Bill Thurman

Biography

Bill Thurman, a versatile character actor, was born on November 4, 1920, in Texas. He was known for his large, robust physique, rugged appearance, and distinctive, twangy voice. With a charmingly unpretentious on-screen presence, Thurman often took on roles such as police officers and various scrappy, rural characters in a plethora of entertainingly low-budget Southern horror films and drive-in classics from the 1960s and 1970s.

Thurman frequently collaborated with the renowned low-budget filmmaker Larry Buchanan, appearing in several of his works, including "The Eye Creatures," "Mars Needs Women," and the notably poor "It's Alive!" In addition, he made brief appearances in two films by Steven Spielberg: portraying a hillbilly hunter in "The Sugarland Express" and an air traffic controller in "Close Encounters of the Third Kind."

Some of his other notable performances encompassed the oppressive Coach Popper in Peter Bogdanovich's acclaimed "The Last Picture Show," a fated hitchhiker in "Keep My Grave Open," and a corrupt sheriff in the cult classic "'Gatorbait." He also played a small-town deputy in "Ride in A Pink Car," a more amiable sheriff in "Creature from Black Lake," and the father of Cheryl "Rainbeaux" Smith in "Slumber Party '57." Thurman passed away in Dallas, Texas, on April 13, 1995.