Joined the U.S. Navy during World War II following the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941; he served on board both the USS Saratoga and the USS Yorktown.
Was good friends with Steve McQueen. They appeared together in three films: Bullitt (1968), Papillon (1973), and The Towering Inferno (1974). He also made guest appearances with McQueen on the show "Wanted: Dead or Alive" (1958).