Guy Williams was a popular television actor who rose to prominence during the late 1950s
thanks to his time portraying the titular character on the hit Disney series Zorro.
The show began airing in 1957, and Guy received his role after auditioning for Walt Disney
personally.
When Zorro came to an end after three seasons, Guy continued working in the entertainment
industry until his retirement during the early 1970s.
Following Zorro, Guy could be seen not only on the subsequent hit series Lost in Space
but could also be seen in a few episodes of the long-running Western Bonanza.
Guy had been hired onto the Western series with the intention of becoming a main character,
but left after filming five episodes.
Join Facts Verse as we explore why Guy Williams only lasted for five episodes of Bonanza.
When Guy Williams was growing up, his parents wanted him to be an insurance broker but he
wanted to be an actor.
The young man certainly had the looks for it, though his dreams took a while to become
a reality.
The fledgling star ended up catching his break after receiving the titular role on the 1957
series Zorro, produced by Walt Disney.
Guy had auditioned for the mogul personally and knew that he had finally made it in the
industry when he received the part.
After premiering in 1957, the television series Zorro went on to last for three seasons, after
which point it lived on in popularity thanks to syndication deals around the world.
Though Guy remained best known for playing the titular character on Zorro through the
remainder of his life, he went on to work on several other notable shows after the series
came to an end.
One such show was the long-running Western series Bonanza, on which Guy Williams played
a part that ended up lasting for five episodes.
Guy Williams was born in 1924, though he was known by the name of Joseph Catalano at the
time of his birth.
Guy’s father was an insurance broker, which resulted in the young man being pushed into
the profession by his parents.
Despite his parents’ insistence, Guy remained adamant that he wanted to be a star.
Before making his way into the entertainment industry, a young Guy Williams could be found
working as a welder, an accountant, a salesman, and as an inspector of aircraft parts.
All the while, Guy knew what he really wanted to do was become a star.
Guy’s dream of becoming a star certainly wasn’t without its merits, as the young
man grew up with charm and good looks to spare.
His earliest work in the entertainment industry came as a fashion model.
However, he had a hard time impressing casting directors in the industry thanks to his decidedly
foreign-sounding name.
It was this dilemma that prompted Guy Williams to come up with his stage name.
Over the course of the 1940s, Guy Williams received a good deal of success working in
the modeling industry.
The young man could be seen on billboards and in magazines, with some of his most notable
appearances being in Harper’s Bazaar.
As Guy become more successful as a model, he continued trying to secure roles on the
screen.
It was in 1946 that Guy Williams first caught the attention of Hollywood, securing a one-year
contract with MGM.
Upon receiving his first Hollywood contract, Guy Williams ventured out to California from
his then-home of New York City, where he had been doing the majority of his modeling work.
Guy’s first excursion to California only lasted around a year before he returned to
New York.
His contract with MGM had ended up being a bit of a bust, with the fledgling star only
appearing in a handful of films as a result.
Still, it granted the young man his first experience in the industry proper, and he
would move out to California again later with more promising prospects and a bigger resume.
Upon returning to New York after his first contract work with MGM, Guy Williams began
appearing in a number of television commercials that lent the fledgling star a good deal of
notoriety.
In addition to his commercial work, Guy also started up tenure at the Neighborhood Playhouse
in New York, and slowly began branching out into television series with work on such productions
as Studio One.
In 1952, Guy Williams would be inspired to move out to Hollywood once again after receiving
a contract with Universal Studios.
Guy’s contract with Universal Studios proved more lucrative than the one he had with MGM,
and the star could be seen in a handful of pictures over the course of the early 1950s
as a result.
Some of the movies that Guy could be seen in around the time included The Golden Blade
and Take Me to Town.
Although it was better than his time with MGM, Guy’s time with Universal Studios still
wasn’t everything that he had hoped for, and his big break on Zorro was yet to come.
If you’re enjoying this video so far, be sure to hit the like button to show your support!
Also, subscribe to the channel if you’d like to be among the first to know when more
Facts Verse videos are on their way!
