William Bishop (actor)

Bishop was the son of Edward T. Bishop and Helen MacArthur Bishop. He had a brother, Robert. His elementary and secondary schooling came in New York and New Jersey. He went to West Virginia University where he wanted to study law{{cite journal|title=Great Life|journal=TV Radio Mirror|date=January 1955|volume=43|issue=2|page=15|url=https://archive.org/stream/radiotv00macf#page/n24/mode/1up|accessdate=22 March 2016}} but left to enter theater. While he was at WVU, Bishop "won laurels as a football player and in other athletics."{{cite news|title=Theater Gossip|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=950&dat=19420706&id=zPdPAAAAIBAJ&sjid=MVUDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2838,1222762&hl=en|accessdate=22 March 2016|agency=The Evening Independent|date=July 6, 1942|location=Florida, St. Petersburg|page=6}}

His uncle was playwright Charles MacArthur, making him the nephew of stage and screen legend Helen Hayes and the cousin of actor James MacArthur.

Bishop served in the South Pacific with a Signal Battalion of the United States Army during World War II.

Bishop's early experiences in acting came on the stage. After some work in little theaters in New York, he appeared on Broadway in Tobacco Road.{{cite web|title=William Bishop|url=http://www.playbill.com/searchpage/search?q=William+Bishop&sort=Relevance&shows=on&qasset=00000150-ac84-d16d-a550-ecbe7a840001|website=Playbill|accessdate=22 March 2016}} He was also a charter member of Orson Welles' Mercury Theatre.

Bishop was best known for his role as Steve Connors on the 1950s NBC comedy series It's a Great Life{{cite book|title=The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present|year=2007|publisher=Ballantine Books|isbn=978-0-345-49773-4}} He was also seen in other programs, including Schlitz Playhouse of Stars and The Loretta Young Show.

He had roles in films including Harriet Craig, The Killer That Stalked New York and The Basketball Fix, plus numerous westerns such as Top Gun, The Tougher They Come, Gun Belt, Cripple Creek and Wyoming Renegades.

In 1956, Bishop married Shirley Mohr "in a small Nevada town after being marooned ... by blizzard."{{cite news|title=Wed While Marooned in Storm|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1734&dat=19560217&id=OnUbAAAAIBAJ&sjid=2VAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=7135,6363957&hl=en|accessdate=22 March 2016|newspaper=The Dispatch|date=February 17, 1956|location=North Carolina, Lexington|page=8}}

Bishop died in Malibu, California of cancer on October 3, 1959, at age 41.{{cite news|title=TV and Film Actor William Bishop Dies|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/4696508/independent_presstelegram/|agency=Independent Press-Telegram|date=October 4, 1959|location=California, Long Beach|page=148|via = Newspapers.com|accessdate = March 21, 2016}} {{Open access}}

{{Div col}}

• Pilot No. 5 (1943) - Cadet (uncredited)
• Young Ideas (1943) - French Lieutenant (uncredited)
• Salute to the Marines (1943) - Cpl. Anderson (uncredited)
• Swing Shift Maisie (1943) - Young Pilot (uncredited)
• I Dood It (1943) - Detective (uncredited)
• ''Soldier with Autograph Book (uncredited)
• Cry 'Havoc' (1943) - Soldier (uncredited)
• Swing Fever (1943) - Radio Man (uncredited)
• Lost Angel (1943) - Reporter (uncredited)
• A Guy Named Joe (1943) - Ray - Transport Pilot (uncredited)
• Whistling in Brooklyn (1943) - Psychiatrist (uncredited)
• The Beginning or the End (1947) - 2nd Lieutenant - Electronics Officer, Enola Gay (uncredited)
• The Romance of Rosy Ridge (1947) - Ad Buchanan
• Song of the Thin Man (1947) - Al Amboy
• Devil Ship (1947) - Sanderson
• Adventures in Silverado (1948) - Bill Foss
• Port Said (1948) - Leslie Sears
• Coroner Creek (1948) - Leach Conover
• Thunderhoof (1948) - The Kid
• Black Eagle (1948) - Jason Bond
• The Untamed Breed (1948) - Larch Keegan
• Slightly French (1949) - J.B. (voice, uncredited)
• The Walking Hills (1949) - Dave 'Shep' Wilson
• Anna Lucasta (1949) - Rudolf Strobel
• Mr. Soft Touch (1949) - Radio Broadcaster (voice, uncredited)
• The Killer That Stalked New York (1950) - Dr. Ben Wood
• Harriet Craig (1950) - Wes Miller
• The Tougher They Come (1950) - Gus Williams
• The Frogmen (1951) - Ferrino (uncredited)
• Lorna Doone (1951) - Carver Doone
• The Texas Rangers (1951) - Sam Bass
• The Basketball Fix (1951) - Mike Taft
• Montana Territory (1952) - Opening Off-Screen Narrator (uncredited)
• Cripple Creek (1952) - Silver Kirby
• Breakdown (1952) - Terry Williams
• The Raiders (1952) - Marshal William Henderson
• The Redhead from Wyoming (1953) - Jim Averell
• Gun Belt (1953) - Ike Clinton
• Overland Pacific (1954) - Del Stewart
• Wyoming Renegades (1955) - Sundance
• Top Gun (1955) - Canby Judd
• The Boss (1956) - Bob Herrick
• The White Squaw (1956) - Bob Garth
• The Phantom Stagecoach (1957) - Glen Hayden
• Short Cut to Hell (1957) - Sgt. Stan Lowery
• The Oregon Trail (1959) - Capt. George Wayne

{{div col end}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{IMDb name|0084219|William Bishop}}
• {{IBDB name|32144}}
• {{Find a Grave|18547064}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bishop, William}}

Category:1918 births

Category:1959 deaths

Category:Male actors from Illinois

Category:American male television actors

Category:20th-century American male actors

Category:Deaths from cancer in California

Category:West Virginia University alumni

Category:Burials at Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery, Santa Monica