William L Whitacre

On January 24, 1946 in St. Petersburg, Florida, William Lewis Whitacre was born to Bradford and Edwyna Whitacre. His dad Bradford was a World War 2 pilot who flew 50 combat missions. After the war ended he was crop duster and had a near fatal accident that left him in the hospital for a year. Determined not to let this accident effect his life he attended the University of Florida at Gainesville where he got his degree and Bill has memories of living around the campus as a kid. His dad moved the family to Melbourne, Florida in the early 50s, which was then just a small sleepy town, and later the area built up with the advent of the Space Program at Cape Canaveral. It was here that Bill learned to surf and he even surfed with the legendary Murph the Surf. Bill went to the Ruth Henegar Elementary School and because it was a small town all of the classes from the first grade through high school were in one building. His dad was a schoolteacher who taught at the high school, drove the school bus on band trips and Bill remembers the times he traveled with his dad. The school had a little auditorium and when he was in the first grade Bill started acting. In the early 50s they didn't have a television so they went to a lot of movies and saw the feature along with a serial that was continued every Saturday. As young boys they always acted out the movies they saw. Bill acted in several school plays at Melbourne High School and he also became very active in the martial arts excelling in Tae Kwon Do receiving a black belt. After graduating he went to the University of Florida in Gainesville where his father had graduated. He received an undergraduate degree in English literature to better prepare him for law school. In college Bill met Doran Oster a classic trained flute player who became his best friend. Together they played the coffee houses in the 60s with Bill playing the folk guitar. While he was in his second year in college he married his high school sweetheart Gaynell and later gave birth to their son Matt. Bill studied law at the University of Florida and was a member of the R.O.T.C. at the height of the Vietnam War. He played inter-collegiate rugby and during the second year he fractured his neck going for a loose ball. He had to have his neck in a brace for two months and suffered from dizzy spells for over a year. Although he tried later to play in one more game against the University of Miami he realized his rugby days were over. Graduating with a law degree he enlisted in the US Army and was stationed in Ft. Bliss Texas in the Air Defense Artillery. Then assigned later to Duluth, Minnesota where their daughter Jennifer was born. Bill was later transferred to JAG, Judge Advocate General as a Captain. He was assigned to Ft. Eustis, Virginia, for four years as the Magistrate for the federal installation. While in the military Bill acted in some of the Army training films and theater. Playing the lead Lenny in Of Mice and Men he won the US Army Best Actor Award for 1977. He also won the Tidewater, Virginia Critic's Award for Best Actor. After discharge Bill moved to Orlando working as a prosecutor in juvenile court and then later to a prosecutor in the State's Attorney's Office. In one particular case Bills relentless pursuit put together enough evidence to send the suspect off to a 15-year term. This case involving Bill was publicized in Startling Detective and Inside Detective magazines. When he left the prosecutor's off Bill formed his own law firm specializing in commercial law and defending a limited number of high profile criminal cases. All this time he was still acting in theater and performing as a musician in the Wildwood Rose group playing bluegrass and folk music at festivals. He began networking with several musicians, producers and filmmakers while a member of FMPTA and it was here that Bill began his Entertainment Law Practice. Some of his clients included Jaco Pastorius the legendary bassist, Bill Ward the Black Sabbath drummer, Cheetah Records, Hank Garland a session player with Elvis Presley and Lauren Chapin a child actor in Father Knows Best on TV. Bill learned the art of production by putting on a pair of jeans gripping and helping set up gear for an equipment rental company. In 1997 he set up the Pamplin Film Company for Rick Pamplin with an office at Universal Studios setting up his law office in the same facility. They raised money putting together Winslow Live, presently airing on Starz and on the comedy channel in Australia. Followed by Hoover with Ernest Borgnine and was listed on the Oscar and DGA ballots for Best Director. They have three new film projects with Ernest Borgnine. Bill formed the Haxan Company and helped raise the money for The Blair Witch Project. The film went on to be the highest grossing film in history. Bill and his wife Gay have been married for 33 years a rarity in this business.