[1][2] William Como, born in Williamstown, Massachusetts, was drafted into the US army, straight from high school, at age eighteen, to serve in the Philippines during World War II.
From 1948 to 1953 he worked as a model, dancer and actor in New York and California, but in 1953 left his contracts for personal reasons, finding employment as a “gofer” for Dance Magazine, at $60/week.
Along with Walter Terry (see Modern dance) and others, Como was one of the founders, in 1979, of the USA International Ballet Competition in Jackson, Mississippi, held every four years.
He wrote a regular one-page "Editor's Notes" column for the magazine and published articles and introductions to books.
William Como died in hospital of late-diagnosed lung cancer on January 1, 1989,[8][9] nursed toward the end by ballet master Raoul Gelabert.