Don Michael Mitchell was born on March 17, 1943, in Houston, Texas. He was the son of Wilson Mitchell and his wife, Rose Marie (née-Brazos; 1918–2001). He grew up on his grandfather's farm. He "excelled in both football and basketball" at his high school in Houston. His postsecondary education began at
Los Angeles City College, from which he transferred to the
University of California, Los Angeles, where he studied acting. His acting at UCLA led to his role in
Ironside, as producer Collier Young saw Mitchell on stage in a production of
Poor Bitos and signed him for the show 3 weeks before production began. Mitchell's other television roles include
McMillan & Wife and playing Ed Lawrence on the
CBS daytime
soap opera Capitol. He also appeared as a policeman in
Bewitched and Dr. Samson on
Wonder Woman. He also co-starred in the film
Scream Blacula Scream (1973). ==Personal life and death==