His death occurred on May 28, 2022. William Mauldin Hopkins was an American actor.
In the years between 1969 and 1979, he appeared in numerous major studio pictures as a supporting actor, and he also appeared on numerous television shows and movies for broadcast television.
Earliest Years
In Greenville, South Carolina, William Hopkins was born.
He was adopted by an infertile couple when he was nine months old. Billy was his nickname as a child.
Adoptive Father: Taylors, South Carolina, Millworker During his father’s 39th birthday party, he collapsed and died from a heart attack on their porch.
Billy and his mother saw the death of his father. After being unable to stay in their home for more than a month, he and his wife went to Ware Shoals, a nearby town where his grandfather and uncles all worked at a different mill. His mother married a man with the surname name Davis after her divorce.
Hopkins and his new stepfather got into a lot of fights, some of which were rather serious. He was sent to live with his grandparents after running away from home a few times, where he learned that he had been adopted since his adoptive mother was unable to have children of her own.
In Lockhart, South Carolina, at the age of 12, he met his birth mother, who lived with his half-sisters and a half-brother.
Private Sphere
Billy’s early years were marked by truancy, misdemeanors, and a stint in a reform school. Just before his 17th birthday, he quit school and enlisted in the US Army, where he was assigned to the 101st Airborne Division.
Before being sent to Korea, he was stationed at Fort Jackson, Fort Gordon, and Fort Pope. As soon as William “Billy” Hopkins finished his military service and began dating Norma Woodle, the couple married and had a daughter in July 1960.
Despite disapproval from his wife, Hopkins decided to pursue a career in acting, which led to the breakup of his marriage and the departure of their daughter.
He earned a scholarship to pursue acting and stage production at the Pioneer Playhouse in Kentucky, where he eventually relocated after participating in some local plays. He met and began dating a former Miss Mississippi when he was there.
He moved to New York City from Kentucky to further his acting career. On his return from the Big Apple, he joined his cousin’s boyfriend, a stuntman aspirant, in Hollywood.
He worked as a car park attendant in Hollywood while attending the Actors Studio, where future Oscar winner Martin Landau was a classmate.
In an interview with a magazine in 2012, he explained how he earned the name “Bo”:
That’s my real name: William Hopkins. When I was a kid, my best friend’s name was Billy. My first off-Broadway role was as “Bo” in “Bus Stop” when I first moved to New York.
As a compromise, the producers allowed me to preserve my maiden name while changing my given name. It was named “Bo” because of this.
— Bo Hopkins, “An Interview with Actor Bo Hopkins”, Number 42, June 2012, Shock Cinema, “An Interview with Bo Hopkins”,
From 1989 to his death, Hopkins was married to Sian Eleanor Green; they had a son in 1995. Hopkins re-entered the acting world after a six-year hiatus, studied screenplays, and began working on an autobiography.
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Death
On May 28, 2022, Hopkins died of a heart attack that he had suffered just 19 days before.
He was in his eighties.
Career
As One of The Greatest American Actors, Bo Hopkins Had an Extensive Career in Film and Television.
Between 1969 and 1979, the Experienced Actor Was Known for Playing Pivotal Supporting Roles in A Slew of Major Studio Productions. Furthermore, He Appeared in A Number of Television Shows and Movies.
There Are Almost 130 Shows He’s Been a Part Of. in 1966, He Made His Television Debut as Chub on The Phyllis Diller Show. Since Then, He Has Continued to Work Hard in This Field, Earning Accolades Like the Golden Boot Award.
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Even Though He Began His Career in The Military, He Has Also Worked in The Entertainment Sector as An Actor. Hopkins was sixteen when he entered the US Army.
After serving in the military, the late actor decided to pursue a career in acting. He worked in summer stock productions and as a guest star on a few TV shows to gain experience.