William D. Russell (April 30, 1908 – April 1, 1968) was an American film and television director. Born in

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Mari ...

on April 30, 1908, he began his Hollywood career with the 1945 film ''Hollywood Victory Caravan''. His career in film ended with his last film, 1951's ''

Best of the Badmen ''Best of the Badmen'' is a 1951 Western film directed by William D. Russell that is set in Missouri during the post-American Civil War period. It stars Robert Ryan, Claire Trevor and Robert Preston. It was a loose follow-up to ''Return of th ...

''. In the early fifties he began directing for television with

Screen Gems Screen Gems is an American brand name used by Sony Pictures' Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group, a subsidiary of Japanese multinational conglomerate, Sony Group Corporation. It has served several different purposes for its parent ...

, and his many credits include episodes of ''

Father Knows Best ''Father Knows Best'' is an American sitcom starring Robert Young, Jane Wyatt, Elinor Donahue, Billy Gray and Lauren Chapin. The series, which began on radio in 1949, aired as a television show for six seasons and 203 episodes. Created by E ...

'' (he was with the show from 1954 to 1956), '' Dennis the Menace'', ''

Perry Mason Perry Mason is a fictional character, an American criminal defense lawyer who is the main character in works of detective fiction written by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason features in 82 novels and 4 short stories, all of which involve a cli ...

'', ''

Hazel The hazel (''Corylus'') is a genus of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family Betulaceae,Germplasmgobills Information Network''Corylus''Rushforth, K. (1999). ...

'', ''

Bewitched ''Bewitched'' is an American fantasy sitcom television series that originally aired for eight seasons on ABC from September 17, 1964, to March 25, 1972. It is about a witch who marries an ordinary mortal man and vows to lead the life of a typic ...

'', '' the Farmer's Daughter'' and ''

Family Affair ''Family Affair'' is an American sitcom starring Brian Keith and Sebastian Cabot that aired on CBS from September 12, 1966, to March 4, 1971. The series explored the trials of well-to-do engineer and bachelor Bill Davis (Keith) as he attempte ...

''. Russell was nominated for three

Emmys The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

, first for '' You Are There'' in 1953, second for ''the Farmer's Daughter'' in 1964, and later for ''Family Affair'' in 1967.IMDB: Awards for William D. Russell
/ref> His directorial career ended shortly before his death in April 1968.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, William D. American film directors American television directors 1908 births 1968 deaths