: 6.0

What Every Woman Wants

Score: 6.0

Roger Moore: A Matter of Class

Score: 6.0

Incident at Midnight

Score: 6.0

House of Blackmail

Score: 6.0

High Tide at Noon

Score: 6.0

Give Us This Day

Score: 5.9

The Lawyer

Score: 5.6

The Yellow Balloon

Score: 5.6

Dublin Nightmare

Score: 5.5

The Stranger Came Home

Score: 5.5

Gorgo

Score: 5.4

The Hand of Night

Score: 5.1

The Challengers

Score: 5.0

Blind Corner

Score: 5.0

Devils of Darkness

Score: 5.0

Devil Doll

Score: 4.7

The Syndicate

Score: 4.0

First Family

Score: 3.0

Riding with Death

Score: 2.6

The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial

Score: 0.0

Information Received

Score: 0.0

Played in tv shows:

Banacek

Score: 8.6

Quincy, M.E.

Score: 7.5

The Saint

Score: 7.3

The Saint

Score: 7.3

Green Acres

Score: 7.3

The Six Million Dollar Man

Score: 7.2

The Six Million Dollar Man

Score: 7.2

McCloud

Score: 7.1

The Hardy Boys / Nancy Drew Mysteries

Score: 7.1

Buck Rogers in the 25th Century

Score: 7.0

Gemini Man

Score: 6.9

The Magician

Score: 6.7

Switch

Score: 6.7

Marcus Welby, M.D.

Score: 6.5

The High Chaparral

Score: 6.5

The High Chaparral

Score: 6.5

Cannon

Score: 6.5

The Sentimental Agent

Score: 6.0

The F.B.I.

Score: 5.5

Big Shamus, Little Shamus

Score: 5.0

Harry O

Score: 4.6

What Really Happened to the Class of '65?

Score: 4.5