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William Sylvester

William Sylvester

Acting January 31, 1922 (72 years old) January 25, 1995 Oakland, California, USA

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.

Movies 37

2001: A Space Odyssey 8.0

2001: A Space Odyssey

as Dr. Heywood Floyd

1968
You Only Live Twice 6.6

You Only Live Twice

as Pentagon Official (uncredited)

1967
Heaven Can Wait 6.7

Heaven Can Wait

as Nuclear Reporter

1978
Don't Be Afraid of the Dark 6.1

Don't Be Afraid of the Dark

as Tom Henderson

1973
Busting 6.3

Busting

as Mr. Weldman

1974
The Hindenburg 6.4

The Hindenburg

as Luftwaffe Colonel

1975
The Unholy Four 5.5

The Unholy Four

as Philip Vickers

1954
Ring of Spies 7.0

Ring of Spies

as Gordon Lonsdale

1964
What Every Woman Wants 6.6

What Every Woman Wants

as Jim Barnes

1954
2001: The Making of a Myth 6.6

2001: The Making of a Myth

as Dr. Heywood R. Floyd (archive footage) (uncredited)

2001
Gorgo 5.3

Gorgo

as Sam Slade

1961
The Hand of Night 5.1

The Hand of Night

as Paul Carver

1968
The Lawyer 5.9

The Lawyer

as Paul Harrison

1970
First Family 3.4

First Family

as TV Commentator Howard

1980
Devil Doll 4.8

Devil Doll

as Mark English

1964
They Were Not Divided 6.4

They Were Not Divided

as American Soldier (uncredited)

1950
Give Us This Day 5.7

Give Us This Day

as Giovanni

1949
Roger Moore: A Matter of Class 7.7

Roger Moore: A Matter of Class

as Self (archive footage)

1995
House of Blackmail 6.4

House of Blackmail

as Jimmy

1953
The Yellow Balloon 6.0

The Yellow Balloon

as Len Turner

1953
Portrait of Alison 6.2

Portrait of Alison

as Dave Forrester

1955
High Tide at Noon 6.2

High Tide at Noon

as Alec Douglas

1957
The Challengers 7.0

The Challengers

as Brad York

1970
The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial

The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial

1958
Devils of Darkness 5.2

Devils of Darkness

as Paul Baxter

1965
Appointment in London 6.5

Appointment in London

as Mac

1953
Riding with Death 2.9

Riding with Death

as Leonard Driscoll

1976
Information Received 7.0

Information Received

as Rick Hogan

1961
Albert R.N. 7.3

Albert R.N.

as Texas

1953
Whirlpool 6.3

Whirlpool

as Hermann

1959
Incident at Midnight 7.0

Incident at Midnight

as Vince Warren

1963
The Syndicate 5.5

The Syndicate

as Burt Hickey

1968
The 9th Wonder of the World: The Making of 'Gorgo' 7.0

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

as Sam Slade (archive footage)

2013
Blind Corner 4.9

Blind Corner

as Paul Gregory

1964
Offbeat 6.2

Offbeat

as Layton / Steve Ross

1961
Red and Blue 7.5

Red and Blue

as Trumpeter

1968
Dublin Nightmare 6.6

Dublin Nightmare

as John Kevin

1958

TV Shows 30

Quincy, M.E. 7.5

Quincy, M.E.

as Joe Crawford

1976
The Six Million Dollar Man 7.3

The Six Million Dollar Man

as Frederick Collins

1974
The Six Million Dollar Man 7.3

The Six Million Dollar Man

as Admiral Prescott

1974
The Saint 7.4

The Saint

as Foots Fortunati

1962
The Saint 7.4

The Saint

as Ralph Damien

1962
Cannon 6.8

Cannon

1971
Marcus Welby, M.D. 6.7

Marcus Welby, M.D.

as Paul Berwick

1969
Green Acres 7.2

Green Acres

as Dr. Hoffman

1965
The F.B.I. 5.6

The F.B.I.

as Tom Barber

1965
The High Chaparral 6.7

The High Chaparral

as Jack Simmons

1967
The High Chaparral 6.7

The High Chaparral

as Lafe Croswell

1967
McCloud 7.2

McCloud

1970
Danger Man 7.3

Danger Man

as James Carpenter / Oscar Schumak

1960
Switch 6.6

Switch

as Ellis

1975
The Troubleshooters 7.3

The Troubleshooters

as Al Stevens

1965
The Troubleshooters 7.3

The Troubleshooters

as Brian Skinner

1965
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century 7.1

Buck Rogers in the 25th Century

as Lt. General Preston Myers

1979
Harry O 5.2

Harry O

1974
The Hardy Boys / Nancy Drew Mysteries 7.1

The Hardy Boys / Nancy Drew Mysteries

1977
Drama 61-67

Drama 61-67

as Mark Lander

1961
Banacek 8.4

Banacek

as Dr. Stahl

1972
The Magician 6.8

The Magician

as Peter Hayden

1973
Gemini Man 6.8

Gemini Man

as Leonard Driscoll

1976
What Really Happened to the Class of '65? 6.0

What Really Happened to the Class of '65?

1977
San Francisco International Airport 7.0

San Francisco International Airport

as Colonel Wilkins

1970
Armchair Theatre 6.0

Armchair Theatre

1956
Armchair Theatre 6.0

Armchair Theatre

as Ed Norman

1956
Armchair Theatre 6.0

Armchair Theatre

as Sergeant O'Hara

1956
Big Shamus, Little Shamus 7.0

Big Shamus, Little Shamus

1979
Big Shamus, Little Shamus 7.0

Big Shamus, Little Shamus

as Nelson Milgrim

1979

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