William Katt Biography

Fast Facts

• Attended Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, Calif․, before pursuing a career as a musician and an actor, appearing in many small TV roles before getting the role of jock Tommy Ross in the 1976 horror film "Carrie․"
• Served for six years on the U․S․ Air National Guard
• Quote: "(On the 1978 surfer film "Big Wednesday") "It was about the feeling of the seasons and their relationship with the sea․․․a really sensitive, intelligent movie․ But the studio didn't know how to sell it․․․ The result was that hardly anyone saw the movie․""
• Quote: "I like to spend as much time on the stage as possible․ I don't do a regular TV series because I don't want to be overexposed․ I try to cover myself, to have another movie under way before the last one comes out․ I've been able to just scrape by, holding out for good parts instead of taking anything․ I'm thinking about a career that should mean something 30 years from now․"
• His role as John Milius in 1978 surfer film "Big Wednesday" made him so well known in the surfing community that he presented the Association of Surfing Professionals awards at the annual World Championship tour in 2004
• Katt and "Carrie" co-star Amy Irving had dated each other prior to filming the award-winning horror drama
• Most prominent role was as mild-mannered schoolteacher turned superhero in the short-lived TV series "The Greatest American Hero․"
• Auditioned for the part of Luke Skywalker in the sci-fi blockbuster "Star Wars" opposite Kurt Russell, who was auditioning for the part of Han Solo
• He and director Christopher Folino created fledgling company Catastrophic Comics and started releasing their first six-issue comic book miniseries, Sparks, in 2008