In 1953, while Guy Williams was in Hollywood working for Universal Pictures, the actor
got into a horseback-riding accident that left him severely damaged.
Guy fell off the horse and ended up being dragged for roughly 200 meters, resulting
in a long and permanent scar across the actor’s right shoulder.
This incident bookended Guy’s time at Universal Studios with a sour note, and he would end
up returning to New York City once again shortly afterward.
After returning to New York City for the second time in the mid-1950s, Guy worked steadily
in the industry before receiving his big break thanks to his titular role on the Disney series
Zorro.
Before taking his role on Zorro, Guy worked for a time as a freelance actor for Warner
Bros. Pictures.
The still-fledgling star had begun wondering if he was ever going to be able to truly make
it in the entertainment industry.
Thankfully, his big break was just around the corner!
When Guy Williams first heard about auditions being held by Walt Disney for someone to play
the titular character on the series Zorro, the aspiring star knew that the part would
be just right for him.
In addition to being a successful insurance broker, Guy’s father had been a talented
and passionate fencer that had taught his son everything that there was to know about
the exotic sport.
This made Guy one of the few actors in the entertainment industry that was proficient
at fencing, and fencing just so happened to be one of the main skills that Walt Disney
was looking for in his Zorro actor.
As a result of Guy Williams’ good looks, charm, and fencing skills, he ended up receiving
the titular lead role on the series Zorro with minimal effort.
Finally, Guy Williams had caught his big break in the entertainment industry!
In order to fit into the titular role perfectly, Guy grew out his facial hair and took a few
guitar-playing lessons.
Soon, Guy Williams was officially transformed into the role he had been born for!
Guy Williams ended up playing the titular character on the series Zorro for all of its
three seasons before it eventually came to an end at the close of the 1950s.
After the series came to an end, Guy worked for a period of time in Europe, where he filmed
roles in productions such as Captain Sinbad and Damon and Pythias.
Following his brief period of time in the European entertainment industry, Guy returned
to Hollywood in 1964.
It was upon this second return to Hollywood that the actor would appear in Bonanza.
Guy Williams was brought onto Bonanza to replace Pernell Roberts, though Guy proved much less
popular with the audience than Pernell had been.
Pernell had played the character of Adam Cartwright, while Guy was given a role as a new member
of the Cartwright family, named Will.
Besides not being quite as popular with the audience as Pernell, Guy also found that he
didn’t much enjoy his time on Bonanza.
After five episodes, Guy Williams turned his back on the series, and the producers reached
out to Pernell Roberts, eventually talking the star into returning for the next season.
Bonanza fans were grateful that they got Pernell Roberts back, and Guy Williams was grateful
that he no longer had to toe the line on the long-running Western series.
Guy had felt that his work on the series wasn’t challenging enough, even though Bonanza was
one of the most successful shows on television at that point.
After leaving Bonanza, Guy went on to take a role on the science fiction series Lost
in Space.
Lost in Space premiered in 1965, and Guy Williams played the lead role of John Robinson.
The show was initially a huge hit with audiences and critics, but its ratings ended up decreasing
significantly after only a few years.
Combined with the exuberant budget of the science fiction series, these diminished ratings
caused the original Lost in Space to come to an end after only three seasons.
Following the end of Lost in Space in 1968, Guy continued working sporadically in the
entertainment industry for a few years until his retirement in the mid-1970s.
Guy retired to Buenos Aires and lived out the remainder of his life there before passing
away in 1989, after suffering a stroke.
After performing the titular character on the hit Disney series Zorro for all of its
three seasons, actor Guy Williams went on to perform a five-episode-long stint on the
long-running Western series Bonanza that left a bad taste in his mouth.
Now it’s time to hear from you: did you know that Guy Williams knew how to fence in
real life before taking on the titular role on the 1957 series Zorro, and that he received
the role after auditioning for Walt Disney himself?
As always, like this video to show your support, subscribe, and hit the notification bell if
you’d like to be among the first to know when more Facts Verse videos are on their
way!