William Windom

William Windom: (on his great-grandfather, a polititian)He was considered a completely honest man in a rather corrupt era.

William Windom: (on the movie, Attack of the 50 Foot Woman. ) That was fun. They would put Darryl Hannah up on a Platform 50 feet in the air and film over her shoulder to give her the perspective of height. I was down below so it looked like she was a giant. It wasn't a very good movie, but fun to do.

William Windom: (on Clint Eastwood) A real softy. He's nothing like his on-screen persona in real life. Just a great guy. I've played tennis with him on many occasions. Clint can't play very well, so I like playing against him. He used to have his own tennis tournament. Always like to play against him. He is great to work for. I just did one movie with him ["True Crime"]. Small part, played the bartender.

William Windom: (on working with an actress in To Kill a Mockingbird) The girl who played the little red-neck [the alleged rape victim Mayella Ewell] and I were working together at night in a play in L.A. We would do the film during the day and the play at night. She would change from a back-woods red-neck to an elegant socialite at night. It was a lot of fun.

William Windom: (on Gregory Peck during the filming of To Kill a Mockingbird) Peck cracked me up one day. We were sitting at tables side by side. We were supposed to leave him alone because he couldn't be distracted. This was a serious scene. Greg would sit at the table like this. (He props his elbows on the edge of the table with his forehead resting on his fists as if in prayer.) Now I have to do something to make the scene interesting because I'm just sitting there. The focus is on Greg. So I drape one leg over the arm of my chair, I pull my tie loose to one side and I chew on a pencil. Well this goes on for several days as we film the scene over and over. Finally Peck says to me out of the side of his mouth, (imitating Mr. Peck) "Hey Bill, do you think this would be too much?" At which point his elbow slips off the table like he has fallen asleep.

William Windom: (on doing research for his role in To Kill a Mockingbird) I went to a law school lecture in L.A. given by W.C. Fields Jr. He was a very serious attorney. The thing was, he looked and sounded just like his father. I swore if I ever got in trouble, I was going to hire him to defend me. No jury in the world would convict you with W.C. Fields as your lawyer!

William Windom: (on working with director John Hughes) I like John. He likes to keep the camera rolling after the take is over to see what you will do. Fun sets to work on.