---
name: "Gilbert Ralston"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/gilbert-ralston"
roles: ["Writer"]
born: "5 January 1912"
died: "18 March 1999"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 1
updated: "2026-09-16T15:55:27.518129+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Gilbert Ralston

Writer. Born 5 January 1912 in Newcastle. Died 18 March 1999.

## Details

- **Work:** Writer
- **Born:** 5 January 1912, Newcastle
- **Died:** 18 March 1999
- **Also known as:** Gilbert Alexander

## Biography

Gilbert Alexander Ralston (5 January 1912 – 18 March 1999) was a British-American screenwriter, journalist and author. Born in Newcastle, County Down, Ireland, he worked as a television producer in the United States in the 1950s before becoming a screenwriter in the 1960s.

Ralston created the series *The Wild Wild West* and wrote its pilot episode. He wrote the *Star Trek* episode 'Who Mourns for Adonais?' (1967) and episodes of *Hawaii Five-O*, *Gunsmoke*, *Ben Casey*, *I Spy*, *The Big Valley*, *Combat!* and *Naked City*. His film credits include the screenplay for *Willard* (1971), based on the novel by Stephen Gilbert, and *Ben* (1972).

He also wrote for *The Hunting Party* (1971) and received an Edgar Allan Poe Award nomination for *Willard*. Ralston later pursued a lawsuit against Warner Bros. over rights to *The Wild Wild West*.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com, memory-alpha.fandom.com.*

## On Fi1m (1)

- *Star Trek* (1966), Fi1m 83, Writer — [page](https://film.one/tv/star-trek-1966.md)

## Also known for

- *Willard* (2003), Original Film Writer
- *Hawaii Five-O* (1969), Writer
- *Ben* (1972), Writer
- *Willard* (1971), Screenplay
- *Combat!* (1962), Writer
- *Gunsmoke* (1955), Writer
- *The Alfred Hitchcock Hour* (1962), Writer
- *The Hunting Party* (1971), Story, Screenplay

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/gilbert-ralston