Delores Taylor, Star of ‘Billy Jack’ Movies of the 1970s,
Dies at 85
Taylor and husband Tom Laughlin starred in five indies
featuring a half-Indian/half-white ex-Green Beret
The Wrap
By Thom Geier
March 26, 2018
Delores Taylor, a Golden Globe-nominated actress who
starred with her husband Tom Laughlin in five indie movies featuring
counterculture hero Billy Jack, died Friday. She was 85.
News of Taylor’s death was posted by her daughter on a
“Billy Jack” Facebook fan page.
A native of South Dakota, Taylor met Laughlin in college
and married him in 1954. Together, the two developed the character of Billy
Jack, a martial arts expert who was half-Navajo, half-white Green Beret Vietnam
veteran and defended youthful members of the counterculture from authorities
who just didn’t understand.
Laughlin directed and starred in five films featuring the
character, beginning with 1967’s “The Born Losers” and helped to revolutionize
indie cinema by self-distributing his films. He died in 2013 at age 82.
Taylor, who had only a small role in the original film,
assumed a co-starring position in the 1971 sequel, “Billy Jack,” for which she
earned a Golden Globe nomination as New Star of the Year – Actress.
She reprised her role in the three sequels, 1974’s “The
Trial of Billy Jack,” 1977’s “Billy Jack Goes to Washington” and 1986’s “The
Return of Billy Jack.”
TAYLOR, Delores
Born: 9/27/1932,
Winner, South Dakota, U.S.A.
Died: 3/23/2018,Clear
Springs, Alabama, U.S.A.
Delores Taylor’s
westerns – producer, writer, actress:
Billy Jack – 1971 (Jean Roberts)
The Master Gunfighter – 1975 [executive producer, screenwriter]
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