William Wellman Jr.

Rangy, sturdy-looking actor William Wellman Jr., was born in Los Angeles on January 20, 1937, one of seven children born to legendary director William A. Wellman and his fourth wife, one-time actress Dorothy Coonan Wellman, who appeared in a few of her husband's pictures. Bill Jr. spent most of his childhood surrounded by Hollywood celebrity. He got the fresh taste of a film set as a youngster when he appeared unbilled in a couple of his father's features. Following graduation, he attended Duke University but eventually abandoned that direction for a career in the movies. Starting off in featured parts in the war pictures Lafayette Escadrille (1958) and Darby's Rangers (1958), both of which directed by his father, Bill Jr. found other work on his own in less quality films. Some of the teen exploitation he found himself in have since attained cult status, including High School Confidential! (1958), Macumba Love (1960) and College Confidential (1960). "Billy Jack" director Tom Laughlin