Richard Crenna Biography
Summary
"Richard Donald Crenna" (November 30, 1926 - January 17, 2003) was an American film, television and radio actor. He starred in such motion pictures as "The Sand Pebbles", "Wait Until Dark", "Body Heat", "Rambo" ("First Blood" - "Rambo III"), "Hot Shots! Part Deux", and "The Flamingo Kid". Perhaps, though, he is best remembered for his role as Walter Denton in the CBS radio and television series 'Our Miss Brooks'; or as Luke McCoy in the ABC and CBS sitcom "The Real McCoys" (1957-1963).
Biography
Early life
Crenna was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of Edith J. (née Pollette), who managed a hotel in Downtown Los Angeles, and Domenick Anthony Crenna, a pharmacist. He had Italian ancestry. Crenna attended Virgil Jr. High School on Vermont Avenue and 1st Street, and later Belmont High School and the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. One of his classmates at Belmont was Mort Sahl. He was also a member of the Kappa Sigma fraternity.
Career
Crenna got his acting start on radio, appearing in "My Favorite Husband", "Boy Scout Jamboree", "A Date With Judy", "The Great Gildersleeve", and "Our Miss Brooks". He remained with the cast of the latter show when it transitioned to television.
When "Our Miss Brooks", starring Eve Arden, underwent a change in format -- his character Walter Denton was omitted -- Crenna joined "The Real McCoys". Kathleen Nolan was cast as his young wife, Kate McCoy; they lived on a California farm with Grandpa Amos McCoy, Walter Brennan's best-known role. Crenna guest starred on "I Love Lucy" with Janet Waldo, and played the lead as a state legislator in the 1964-1965 series "Slattery's People", both on CBS.
Crenna won an Emmy for his performance in the title role of the film The Rape of Richard Beck.
Crenna is perhaps best known for his role as John Rambo's ex-Commanding Officer 'Colonel Trautman' in the first three "Rambo" films. He also spoofed the role in "Hot Shots! Part Deux", as a homage to his "Rambo" character. He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6714 Hollywood Blvd.
Personal life
Crenna contracted pancreatic cancer but died of heart failure at the age of seventy-six. At the time of his death, he had a recurring role in the CBS series "Judging Amy". On the show, his passing was acknowledged by the death of the character that he portrayed.
Crenna's son, Richard Anthony Crenna, is also an actor.
In popular culture
Crenna is mentioned in the sitcom Friends during the episode 'The One with the Cake', when Phoebe writes a birthday song for Rachel's daughter Emma: 'Emma/Your name poses a dilemma/'Cuz not much else rhymes with Emma/Maybe the actor Richard Crenna/He played the commanding officer in Rambo/Happy birthday Emma.'
The character Roy Campbell from the Metal Gear series bears a remarkable resemblance to Crenna.
Dan Castellaneta, the voice of the animated sitcom "The Simpsons"s character Homer Simpson, lifted his voice for the Squeaky-Voiced Teen from Crenna's for his character Walter Denton in "Our Miss Brooks".
Filmography
"Let's Dance" (1950)
"Red Skies of Montana" (1952)
"The Pride of St. Louis" (1952)
"It Grows on Trees" (1952)
"Our Miss Brooks" (1956)
"Over-Exposed" (1956)
"Ann-Margret: Made in Paris" (1965) (short subject)
"John Goldfarb, Please Come Home" (1965)
"Made in Paris" (1966)
"The Sand Pebbles" (1966)
"Wait Until Dark" (1967)
"Star!" (1968)
"Midas Run" (1969)
"Marooned" (1969)
"Doctors' Wives" (1971)
"The Deserter" (1971)
"Red Sky at Morning" (1971)
"Catlow" (1971)
"Dirty Money" (1972)
"The Man Called Noon" (1973)
"Jonathan Livingston Seagull" (1973)
"Breakheart Pass" (1975)
"The Evil" (1978)
"Devil Dog: The Hound of Hell" (1978)
"Wild Horse Hank" (1979)
"Stone Cold Dead" (1979)
"Death Ship" (1980)
"Body Heat" (1981)
"First Blood" (1982)
"Table for Five" (1983)
"The Flamingo Kid" (1984)
"The Rape of Richard Beck" (1985)
"Rambo: First Blood Part II" (1985)
"Summer Rental" (1985)
"Rambo III" (1988)
"Leviathan" (1989)
"Hot Shots! Part Deux" (1993)
"A Pyromaniac's Love Story" (1995)
"Jade" (1995)
"Sabrina" (1995)
"20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" (1997)
"Wrongfully Accused" (1998)
"Judging Amy" (1999)
"Darkness at High Noon: The Carl Foreman Documents" (2002) (documentary) (narrator)
External links
(Archive of American Television Video Interview with Richard Crenna)
Credit
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article about Richard Crenna.
