Billy Dee Williams is an American actor, writer, and musician who has become popular for films such as Batman which happens to be among his earliest works, and the Star Wars movies. The highly multi-talented individual has taken part in well over a hundred movies and Television Shows to date.
Billy Dee Williams Biography and Age
William December Williams Jr. was born on April 6, 1937, in New York City, New York and was raised alongside his twin sister by their parents, Loretta Anne and William December Williams, Sr. However, it was his maternal grandmother who had the greater responsibility of bringing up the actor as his parents had to work very hard to take care of the family.
For his education, Williams attended The High School of Music & Art (now the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art).
Like a good number of other actors, Billy Dee Williams began acting on stage before finally moving to the big screen. The Last Angry Man was his first movie followed by his first TV appearance in Look Up and Live. While these were both in 1959, the 1960s saw him, doing mostly TV shows including The Defenders and The New People.
The 70s and 80s were busy years for him, playing roles in many productions including the popular Batman movie in 1989. There were also works such as Dynasty and the television series Mission Impossible. His great performances continued through the 90s to the 2000s. His most recent works are The Lego Batman Movie, Lego Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures, and Dirty Dancing, all in 2017.
His career thus far as an actor has been capped with many movies and awards including the African-American Film Critics Association (AAFCA) Award, Image Awards, Indie Series Awards, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Apart from being an actor, he is also a musician and a writer. His solo LP, Lets Misbehave, was released in 1961 and was quite successful while his books PSI/Net and JUST/In Time were published in 1999 and 2001 respectively.
Williams has also been portrayed in some movies for which he has done voicing for, such as Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast, Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars, and Let It Die.
Net Worth
The legendary actor has been around for a very long time, playing roles in very successful and interesting movies such as the Star Wars franchise. In essence, it can be said that Billy Dee Williams has fully paid his dues in Hollywood with the currency of hard work and talent. Consequent to that, he has an estimated net worth of over $9 million.
Spouse
When he was in his prime, Williams was a very good-looking man who one can easily guess rightly that many women would be interested in. That said, he has dated a good number of said interested ladies and has gotten married more than twice in the past.
The first woman to become his spouse was Audrey Sellers whom he married when he was in his early twenties in 1959. By 1963, the marriage was had reached its elastic limit and the two went their separate ways.
Next, the actor got married to Marlene Clark in 1968. Clark was an actress and model who was known for movies such as Ganja & Hess and Night of the Cobra Woman as well as the sitcom, Sanford and Son. The marriage between the two only lasted three years before it crashed.
Billy Dee soon bounced back and tied the knot a third time with Teruko Nakagami in 1972 and somehow, the two have managed to stick together. Nonetheless, it has not always been rosy for them as in 1993, their marriage seemed to have hit the rocks and they even went their separate ways only to come back 4 years later and. Just like the actor, Teruko Nakagami had been married to American jazz saxophonist and composer Wayne Shorter, before meeting her husband. Her marriage to the musician only lasted from 1961 to 1964.
With a child together from the marriage, they both also have a child each from their previous marriages. Billy Dee’s first child Corey Williams was birthed to him by his first wife Audrey Sellers in 1960. His next child Hanako Williams was born by Teruko in 1973, while from her previous marriage, Teruko had a daughter Miyako Shorter.
Is Billy Dee Williams Dead or Alive?
With many people wondering whether the legendary actor is dead or still alive, we made inquiries and found out he is still alive and kicking, even though not as hard as he was used to because of his advanced age.
