This area will contain fond memories shared by those who worked with or knew Bill.
Debora Clare owns a farm in New Mexico. She was Bill’s youngest step-daughter from his third wife’s first marriage. Debora was kind enough to reach out to me to share fond memories of growing up with Bill. “I couldn’t have been more than 3 or 4 when he first came bearing gifts for us. Rubber hand balls if I remember correctly. I loved him instantly as he brought boundless joy into our lives which had been pretty dreary up until his arrival. We were living at the beach during the Farmer’s Daughter days. Life was good. Parties on the beach every weekend with a large cast of famous characters. I always tried to connect with Bill when I was near by him. “
Maggie Clare is Debora’s older sister and Bill’s other step-daughter from his third wife’s first marriage. She, too, was kind enough to reach out to me and share some memories about growing up with Bill. “He gave us a great life at the beach. He loved the beach, the water and his boat. He shared his Army rations with us one sunny day on the patio. He loved his Army rations and we loved that he shared them with us!”
Actor Ron Masak worked with Bill on “Murder, She Wrote.” He joined the show in Season 5 after replacing Tom Bosley who was given his own mystery show. Sheriff Mort Metzger was a New York cop who thought life in Cabot Cove would be easy….except for all the murders! When he, Angela Lansbury and Bill were on camera it was tremendous chemistry. Ron was kind enough to share this with me about Bill, “He was always a pixie seeing what he could get away with…wonderful actor. Miss him.”
Actor Mickey Sholdar worked with Bill for 3 years as son Steven Morley on the tv show, “The Farmer’s Daughter.” Before filming he and Bill played father and son in the film “One Man’s Way.” Mickey’s love of golfing was evident as a young man and he appeared as a golf pro in the film “Babe” that starred Alex Karras and his wife Susan Clark. Sholdar was also a technical golf advisor on the film. He was kind enough to share these memories of Bill: “I have good memories of William Windom. William / Bill always treated me well, with respect as did Inger Stevens and everyone else I worked with on the show. He was not only friendly and helpful but I looked up to him. He was funny and I liked him a lot. William and I also worked together in a movie called ‘One Man’s Way’ which was filmed after the pilot for the series was shot but before we started shooting the series. It was the story of Norman Vincent Peale. William played Norman Vincent Peale’s father and I played Norman Vincent Peale as a boy. One year William and Rory O’Brien and I rode together in the Hollywood, Santa Claus Lane Parade which was a lot of fun. I had started playing golf before we started shooting the show and William, my Dad and I and one of the people on the crew from the show would play together once in a while. I played a few times with Inger as well. It is hard to believe that all of that was over 50 years ago. Time flies.”
Actor Rory O’Brien worked with Bill for three year’s on “The Farmer’s Daughter.” Rory was on the show from the age of 8 until the age of 11. He played Glen Morley’s other son, Danny. Rory was kind enough to share some memories of Bill with me, “I have fond memories of him from my childhood. Mr. Windom was friendly and entertaining even to the youngest members of our cast. I remember him rolling his own cigarettes(to keep down on the number he smoked, he told me) and even trying to teach me to play chess. I used to go to the set each day, spending much of my time in our schoolroom, which was an old canvas dressing room hidden beyond the backyard on the set. Every room of the Morley House was on that one sound stage. I can still remember how eerie the rooms looked when they weren’t lit for shooting. Years after the series went off the air, when I’d see Mr. Windom on T.V. I’d think of him as my ‘dad’.” Rory also mentioned how kind Inger Stevens was to him and that she took him for a ride in her Jaguar when he was a boy. Rory also remembered the “wrap” parties they’d hold on the set at the end of each season. Ironically, Rory has a Ph.D. in Political Science and teaches at a college in Northern California.
In 2005 Bill appeared in his last full-length film, a touching drama called “Yesterday’s Dreams.” He played an abusive father to a son who spent his time cleaning septic tanks. The man dreams of falling in love, having a family and escape the abuse he’s endured for so many years. Kevin Foster, who played the main character, Harvey Radford, was also the producer and writer. He’s also a professional mountain biker best known for some of his riding adventures including a ride along the Great Wall of China. Kevin was kind enough to share this story with me about working with Bill: “Bill was great in my film, “YESTERDAY’S DREAMS,” but he almost wasn’t in it. The casting director first sent my script to Lee Majors and when I found out, I said, ‘I don’t want the $6 million man to play my father.’ Fortunately, Lee turned down the part and I was looking at a friend of my, John Quade, to play the part, but the casting director had sent it to William Windom in the meantime, and well, I couldn’t argue with that since I was a lifelong fan of Bill’s work.
