# Bill Williams (actor)
**Bill Williams** was the stage name of **Hermann August Wilhelm Katt** (May 21, 1915 – September 21, 1992), an American film and television actor best known for playing the title role in the syndicated 1950s Western series *The Adventures of Kit Carson*.
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Herman August Wilhelm Katt, born May 21, 1915, Brooklyn, New York[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0930103/bio/) |
| Signature role | Kit Carson in *The Adventures of Kit Carson*, 104 episodes aired in syndication 1951 to 1955[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-09-24-mn-1334-story.html) |
| Notable films | *Deadline at Dawn* and *Till the End of Time* (1946), *The Clay Pigeon* (1949), *Son of Paleface* (1952), *Rio Lobo* (1970)[3](https://www.nndb.com/people/068/000108741/) |
| Other TV leads | *Date with the Angels* (1957) opposite Betty White; *Assignment: Underwater* (1960)[4](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/bill-williams/) |
| Marriage | Actress Barbara Hale, married June 22, 1946 until his death; three children including actor William Katt[5](https://www.filmweb.pl/person/Bill%2BWilliams-202783) |
| Death | September 21, 1992, Burbank, California, of complications of a brain tumor, at age 77[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-09-24-mn-1334-story.html) |
| Honors | Hollywood Walk of Fame star in the television category, ceremony February 8, 1960[6](https://walkoffame.com/bill-williams/) |
## Early life and training
Williams was born in Brooklyn and educated there at the [Pratt Institute](https://www.edgepedia.org/pratt-institute), where he studied construction engineering before athletics changed his direction[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0930103/bio/). He became a junior national swimming champion as a teenager and credited swimming for his physique[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-09-24-mn-1334-story.html). Working as an exhibition diver in 1935, he was offered a job as an adagio dancer, later formed his own adagio act, and toured Europe with it, including an appearance at the [London Palladium](https://www.edgepedia.org/london-palladium)[7](https://www.the-independent.com/news/people/obituary-bill-williams-1553700.html). He then spent nine years in vaudeville with the Stuart Morgan dancers[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-09-24-mn-1334-story.html).
His father was an actor, and Williams followed him into show business[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-09-24-mn-1334-story.html). After service in the Army Air Corps during World War II, he entered Hollywood as a contract player for RKO[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-09-24-mn-1334-story.html). His first credited film under the professional name Bill Williams was the 1944 mystery *Murder in the Blue Room*[8](https://www.netflixmovies.com/s/actor/bill-williams).
## Film career
RKO groomed the boyish, blond actor for stardom in the immediate postwar period[4](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/bill-williams/). His peak year was 1946, when the studio gave him leading parts in two major productions: in *Deadline at Dawn*, a film noir based on a Cornell Woolrich story, he played a sailor on shore leave who wakes with amnesia and cannot tell whether he is guilty of murder, opposite [Susan Hayward](https://www.edgepedia.org/susan-hayward) and Paul Lukas[7](https://www.the-independent.com/news/people/obituary-bill-williams-1553700.html); in Edward Dmytryk's *Till the End of Time*, a popular story of returning World War II veterans, he played a returning serviceman[7](https://www.the-independent.com/news/people/obituary-bill-williams-1553700.html). Despite the success of *Till the End of Time*, RKO soon settled him into supporting roles and leads in modestly budgeted action pictures and crime dramas[4](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/bill-williams/). A representative example from this period is [Richard Fleischer](https://www.edgepedia.org/richard-fleischer)'s *The Clay Pigeon* (1949), in which Williams played a seaman trying to prove his innocence of betraying fellow prisoners in a Japanese war camp; the leading lady was [Barbara Hale](https://www.edgepedia.org/barbara-hale)[7](https://www.the-independent.com/news/people/obituary-bill-williams-1553700.html). His more than 50 films also included *Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo*, *Son of Paleface*, *Rio Lobo*, and *Scandalous John*[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-09-24-mn-1334-story.html).
## The Adventures of Kit Carson
Williams's career revived with television. *The Adventures of Kit Carson* cast him as frontier scout [Christopher](https://www.edgepedia.org/christopher) "Kit" Carson, with Don Diamond as his Mexican sidekick El Toro; the series aired in syndication from 1951 to 1955 and ran 104 episodes[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-09-24-mn-1334-story.html). Unlike many adventure stars of the 1930s and 1940s, Williams was an athlete who did much of his own riding and stunts[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-09-24-mn-1334-story.html). The show was one of the many Wild West adventure series aimed at children in the 1950s[9](https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/the-adventures-of-kit-carson/cast/1030220743/).
