Unearthing The Undead 24 - WILLIAM BELL

William Bell was a posse member in "Night of the Living Dead".  He can be seen wearing a distinctive fedora style white hat in the scenes of the posse walking in the field.  He also is in a close up of the posse walking, next to his friend William Hearn and his neighbor, Ashby Jones.

From his daughter, Marcia:

"My father and mother Betty were both in the Navy in WWII. They met in 1943 at a softball game between the Waves and the Ensigns during Navy training in Cambridge MA. After an inning or so my dad had moved to first base to “help” the beautiful Wave, Betty. They were married three months later, and had to get the Admiral’s permission for Betty to wear a wedding dress instead of her uniform. They were married for 62 years. Bill was a Lieutenant in the Pacific theatre on the USS Adams destroyer.

Both Bill and Betty were longtime golf and bridge friends of Judy O’Dea’s parents. Her father invited Bill and another good friend, Bill Hearn, to be in the posse. One day of filming that summer they got their cowboy hats and went to rustle up the scary guys. Betty would watch and laugh at the gruesome Living Dead makeup and costumes. They had a blast. That was Bill’s only film experience - during the week he was an Executive at U.S. Steel!"

Researched and compiled by John Vullo

Text and photos © Image Ten, Inc.

If you know of any family, friends or acquaintances that appeared as extras in the original Night of the Living Dead, please contact John Vullo at jmv3683@gmail.com

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