William Boyett

Actor William Boyett is best known for countless television cop roles, tops being "Dragnet" (both the 1950s original and 1960s remake) and another Jack Webb production, "Adam-12." Born in Akron, Ohio, Boyett and his family eventually relocated to Los Angeles, around which time he served in the Navy during World War II. Following his discharge, he began acting in theatre and on radio. By the early 1950s, Boyett began landing regular roles on television shows, including appearing on several episodes of the minimalist cop drama "Dragnet," and over 60 episodes of the Broderick Crawford crime vehicle "Highway Patrol." The 1960s saw Boyett land recurring roles on the long-running western smash "Gunsmoke," the legal drama "Perry Mason," and the family sitcom "My Three Sons." Also during this era, Boyett landed his best-known role as Sergeant MacDonald on "Adam-12," which he played from 1968 through 1975. He retired from acting in the late 1990s after two decades' worth of occasional guest-star roles, often playing multiple parts in a single series over the course of its run.