William Smith is just that. He played Detective Jim Kimo Carew on the final season of Hawaii Five-O and made appearances on other TV shows including Batman, Dukes of Hazzard, and The A-Team. Throughout his life, he was interested in bodybuilding and boxing. }); Wayne LaFarr/YouTube. At the ranch, he would develop a love and admiration for horses and the classic Western lifestyle, according to his website. The 88 year old's cause of death is unknown; he died at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, California. He would later become an elite discus thrower at UCLA, a martial arts black belt and a champion arm-wrestler. }); She declined to give the cause of death. An experience, though, that would forever shape Smith's legacy would be when he stepped into the role of a merciless bodybuilder in 1970's "Darker Than Amber," where he went head to head in the ring with Rod Taylor. Smith was a fascinating person with a diverse background. Actor William Smith | The Official Website | The Poetic Works of Later, he joined the cast of "Hawaii Five-O" in its final season as Detective James "Kimo" Carew. document.querySelector("#adunit").addEventListener('click',function(){ Smith was known for his roles in western and biker-themed films and TV shows. He and Eastwood meet while out jogging one morning, and then he falls off a cliff and is rescued by Eastwood, after which he beats up a lot of guys who insult Eastwoods girlfriend in a bar. 'Hawaii Five-O' star dead at 88, fans mourn 'greatest TV villain'. In a career span of more than 75 years, Smith appeared in almost three hundred feature films and television productions. He has 274 credited acting roles on the IMDB database spanning almost 80 years and 30 credits for stunt work during a period of 33 years. William Smith, 'Rich Man, Poor Man' star, dead at 88 - New York Post William Smith Dies: 'Rich Man, Poor Man', 'Any Which Way You Can' Actor He also portrayed Texas Ranger Joe Riley in the two seasons of 'Laredo' and then joined the original cast of 'Hawaii Five-O' for its last season. Returning to California, Smith continued working steadily throughout the 60s and 70s, becoming an obvious choice when casting cult hit biker films such as Run, Angel, Run!, The Losers, Angels Die Hard, C.C. A fan tweeted: "I'll never forget that fearsome brawl between Rod Taylor and William Smith in Darker than Amber. For movie fans, Smith is best remembered for his 70's biker movies, and TV-series. William Smith, Action Star Known for His Onscreen Brawls, Dies at 88, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/11/arts/television/william-smith-dead.html. Im watching him now In a bunch of old 70s biker movies .. another surprise. Melissa Roberto covers entertainment at Foxnews.com. ICONIC actor William Smith, who tussled with Clint Eastwood in the movies, has died at the age of 88. His wife, Joanne Cervelli Smith, confirmed that the action star passed away at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital on July 5. Legal Statement. Meghan and Harry 'are OK about leaving Frogmore Cottage', source says The place to find Mr. Smith, even as an older man, was the gym, Ms. Smith said. } hitType: 'event', Smith left Hollywood for a while when he enlisted in the Army to fight in the Korean War, during which he served as a Russian Intercept Interrogator and flew secret ferret missions over the Russian SFSR. May his soul Rest In Peace. Smith is survived by his wife, son, William E. Smith III, and daughter, Sherri Anne Cervelli. Smith starred in one episode each of the Adam West Batman TV series (in the episode "Minerva, Mayhem and Millionaires" as Adonis, one of the minions of the title guest villainess portrayed by Zsa Zsa Gabor), I Dream of Jeannie (in the episode "Operation: First Couple on the Moon" as Turk Parker), Kung Fu, and as The Treybor, a ruthless warlord, in the Buck Rogers in the 25th Century episode "Buck's Duel to the Death". William Hopper's Death - Cause and Date - The Celebrity Deaths Hislegacy as an action star of both film and television for several decades will live on. hitType: 'event', 'Laredo' actor William Smith dies at 88 | Daily Sentinel and Company with