William Kerwin

William Kerwin (April 17, 1927 – October 27, 1989) was an American actor and filmmaker. He was most well known for his character roles in the films of Herschell Gordon Lewis.

William Kerwin
Born	April 17, 1927
Died	October 27, 1989
Other names	Thomas Sweetwood, Thomas Wood, Rooney Kerwin
Spouse(s)	Connie Mason, Hanna Hertelendy
Children	3

Career

Kerwin enjoyed some success on the stage and screen before being discovered by Herschell Gordon Lewis through the promotional short Carving Magic. His first feature film with Lewis was Living Venus, and he went on to star in some of the director’s best known works such as Blood Feast.

In addition to playing principal roles, Kerwin served variously as the assistant director, makeup technician, gaffer, key grip and propman for Lewis’ films.[1] Kerwin was thus often involved in creating the gory practical effects that would become Lewis’ trademark.

Whether working with Lewis or other directors, Kerwin was closely associated with the exploitation film movement. In particular, he was known for work in nudist films and splatter films.

Throughout his career, Kerwin often performed under pseudonyms such as Thomas Wood in order to appear in non-union productions. He was registered with the Screen Actors Guild under the name Willam Kerwin.[2]

Personal Life

Kerwin’s first marriage was to actress Hanna Hertelendy from 1952 to 1958. Kerwin had one daughter from his marriage to Hertelendy, costume designer Barbara Kerwin.

In 1964, Kerwin married Connie Mason, who he met while filming Blood Feast.The couple had two daughters, Denise and Kim,and remained married until Kerwin's death in 1989.

Kerwin was the brother of director Harry Kerwin and appeared in several of his films throughout the 1970s including God’s Bloody Acre, Barracuda and Tomcats.

All three of Kerwin’s daughters pursued film careers for at least a decade.[3][4][5] Half-sisters Barbara and Kim Kerwin had bit roles in Herschell Gordon Lewis’ The Gruesome Twosome[6] as children; William Kerwin himself did not appear in this movie. Both girls also collaborated with their uncle Harry Kerwin; Barbara had a small role in Sweet Bird of Aquarius while Kim acted in Cheering Section.[7] Denise, William Kerwin’s youngest daughter, is the only of the three to never work with Lewis or Harry Kerwin during her acting career.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes	References
1959	Carving Magic[8]	Joe	Short promotional film sponsored by Swift & Company.	[9]
1961	The Long Rope	Steve Matthews		[10]
1963	Blood Feast	Det. Pete Thornton	Credited as Thomas Wood	[11]
1963	Goldilocks and the Three Bares	Tommy Sweetwood	Credited as Tommy Sweetwood	[12]
1964	Two Thousand Maniacs!	Tom White	Credited as Thomas Wood	[13]
1967	A Taste of Blood	Dr. Hank Tyson	Credited as Thomas Wood	[14]
1968	Suburban Roulette	Marty Conley	Credited as Thomas Wood
1969	Childish Things	Mr. Sullivan		[15]
1971	Sometimes Aunt Martha Does Dreadful Things	Lead Detective	Credited as Thomas Wood	[16]
1974	Impulse	Soldier		[17]
1976	No Way Back			[18]
1977	Tomcats	Detective Tom Garrett	Credited as Thomas Dowling	[19]
1978	Barracuda	Sheriff Ben Williams		[20]
1981	Absence of Malice	Walker	Credited as Rooney Kerwin	[21]
1985	The Heavenly Kid	Suburbaner	Credited as Rooney Kerwin	[22]

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes	References
1958	The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickock	Tom	5 episodes	[23]
1982	Romance Theatre	Jacob	5 episodes
1985	Miami Vice	Paul	1 episode

References

1. Eyman, Scott (16 September 1984). "Killer B's". Fort Lauderdale News.
2. Edwards, Matthew (2018). Film Out of Bounds: Essays and Interviews on Non-Mainstream Cinema Worldwide. McFarland. p. 47.
3. "Barbara Kerwin".
4. "Denise Kerwin".
5. "Kim Kerwin".
6. The Gruesome Twosome (1967) - IMDb
7. "Cheering Section (1977)".
8. "Carving Magic".
9. "William Kerwin".
10. https://rarefilmm.com/2019/07/the-long-rope-1961/
11. https://www.rogerebert.com/balder-and-dash/blood-feast-digging-into-the-guts-of-the-very-first-splatter-film
12. https://www.grindhousedatabase.com/index.php/Goldilocks_and_The_Three_Bares
13. https://www.arrowvideo.com/product/two-thousand-maniacs/889
14. https://www.moviefone.com/movie/a-taste-of-blood/1076559/main/
15. https://rarefilmm.com/2019/04/childish-things-1969/
16. https://www.mondo-digital.com/auntmartha.html
17. https://www.grindhousedatabase.com/index.php/Impulse
18. https://www.grindhousedatabase.com/index.php/No_Way_Back
19. http://www.screenarchives.com/title_detail.cfm/ID/40289/TOMCATS-1977/
20. https://www.thefilmyap.com/movies/barracuda-1978/
21. https://www.tvguide.com/movies/absence-of-malice/cast/100633/
22. https://www.tvguide.com/movies/the-heavenly-kid/cast/125752/
23. Chance, Norman (2011). Who was Who on TV, Volume 3. Xlibris Corporation.