Billy Green Bush

William Warren Bush (born November 7, 1935) is an American actor usually credited as Billy Green Bush, and sometimes as Billy Greenbush.

Typecast
Bush is a character actor, typically projecting in his screen appearances the good-ol'-boy image. He portrays mostly sheriffs and state troopers, although in his repertoire there are the occasional villains.

Film
Bush's film work includes appearances in The Savage Seven (1968), Five Easy Pieces (1970), Monte Walsh (1970), The Jesus Trip (1971), The Organization (1971), Welcome Home, Soldier Boys (1972), The Culpepper Cattle Co. (1972), 40 Carats (1973), Electra Glide in Blue (1973) where his performance caused some critics to characterize his screen persona as "irrepressibly unique"; Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974), Mackintosh and T.J. (1975), The Call of the Wild (1976), The Beasts Are on the Streets (1978), The Jericho Mile (1979), Tom Horn (1980), The River (1984), The Hitcher (1986), Critters (1986), Rampage (1987) and Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday (1993).

Television
Bush has appeared frequently on television, including a recurring role as Bobby Angel on Hill Street Blues and an episode of M*A*S*H, in which his character, “Cowboy”, tries to kill commanding officer Henry Blake.

He twice portrayed Vernon Presley, the father of Elvis Presley, first in the 1988 TV movie Elvis and Me, which was based on the 1985 memoir of the same name by Presley's ex-wife Priscilla, and then in the short-lived weekly series Elvis in 1990.

Personal life
Bush is the father of twins Lindsay and Sidney Greenbush (retired child actresses who alternately starred as Carrie in Little House on the Prairie) and actor Clay Greenbush.

Selected filmography

 * Unholy Matrimony (1966) - Eavesdropping Husband (uncredited)
 * The Savage Seven (1968) - Seely
 * The Reivers (1969) - Patron
 * Five Easy Pieces (1970) - Elton
 * Monte Walsh (1970) - Powder Kent
 * The Jesus Trip (1971) - Tarboro
 * The Organization (1971) - Dave Thomas
 * Welcome Home, Soldier Boys (1972) - Sheriff
 * The Culpepper Cattle Co. (1972) - Frank Culpepper
 * M*A*S*H (1972) - John "Cowboy" Hodges
 * Mister Brown (1972)
 * 40 Carats (1973) - J.D. Rogers
 * Electra Glide in Blue (1973) - Zipper
 * Gunsmoke (1973) - Kermit
 * Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974) - Donald
 * Mackintosh and T.J. (1975) - Luke
 * The Call of the Wild (1976) - Redsweater
 * The Invasion of Johnson County (1976) - Frank Canton
 * The Beasts Are on the Streets (1978) - Jim Scudder
 * The Incredible Hulk (1978-1982) - Ray Thomas / Sheriff Carl Decker
 * The Jericho Mile (1979) - Warden Earl Gulliver
 * Tom Horn (1980) - U.S. Marshal Joe Belle
 * The River (1984) - Harve Stanley
 * The Hitcher (1986) - Trooper Donner
 * Critters (1986) - Jay Brown
 * The Deliberate Stranger (TV - 1986) - Officer Bradley
 * Rampage (1987) - Judge McKinsey
 * Conagher (1991) - Jacob Teale
 * Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday (1993) - Sheriff Ed Landis (final film role)