William F. Claxton

Biography: American director William F. Claxton started out as a film editor with Edward Small Productions in 1940. Claxton's first directorial effort was 1951's All That I Can Have. He spent much of the 1950s with 20th Century-Fox's Regal Pictures subsidiary, turning out such worthwhile medium-budget efforts as God is My Partner (1956) and Desire in the Dust (1960); occasionally, as in the cast of Rockabilly Baby (1957), he produced as well as directed. Though his film credits are extensive, he is best known for his TV work, beginning with his producer/director stint on the religious anthology This is the Life (1951-1980). A favorite of the late Michael Landon, Claxton directed Landon in such weekly TVers as Bonanza, Little House on the Prairie and Highway to Heaven. William F. Claxton also directed the feature-length series pilot Bonanza: The Next Generation (1988).