Most famous for his role as Bill Hawks on TV's Wagon Train (1957 - 1965), Terry Wilson was born on September 3, 1923, in Huntington Park, CA.
Wilson was authentic. A stuntman and wrangler long before he had a line of dialogue, he
just sort of fell into acting. But once he honed his acting skills, he could handle some very dramatic scenes, as he proved in episodes of Wagon Train like "The Lisa Raincloud Story," and "The Whipping."
He enlisted in the Marines during WWII, and planned on becoming a veterinarian, but his reputation as an athlete (as a football star in high school) landed him in the movie business doing stunts. He eventually joined the John Ford stock company and even doubled for John Wayne in several movies.
When Wagon Train began, Ward Bond gave Wilson and Frank McGrath small roles—roles that kept growing and growing until both men were integral parts of the show.
A far as I can tell, Bond, Wilson, and McGrath had remarkably similar relationships with each other as their characters had on the show. Robert Horton complained about Wilson and McGrath—especially Wilson—being "yes-men" to Bond in order to reap the benefits that Bond, as a star, could send their way.
But another Wagon Train co-star, Denny Miller, says in an interview with Western Clippings about Terry. "He was dependable, professional, all the good things . . . and a lot of fun. He had a quiet strength about him."
After Wagon Train, Wilson had several more acting roles, worked behind the scenes on a few films, and made personal appearance tours with Frank McGrath. (As well as performing at the usual fairs and rodeos, they also did shows at prisons.) His last TV appearance was in a 1981 episode of Dukes of Hazzard.
He also had very minor roles in such films as Seven Brides For Seven Brothers (1954), and It's Always Fair Weather (1955). Sometimes his hair, which he reported had been white since he was in his early twenties, was colored brown for films.
Here he is in Seven Brides:
And in an episode of The Lone Ranger ("Woman From Omaha"), in which he even had a few lines.
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| John Hart, Jay Silverheels, Minerva Urecal, Terry, and Hank Worden |
Terry and his wife, Mary Ann Wilson (1924 - 2002) had three children, and are buried together in Los Angeles. He died at the age of seventy-five, on March 30, 1999.
Sources:
Western Clippings
Find A Grave, Terry Wilson
Find A Grave, Mary Ann Wilson
IMDb