(CONT.)…When he accepted the role, I had the day off, so I caught a ride to the airport in Medford, Oregon to pick him up. He’s hobbling up the ramp to the waiting area, looking all haggard and scruffy and my first impression was, ‘There’s my father. What a perfect look.’ We all get in the car and talk a bit and I thank him for accepting the part and did he have anything to add to it? His reply was, ‘Well, I don’t know. I haven’t read the script yet.’ I kind of froze for a moment, then asked, ‘You haven’t read the script? How could you accept the part then?’ He answered, ‘Oh, my agent read the script and I asked him if it was a good part and he said it was. I trust my agent so I took the part.’ Then I said, ‘Well, you know we have our scenes to do tomorrow morning.’ He smiled and nodded, and replied, ‘Oh, don’t worry. I’ll have the part down and ready by tomorrow morning.’ I’m a great admirer of Bill’s work over the years and to be fair, he didn’t really know my background before I became a professional mountain biker until someone informed him that I was a highly trained theatre actor who had some of the finest acting teachers in New York as well as worked with Joe Papp in Shakespeare in the Park and had a starring Broadway credit under my belt….we shot our first scenes and as we were leaving the set to head back to our respected RVs, Bill’s trying to catch up to me with pen and paper in hand, asking, ‘Kevin, that was great work! Can I have your autograph?’ I said I would, but that he had to promise to give me his on an 8×10 after we shot the film. It never happened, and I wish I was more insistent because I don’t have anything signed by him as a remembrance, but that was my fault. During breaks, I would always grill Bill about some of the parts I loved him in over the decades.
(CONT.)… I was basically a walking encyclopedia of Bill’s credits. I loved him in his first film appearance ever, from the TV show, “The Twilight Zone”, when he was in “Five Characters in Search of an Exit,” or his turn as Commander Decker in the original “Star Trek” series. And of course, the annual showing in my house, “The Homecoming,” that was the kick off to “The Waltons” TV series, or as the President of the USA in “Escape From the Planet of the Apes”…When I asked Bill what his favorite part was in all that he had done, he responded, ‘Well, I did a series that only lasted about 13 episodes, but I really enjoyed doing that one and I can’t understand why it was never picked up.’ I knew exactly what he was going to say next because it was one of my favorite series, too… a single season TV series called, “My World and Welcome To It.” Such a great show. Groundbreaking for it’s day. Bill was with our film for four days of work and I really enjoyed my time with him. We spoke a lot. He showed me some film acting tricks and when it was over we kept in touch as he’d call me every now and then to catch up. “YESTERDAY’S DREAMS” would be his last film, so for me, that is an honor I shall forever cherish.”
In 2001, director Mark Jean worked with Bill on an independent film called “Early Bird Special.” It was also actor Ray Walston’s last film. Bill played a character named Fred. The tag line was, “Crime pays if you live long enough.” Mark was kind enough to share a photo of Bill from the set. He also told me, “Bill was an amazing man and it was my good fortune to be able to work with him.”
