Bill Lancaster

For the pioneer aviator, see Bill Lancaster (aviator).
Bill Lancaster

In The Big Valley (1967)
Born William Henry Lancaster
(1947-11-17)November 17, 1947
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Died January 4, 1997(1997-01-04) (aged 49)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Cause of death cardiac arrest
Resting place Westwood Memorial Park
Occupation Actor, Screenwriter
Years active 1967-1982
Spouse(s) Kip "Kippie" Raleigh Kovacs (1965-1997) (his death) (1 child)
Children Keigh Lancaster[1]
Parent(s) Burt Lancaster, Norma Anderson
Relatives Ernie Kovacs father-in-law

William Henry "Bill" Lancaster (November 17, 1947[2] – January 4, 1997) was an American screenwriter and actor.

Biography

He was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of Burt Lancaster and Norma Anderson. He developed polio at an early age, leaving one of his legs shorter than the other.

Lancaster, a lookalike for his famous father at the time, guest-starred in an episode of the television series The Big Valley in 1967. In 1973, Lancaster played the role of "King", the boyfriend of a murdered college coed in The Midnight Man, a mystery film starring and co-directed by his father, released in 1974.

Lancaster's best known work is his adapted screenplay for John Carpenter's The Thing.[3] He also penned the original screenplays for The Bad News Bears films.[4]

He is featured in the documentary The Thing: Terror Takes Shape, found on the collector's edition DVD of The Thing. Lancaster states that he did not think Who Goes There? was a "great" story, but that he responded to the tale's sense of claustrophobia and paranoia. The documentary is dedicated to him because of his death shortly after it was filmed.

Lancaster was married to Kippie Kovacs, daughter of the comedian Ernie Kovacs.[5][6] They had one child, daughter Keigh Lancaster.[7]

Lancaster died at the age of 49, on his wife Kippie's 48th birthday, due to cardiac arrest.

Screenplays

References

  1. ↑ http://articles.latimes.com/2005/jun/12/entertainment/ca-burt12
  2. ↑ California Births 1905–1995
  3. ↑ Canby, Vincent (June 25, 1982). "The Thing, Horror and Science Fiction". New York Times. Retrieved 2009-03-04.
  4. ↑ "Bill Lancaster". The New York Times.
  5. ↑ "People in the News – Took No Chances". Reading Eagle. 14 December 1965. Retrieved 27 October 2010.
  6. ↑ William Henry "Bill" Lancaster (1947–1997) – Find A Grave Memorial
  7. ↑ Kippie Kovacs (1949–2001) – Find A Grave Memorial

External links

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