I wish I had a great anecdote to post here about William Schallert, who passed away Sunday at the age of 93. He was a kind of performer I greatly admire — the guy who worked all the time without ever quite becoming a star, the kind of actor who'd enter a scene in some TV show or movie and everyone would go, "Oh, that guy!"
He occasionally had a named recurring role like Patty Duke's father on The Patty Duke Show or Admiral Harold Harmon Hargrade on Get Smart…but it was not easy to just tell people who he was. Even though he notched hundreds and hundreds of screen appearances, most folks didn't have a name to connect with the face.
Directors and producers love a guy like Bill Schallert. He wouldn't have worked that much if he hadn't been solid and dependable. He was also a voiceover specialist, a union activist and, based on the few times I got to meet him, a very nice guy. You'd think with all he did, I'd have a story about him but I don't. All I have is respect.