Tony Piazza is a mystery writer, film historian, presenter and veteran storyteller. He was also a regular stand-in and extra when film crews shot movie and television in San Francisco. Tony’s worked with a who’s who of Hollywood A-listers including Clint Eastwood, Paul Newman, Steve McQueen and many others. Tony was a stand-in for all five seasons of “The Streets of San Francisco” of which Bill appeared in three episodes. Tony recalled working with Bill on the episode Requiem For Murder and that Bill would take a travel chess set with him to play during down time. Tony was gracious enough to share this memory, “William Windom was a guest star a total of three episodes. This [Requiem For Murder] was filmed (as I recall) in 1976, our forth season, Michel Hugo was our Director of Photography, and Harry Falk the director. William Windom played a Monsignor in the show, and St. Paul’s Catholic Church in Noe Valley served as the parish (we shot both exteriors and interiors there). The rectory however was shot somewhere else, (I believe) up in Pacific Heights. I played chess with Windom (2 games) during breaks in shooting. We were doing interiors there- Richard Basehart was also present, he and Windom were in the scene together. Windom was a fine actor, and very personable in real life. I enjoyed working with him.” A big thanks to Tony Piazza for sharing this memory. For more about Tony’s brush with Hollywood as well information on his published works visit his website at: http://tonypiazza.wpengine.com/
Ricardo Sajor was kind enough to share with me a story about meeting Bill. “I met Windom on a tennis court in San Jose in early 1984 near the theatre where he was doing his one-man play Thurber. We had a chance to play tennis a couple of times before he wrenched his knee and he gave me tickets for his play – he was a very nice man – very friendly. It was interesting because after meeting Windom in San Jose, I quit my job and went to Europe for 9 months. But during that trip I did find myself in the American Embassy in Moscow one night eating pizza and dancing.” It was during this conversation with Ricardo that he recalled a pilot show Bill did about an American news magazine working the bureau in Moscow. The show was called, aptly enough, “Moscow Bureau.” “I would write to Windom somewhat regularly (pre-internet), letting him know how the travel was going and he always responded no matter where I was. He was an actor that I grew up with as a child – my mother would have us sit in front of the tv every week to watch The Farmer’s Daughter – she loved him.”
Nancy Pound knew Bill for many years (as well as his fourth wife, Jackie) and were life-long friends. It all started with a visit to the set of “The Farmer’s Daughter” to meet Inger Stevens. ” It was so ‘big’ in my life, partly at first just owing to my being 14—where stuff was magnified, period! A friend at Screen Gems (at Columbia studios) where they filmed “The Farmer’s Daughter” knew full well how much I loved, loved, loved the show and so idolized Inger Stevens/ Katy Holstrum. Thinking I’d love the chance to meet my idol in person they arranged with Mom to take me to the set and meet her in person. My level of emotion ran wild, as you can pretty well imagine, I’m sure—ran the gamut between being thrilled beyond measure, star-struck as I was, and feeling a stomach-churning dread at the same time…and everything in between! But there I was….and of course, as soon as I got to the studio and to the “Farmer’s Daughter” set, as soon as I met Inger, I was tongue-tied and chuck-full of self-doubt. And gosh, she was so sweet to me. Then, out of nowhere, out of somewhere, came Bill…either introducing himself or introduced to Mom and me by our friend, I don’t know. He spent the major part of our visit that day by sitting with Mom and me. He and Mom carried on most of the conversation, but he also made a pointed, kindly and persistent effort to engage me as well. He asked me questions that I was forced to open my mouth and answer! He wouldn’t let me retreat into myself. He put a lot of energy into that poor crazy kid sitting there by him, I tell you! I absolutely adored and was beholden to Bill forever after. He had seen the situation and had persisted in making that day be something more for me than just turmoil ….I don’t know how he did it, but working together with Mom, they finally made me relax a bit more, to smile and enjoy myself (as best I could, anyway!) They both seemed to understand the teenage state of mind. They knew some of the tricks to bring the ‘person’ out. But that poor man! He now had a 14-year old girl with a huge crush on him!! Eventually the natural evolution of time occurred and growing up happened….and Bill was almost always there in life. My husband and I moved to Oregon in 1975. When Bill would be up this way or somewhere in the Pacific Northwest doing Thurber or Ernie Pyle or some other project, we’d meet up and have some special visits with him, join him in the event. The ferry ride from Anacortes, an after-show party at one college presentation he did, a couple visits to his home in Malibu….just so much.” Nancy also recalled how Bill was there for her when she lost her husband to cancer.
Actress Rosemary Forsyth worked with Bill on the pilot tv show “Is There a Doctor in the House?” It was a Screen Gems property and meant to be similar to “The Farmer’s Daughter.” She also worked with Bill on an episode of the lawyer drama, “Petrocelli.” She is a very kind and taletned actress and admitted she had never seen “Is There a Doctor in the House?” until I sent her a copy. Rosemary said it was so much fun to go to work and to work with Bill. She said he was so sweet and never showed any sign of difficulty to work with. They had a lot of fun breaking up during the filming and recalls the entire time, fondly. She and Bill were reunited in the 1980s when Rosemary made her second appearance on “Murder, She Wrote.” She and Bill did not have scenes together however, they were able to catch up on set.