William Conrad, a former Army Air Corps World War II fighter pilot, began his screen career playing heavies, often portraying characters such as Max in The Killers (1946),a corrupt state inspector Turk in The Racket (1951),and a mobster in Sorry, Wrong Number (1948).
In addition to his villainous roles, Conrad played characters like the tough fight promoter Quinn in Body and Soul (1947) and the doomed province commissioner in The Naked Jungle (1954). Despite his weight problem, which reached 260 pounds at one point, Conrad had a successful career in radio, estimating he played over 7,000 parts. His gravelly, resonant voice was heard on numerous broadcasts, including "Buck Rogers" and "The Bullwinkle Show," and he even narrated episodes of The Fugitive (1963).
As his corpulence limited his ability to play leading roles, Conrad began to focus on directing and producing in the early 1960s, contributing to episodes of Gunsmoke (1955) and 77 Sunset Strip (1958). He later produced and directed several films for Warner Brothers, including the thriller Brainstorm (1965).
Conrad returned to acting in 1971, starring as the unlikely hero Frank Cannon in the Quinn Martin production Cannon (1971),which he imbued with humanity and wit. Although he found the scripts poorly served him, the show's popularity led to another starring role as District Attorney McCabe in Jake and the Fatman (1987) and a brief run as detective Nero Wolfe (1981).
Throughout his career, Conrad remained self-effacing, with a good sense of humor and never afraid to speak his mind. He died of heart failure in February 1994 and was posthumously inducted into the Broadcasting and Cable Hall of Fame and the Radio Hall of Fame in 1997.