Ann-Margret, Joe Namath, Jennifer Billingsley and genre favorite, Sid Haig, the latter of which was directed by Seymour Robbie and written by Ann-Margret's husband, actor Roger Smith. William Smith was in the Season 12 Classic HFO season 1979-1980. Mr. Smith, who was born on March 24, 1933, grew up on a cattle ranch in Missouri owned by his parents, William Emmett Smith and Emily Richards Smith. }) The scene was long but choreographed well. [1] His family later moved to Southern California, where he began his acting career at the age of eight in 1942; entering films as a child actor in such films as The Ghost of Frankenstein, The Song of Bernadette and Meet Me in St. Louis. Tremendous screen presence. Chick Vennera, Robert Downey Sr, Richard Donner and Frank Bonner are to name a few. William Smith obituary: "Laredo" star dies at 88 - Legacy.com News editor, Legacy.com. Good actor ! Smith served in the United States Air Force. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Beginning at eight years old, he earned small, uncredited roles in the movies The Ghost of Frankenstein and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. He was 88. He died. One of which was with Clint Eastwood in the film"Any Which Way You Can." The Heartbreaking Death Of Action Star William Smith In excellent shape and healthy living. He played bareknuckle boxer Jack Wilson, who grappled with Clint Eastwood in an epic brawl in "Any Which Way You Can," one of the top-grossing movies of 1980. William Smith, the action star who tussled with Clint Eastwood in Any Which Way You Can, made a lasting impression as the evil Falconetti on TV miniseries Rich Man, Poor Man and was a regular on . pic.twitter.com/UJVpOSTted, Daily Grindhouse (@DailyGrindhouse) July 9, 2021. william traylor actor cause of death - attitudesinreverse.org R.I.P. The actor also played Detective James "Kimo" Carew in the final 1979 season of Hawaii Five-O. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Cherry Festival Carnival Ride Nearly Topples Over (Video). Rest in Prominence & Peace, Big Bill. He was throwing punches with Rod Taylor for the 1970 film Darker Than Amber when the two began fighting each other for real. His marriage to Michele Smith produced one child before ending in divorce; he later married Joanne Cervelli. Although it was reported that Smith retired from film in 2014 with his last screen appearance, he did make a cameo appearance in the Steve Carell comedy, Irresistible (2020). Another Twitter user said that Smith was "one of the all time greats," and it's true. Mr. Smith had more than 300 acting credits listed on IMDb from 1954 to 2020. He had previously appeared with Jack Lord in Stoney Burke. Bill could ride almost before he could walk, and his love of horses and the western lifestyle would be an important part of what he would bring to the screen in many of the roles he played throughout his career. In 1964, he appeared in the episode "The Rope of Lies" as Bill, a ranch hand from the Shiloh Ranch in the syndicated television series The Virginian. A cause of death was not revealed. ga('ads.send', { William Smith, Action Star Known for His Onscreen Brawls, Dies at 88 In 1972, he appeared in a Columbo episode "The Greenhouse Jungle" as Ken Nichols, a handsome swindler who may be a person of interest in Columbo's murder investigation. William Smith, the action star who tussled with Clint Eastwood in Any Which Way You Can, made a lasting impression as the evil Falconetti on TV miniseries Rich Man, Poor Man and was a regular on . He was also famous as televisions last tobacco-advertising Marlboro Man. Who do you cast to play Conan The Barbarians daddy? Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TheSunUS and follow us from our main Twitter account at @TheSunUS. (Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images), "It has to be one of the longest two-man fights ever done on film without doubles," Smith said in an interview for the 2014 book "Tales From the Cult Film Trenches.". }); William Smith. One of those great men you thought would live forever. He was in 1982sConan the Barbarian alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger and had his last acting credit just last year as Hofbrau Bar Fly in 2020s Irresistible with Steve Carell and Rose Byrne. It has to be one of the longest two-man fights ever done on film without doubles.. He was 31-1 in amateur boxing bouts and was also an accomplished arm wrestler, winning multiple championships in the 200-pound weight class. THE COLD WIRE IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF COLD WIRE MEDIA. CHICK VENNERA, 'GOLDEN GIRLS' AND 'ANIMANIACS' ACTOR, DEAD AT 74, Born in Columbia, Missouri, Smith would begin acting at age 8, playing small uncredited roles in 1940s films, including "The Ghost of Frankenstein" and "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. He was 88. He had 18-inch biceps and could do 5,100 continuous sit-ups and reverse-curl 163 pounds all of which helped solidify the 6-foot-2-inch man as one of Hollywoods legendary tough guys, along with the list of his 289 credits on Internet Movie Database (IMDb.com). eventAction: 'render' Scuba Certification; Private Scuba Lessons; Scuba Refresher for Certified Divers; Try Scuba Diving; Enriched Air Diver (Nitrox) In 1972 and 1975, respectively, he appeared in two popular Blaxploitation films, Hammer and the controversially titled Boss Nigger, both with Fred Williamson. Along with his wife of 31 years, Smith is survived by his two children, William E. Smith III and Sherri Anne Cervelli. We are one of the worlds fastest growing Smith was a U.S. Air Force veteran of the Korean War. Smith also made guest appearances opposite James Garner in the 1974 two-hour pilot for The Rockford Files (titled "Backlash of the Hunter" and also featuring Lindsay Wagner and Bill Mumy), and George Peppard in The A-Team (in two appearances as different characters, in the first season's "Pros and Cons" and the fourth season's "The A-Team Is Coming, The A-Team Is Coming"). The man has nearly 300 roles in both films and television. "And so the fight was on. His wife,. hitType: 'event', Your email address will not be published. After that, he played a vindictive sergeant in Twilight's Last Gleaming (1977) with an all-star cast headed by Burt Lancaster and Richard Widmark, a drag-racing legend in Fast Company (1979) also co-starring Claudia Jennings and John Saxon, the main character's father in Conan the Barbarian (1982) with Arnold Schwarzenegger, bad guy Matt Diggs in The Frisco Kid (1979) opposite Gene Wilder and Harrison Ford, and Clint Eastwood's bare-knuckle opponent Jack Wilson in 1980's Any Which Way You Can (a sequel to 1978's Every Which Way But Loose in which Smith did not appear), and also had a top villainous role of the Soviet commander in the hit 1984 theatrical film Red Dawn. Deadline noted that Smithpursued higher educationin Syracuse, Munich, and Paris before he graduated Cum Laude from UCLA, earning a master's degree. William Smith's net worth is estimated at $7 million. The actor was famously known for his stint as Falconetti in 1976s 'Rich Man, Poor Man'. William Smith Dead: Brawled With Clint Eastwood, Played Kimo - Deadline ", Laredo star William Smith died on Monday at the age of 88. William Smith, Action Actor and Star of 'Laredo' and 'Rich Man, Poor Man,' Dies at 88 The legendary tough guy appeared in biker movies and blaxpoitation pics and went toe-to-toe with Clint. William Smith. Smith was 88 years old. Had one son (William Emmett Smith III) with first wife, Michele Smith, and one daughter (Sherri Anne Cervelli DOB: April 24, 1980) with his second wife, Joanne Cervelli. [8], For other people named William Smith, see, Louis Paul (2007). Later in his career, he was the "go-to-guy" for biker films, like "The Losers" and "Chrome and Hot Leather," in the 1970s. In its obituary for William Smith,Deadline revealed that the "Hawaii Five-O" actor first wanted to pursue a career in government, but ended up acting after MGM gave him a contract. Smith's wife, Joanne Cervelli Smith, confirmed the news of his death to The Hollywood Reporter, but did not mention the cause. His other movie appearances include Darker Than Amber (1970), The Frisco Kid (1979), The Outsiders (1983), and Red Dawn (1984) in a career with more than 300 acting credits.