The role became his identifying one, and he tired of it. When he signed on in 1957 for *Date With the Angels*, a situation comedy opposite [Betty White](https://www.edgepedia.org/betty-white), he reportedly told a publicist: "I never want to see or hear of Kit Carson again."[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-09-24-mn-1334-story.html) In *Date with the Angels* he played the husband of Betty White's character[4](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/bill-williams/). Neither of his two further series leads succeeded: the adventure series *Assignment: Underwater* (1960), in which he played a former Navy frogman, ran for only one season[7](https://www.the-independent.com/news/people/obituary-bill-williams-1553700.html) • [6](https://walkoffame.com/bill-williams/).
**Passed-over roles.** Two decisions in the late 1950s shaped his later career. He turned down the lead in *Sea Hunt* (1958), thinking an underwater show would fail on television; [Lloyd Bridges](https://www.edgepedia.org/lloyd-bridges) took the part and made it a hit[6](https://walkoffame.com/bill-williams/). He also played Federal agent Martin Flaherty in *The Scarface Mob*, the 1959 pilot for ABC's *[The Untouchables](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-untouchables-1959-tv-series)*, but when the series went ahead the role went to [Jerry Paris](https://www.edgepedia.org/jerry-paris)[6](https://walkoffame.com/bill-williams/).
For the rest of his career he worked mainly in guest appearances and lower-budget genre films, including science fiction such as *The Giant Spider Invasion* (1975)[4](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/bill-williams/), until his retirement in the early 1980s[6](https://walkoffame.com/bill-williams/).
## Family
Williams met Barbara Hale during the filming of *West of the Pecos*, and they married in 1946, the year they also co-starred in *A Likely Story*[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-09-24-mn-1334-story.html). Hale found her own television fame as Della Street on *[Perry Mason](https://www.edgepedia.org/perry-mason-1957-tv-series)* (1957-65), and the marriage was described in his obituary in *The Independent* as one of Hollywood's most durable[7](https://www.the-independent.com/news/people/obituary-bill-williams-1553700.html). For years the couple lived on a working ranch in Yucca Valley, raising their three children far from the city[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-09-24-mn-1334-story.html). Their children were Jody Katt (born 1947), [William Katt](https://www.edgepedia.org/william-katt) (born 1951), and Juanita Katt (born 1953)[5](https://www.filmweb.pl/person/Bill%2BWilliams-202783). Their son William Katt became an actor, known for the film *Carrie* (1976) and the series *[The Greatest American Hero](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-greatest-american-hero)* (1981)[10](https://www.upi.com/Archives/1992/09/22/Actor-William-Katt-Sr-dies/2121717134400/).
## Death and mixed records on his birth date
Williams died on September 21, 1992 at St. Joseph's Medical Center in Burbank of complications of a brain tumor, at age 77[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-09-24-mn-1334-story.html). Reference sources disagree on his exact birth date: most, including IMDb, NNDB, and the official [Hollywood Walk of Fame](https://www.edgepedia.org/hollywood-walk-of-fame) record, give May 21, 1915[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0930103/bio/) • [3](https://www.nndb.com/people/068/000108741/) • [6](https://walkoffame.com/bill-williams/), while TV Insider gives May 15, 1915[4](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/bill-williams/) and *The Independent* gives 1916 as the birth year[7](https://www.the-independent.com/news/people/obituary-bill-williams-1553700.html). The weight of the record supports May 21, 1915.
## References
1. [Bill Williams Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0930103/bio/)
2. [Bill Williams; Played Kit Carson in '50s Series, Los Angeles Times (Sept. 24, 1992)](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-09-24-mn-1334-story.html)
3. [Bill Williams, NNDB](https://www.nndb.com/people/068/000108741/)
4. [Bill Williams - Actor, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/bill-williams/)
5. [Bill Williams I - Filmweb](https://www.filmweb.pl/person/Bill%2BWilliams-202783)
6. [Bill Williams - Hollywood Walk of Fame](https://walkoffame.com/bill-williams/)
7. [Obituary: Bill Williams, The Independent (Sept. 25, 1992)](https://www.the-independent.com/news/people/obituary-bill-williams-1553700.html)
8. [Bill Williams Movies, NetflixMovies.com](https://www.netflixmovies.com/s/actor/bill-williams)
9. [The Adventures of Kit Carson - Full Cast & Crew, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/the-adventures-of-kit-carson/cast/1030220743/)
10. [Actor William Katt Sr. Dies, UPI (Sept. 22, 1992)](https://www.upi.com/Archives/1992/09/22/Actor-William-Katt-Sr-dies/2121717134400/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 1940s to 1960s › Surnames Su to W*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license