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He entered films in his late teens, debuting onscreen in 1956 and playing juvenile roles in a number of Hollywood films in the late '50s. In the early '60s he ran a Montessori pre-school, then returned to cinema as a producer, director, editor, writer, and actor in his own low-budget productions, beginning with The Young Sinner (1965); made outside the Hollywood system, the films featured Laughlin billed under a variety of pseudonyms behind the camera, including T.C. Frank, Donald Henderson, and Lloyd E. James. He hit paydirt in 1971 with Billy Jack, about a loner who resorts to vigilante violence in the search for justice; made for $800,000, the film was a massive box-office hit, leading to an equally successful sequel. Following this, Laughlin attempted enormous expansion of his business enterprises with unsuccessful results. He made one more Billy Jack film, then largely disappeared after the '70s. He is married to actress Delores Taylor, who appeared in several of his films.