William Sylvester
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.
Known For
Quincy, M.E.
1976
The Saint
1962
The Saint
1962
The F.B.I.
1965
The Six Million Dollar Man
1974
The Six Million Dollar Man
1974
Cannon
1971
Marcus Welby, M.D.
1969
The High Chaparral
1967
The High Chaparral
1967
Green Acres
1965
McCloud
1970
Filmography
Quincy, M.E.
as Joe Crawford · 1976
The Saint
as Foots Fortunati · 1962
The Saint
as Ralph Damien · 1962
The F.B.I.
as Tom Barber · 1965
The Six Million Dollar Man
as Frederick Collins · 1974
The Six Million Dollar Man
as Admiral Prescott · 1974
Cannon
· 1971
Marcus Welby, M.D.
as Paul Berwick · 1969
The High Chaparral
as Jack Simmons · 1967
The High Chaparral
as Lafe Croswell · 1967
Green Acres
as Dr. Hoffman · 1965
McCloud
· 1970
2001: A Space Odyssey
as Dr. Heywood Floyd · 1968
Switch
as Ellis · 1975
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
as Lt. General Preston Myers · 1979
Danger Man
as James Carpenter / Oscar Schumak · 1960
Harry O
· 1974
The Hardy Boys / Nancy Drew Mysteries
· 1977
You Only Live Twice
as Pentagon Official (uncredited) · 1967
Drama 61-67
as Mark Lander · 1961
Banacek
as Dr. Stahl · 1972
The Troubleshooters
as Al Stevens · 1965
The Magician
as Peter Hayden · 1973
What Really Happened to the Class of '65?
· 1977
Gemini Man
as Leonard Driscoll · 1976
Heaven Can Wait
as Nuclear Reporter · 1978
Big Shamus, Little Shamus
· 1979
Big Shamus, Little Shamus
as Nelson Milgrim · 1979
The Hindenburg
as Luftwaffe Colonel · 1975
Armchair Theatre
· 1956
Armchair Theatre
as Ed Norman · 1956
Armchair Theatre
as Sergeant O'Hara · 1956
San Francisco International Airport
as Colonel Wilkins · 1970
Don't Be Afraid of the Dark
as Tom Henderson · 1973
Give Us This Day
as Giovanni · 1949
Busting
as Mr. Weldman · 1974
Gorgo
as Sam Slade · 1961
What Every Woman Wants
as Jim Barnes · 1954
2001: The Making of a Myth
as Dr. Heywood R. Floyd (archive footage) (uncredited) · 2001
Devil Doll
as Mark English · 1964
Ring of Spies
as Gordon Lonsdale · 1964
The Unholy Four
as Philip Vickers · 1954
The Lawyer
as Paul Harrison · 1970
Roger Moore: A Matter of Class
as Self (archive footage) · 1995
Riding with Death
as Leonard Driscoll · 1976
Appointment in London
as Mac · 1953
The Yellow Balloon
as Len Turner · 1953
Devils of Darkness
as Paul Baxter · 1965
Portrait of Alison
as Dave Forrester · 1955
The Challengers
as Brad York · 1970
First Family
as TV Commentator Howard · 1980
High Tide at Noon
as Alec Douglas · 1957
The Hand of Night
as Paul Carver · 1968
Red and Blue
as Trumpeter · 1968
Albert R.N.
as Texas · 1953
They Were Not Divided
as American Soldier (uncredited) · 1950
House of Blackmail
as Jimmy · 1953
The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial
· 1958
The 9th Wonder of the World: The Making of 'Gorgo'
as Sam Slade (archive footage) · 2013
Whirlpool
as Hermann · 1959
Offbeat
as Layton / Steve Ross · 1961
The Syndicate
as Burt Hickey · 1968
Incident at Midnight
as Vince Warren · 1963
Dublin Nightmare
as John Kevin · 1958
Blind Corner
as Paul Gregory · 1964
Information Received
as Rick Hogan · 1961