Keith Walker (June 29, 1935 — December 30, 1996) was an American writer, producer, and actor. He co-wrote the screenplay for the film ''

Free Willy ''Free Willy'' is a 1993 American family drama film, directed by Simon Wincer, produced by Lauren Shuler Donner and Jennie Lew Tugend, written by Keith A. Walker and Corey Blechman from a story by Walker and distributed by Warner Bros. Picture ...

'', and wrote for television series including ''

The Fall Guy ''The Fall Guy'' is an American action/adventure television series produced for ABC and originally broadcast from November 4, 1981, to May 2, 1986. It starred Lee Majors, Douglas Barr, and Heather Thomas as Hollywood stunt performers who mo ...

'', ''

Emergency! ''Emergency!'' is an American action-adventure medical drama television series jointly produced by Mark VII Limited and Universal Television. Debuting on NBC as a midseason replacement on January 15, 1972, replacing the two short-lived situa ...

'', ''

Quincy, M.E. ''Quincy, M.E.'' (also called ''Quincy'') is an American mystery medical drama television series from Universal Studios that aired on NBC from October 3, 1976, to May 11, 1983. Jack Klugman starred in the title role as a Los Angeles County med ...

'' and ''

M*A*S*H ''M*A*S*H'' (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American media franchise consisting of a series of novels, a film, several television series, plays, and other properties, and based on the semi-autobiographical fiction of Richard Hooker. Th ...

''." He wrote 26 episodes of the Rod Serling hosted radio show '' The Zero Hour'', all of them coming in the second, and final, season of the show. He appeared as an actor on television shows '' Mannix'', ''

The Rookies ''The Rookies'' is an American police procedural series that aired on ABC from 1972 until 1976. It follows the exploits of three rookie police officers working in an unidentified city for the fictitious Southern California Police Department (SC ...

'', '' Mission: Impossible'', and ''

Fantasy Island ''Fantasy Island'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by Gene Levitt. It aired on ABC from 1977 to 1984. The series starred Ricardo Montalbán as the mysterious Mr. Roarke and Hervé Villechaize as his assistant, Tattoo. ...

''. Walker had a memorable role as Mr. Walsh in the film ''

The Goonies ''The Goonies'' is a 1985 American adventure comedy film co-produced and directed by Richard Donner from a screenplay by Chris Columbus, based on a story by Steven Spielberg. In the film, kids who live in the "Goon Docks" neighborhood of Astor ...

''. He was married to actress

Peggy Walton-Walker Peggy Walton-Walker is an American film and television actress. Early years She was born Peggy Jean Walton in 1943 in Charleston, South Carolina. Walton-Walker attended Vigor High School in Prichard, Alabama, where she graduated in 1961. She ...

. Following brief treatment for cancer, Keith Walker died in

Franklin, Tennessee Franklin is a city in and county seat of Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. About south of Nashville, it is one of the principal cities of the Nashville metropolitan area and Middle Tennessee. As of 2020, its population was 83,454 ...

at the age of 61 in late 1996. The third ''Free Willy'' film, '' Free Willy 3: The Rescue'', was dedicated to his memory.

Filmography

Film

Acting credits

Screenwriting credits

Television

Acting credits

Screenwriting credits

References

External links

* 1935 births 1996 deaths American male screenwriters American television writers American male television actors 20th-century American male actors American male television writers 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters {{US-tv-bio-stub