Richard Donald Crenna (November 30, 1926 – January 17, 2003) was an American actor. He had a long career in films, appearing in such movies as The Sand Pebbles, Wait Until Dark, Body Heat, First Blood (and its following Rambo sequels), Hot Shots! Part Deux and The Flamingo Kid.
Crenna was born in Los Angeles, California to Italian immigrants from Tuscany, Italy. His father was a pharmacist and his mother managed a hotel. He attended Belmont High School and the University of Southern California.
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 underwent a format change, writing out his character Walter Denton, he moved to another television program, The Real McCoys starring Walter Brennan. Crenna played the lead in a television series for one season in 1964's Slattery's People.
He...
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Richard Crenna died in Los Angeles, Los Angeles County
Wrongfully Accused is a 1998 comedy movie starring Leslie Nielsen as Ryan Harrison, a violinist who's been framed in the murder of Hibbing Goodhue by Sean Leaughrea, a one-armed, one-legged, one-eyed man, and his sister, Cass Lake. As Harrison runs from the law, Sean and Cass embark on a terrorist plot to assassinate the UN Secretary-General. This film was written, produced, and directed by Pat Proft. The film pokes fun at movies such as The Fugitive, Volcano, and others.
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http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120901
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea is a 1997 TV movie produced by The Hallmark Channel, based on the novel by Jules Verne and starring Ben Cross as Captain Nemo.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea at the Internet Movie Database...
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118247
Jade is an erotic crime film/thriller film released in 1995. It was written by Joe Eszterhas, produced by Robert Evans and directed by William Friedkin. It starred David Caruso, Linda Fiorentino, Chazz Palminteri, Richard Crenna and Michael Biehn. The original music score is composed by James Horner. The film is marketed with the tagline "Some fantasies go too far."
San Francisco District Attorney David Corelli faces a potential conflict of interest when he learns that the prime suspect in the murder is psychologist Katrina Gavin, an old flame who eventually married his close friend Matt Gavin. Despite this, he continues on the case and discovers that the dealer owned a series of photographs showing prominent public figures in compromising positions with an enigmatic prostitute known only as Jade. As Corelli searches for the identity this unknown woman, believing she holds the key to the murder's solution, he uncovers further secrets that ultimately threaten his life.
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http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0113451
Hot Shots! Part Deux is a 1993 comedy spoof film, and a sequel to the 1991 comedy Hot Shots!Directed again by Jim Abrahams, the film again stars Charlie Sheen, Lloyd Bridges, Valeria Golino, Richard Crenna, Brenda Bakke, Miguel Ferrer, Ryan Stiles, Rowan Atkinson, and Jerry Haleva.Bob Vila, Gregory Sierra, and Martin Sheen have cameo roles.Abrahams and Pat Proft were the writers of the screenplay. Members of both men's families have roles as extras.Topper Harley is persuaded to come out of retirement again—this time as a parody of Rambo—to lead a rescue team in Iraq, who are being sent in to rescue a previous rescue team. While there, he meets his former love Ramada (Golino), whose husband Dexter (Atkinson) is being held captive by Saddam Hussein (Haleva). There follows much fighting and bloodshed as they try and rescue Dexter while the incompetent President (Bridges) aims to get personal revenge on Saddam.The film parodies action movies such as Rambo III, Apocalypse Now, Predator,,
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107144
A Place to Be Loved is a 1993 TV movie with Richard Crenna and Rhea Perlman. It was release in the United Kingdom under the title Shattered Family.
Gregory Kingsley is a boy, abused by his biological father, who is placed with social services by his natural mother. The foster family he is put into proves to be the type of nurturing environment he needs. He ends up taking his natural mother to court, to have her parental rights revoked, in hopes of being adopted by his adoptive family. The story is based on a real life case of child abuse.
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http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107833
Rambo III, is an American action film released on May 25, 1988. The the third film in the Rambo series, it follows Rambo: First Blood Part II and is followed by John Rambo.
The film depicts Rambo (Sylvester Stallone) on a mission to Afghanistan. Colonel Trautman (Richard Crenna) has been captured while trying to supply weapons to the anti-Soviet Afghan Mujahideen, and because of the particular atrocities of the occupying Soviet army, only Rambo can save him. With the help of the Mujahideen, Rambo is able to rescue Trautman and eliminate the homicidal Soviet commander of that region. Ironically, Soviet troops were withdrawn from Afghanistan ten days before the film was released (starting in May 15, 1988).
A novelization was written by David Morrell, author of the novel First Blood, on which the first Rambo film was based.
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http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095956
Summer Rental is a 1985 comedy film directed by Carl Reiner, starring John Candy. The screenplay is written by Mark Reisman and Jeremy Stevens. The original music score is composed by Alan Silvestri.
Taglines:Life's a beach.The plot involves John Candy's character taking his family on a summer vacation in Florida, during which they are constantly beset by a never-ending barrage of problems. Candy's character receives a leg injury that prevents him from being able to spend time with his family, and his immobility, though temporary, is a major source for much of the film's comedy.
When Chicago air-traffic controller Jack Chester and his family leave for what turned out to be a pretty decrepit shack on a public beach in Florida, he eventually locks horns with Al Pellet, the owner of this dubious piece of real estate, and their conflict terminates in a boat race in which Jack and his motley crew are at first glance, and even second no match for the others in the race. In the meantime,...
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0090098
Rambo: First Blood Part II, released on May 22, 1985, is the second movie in the Rambo series. It has Rambo (Sylvester Stallone) released from prison by Federal order to document the possible existence of POWs in Vietnam, under the belief that he will find nothing and the government can sweep the issue under the rug.
The movie, which had an enormous budget of $44 million, became a huge box-office success. Earning just over $150 million in North America and just under that amount in the rest of the world, it was the second most successful movie of 1985 in North America after Back to the Future. This film captured the attention of President Ronald Reagan and he lauded Stallone for portraying Rambo as a symbol of the U.S. Army.
The movie was also criticised for being a mindless action film and it was selected as worst picture at the 1985 Golden Raspberry Awards. It also topped the categories worst actor (Sylvester Stallone), worst screenplay (by Sylvester Stallone and James Cameron), and,
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089880
The Flamingo Kid is a 1984 comedic film directed by Garry Marshall, written by Marshall, Neal Marshall and Bo Goldman. It stars Matt Dillon, Richard Crenna, Hector Elizondo and Janet Jones. It is a coming-of-age movie about a working class boy who takes a summer job at a beach resort and learns some valuable life lessons.It was the first movie to receive a PG-13 rating, although it was released after Red Dawn.Tagline:A legend in his own neighborhoodIn the summer of 1963, Jeffrey Willis (Dillon) is hired on at upscale Long Island beach resort, The Flamingo. Jeffrey is a kid from a middle class Brooklyn family and his father (Elizondo) does not approve of him working at the private club.His hero and mentor at the resort is the reigning Gin rummy card game champ, Phil Brody (Crenna)....
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0087265
First Blood is the first film featuring the character of troubled Vietnam War veteran John Rambo. It starred Sylvester Stallone as Rambo, Brian Dennehy as Sheriff Will Teasle, and Richard Crenna as Col. Samuel Trautman.
Based on a 1972 David Morrell book of the same name, the film (which differs from the book in many areas) was directed by Ted Kotcheff, produced by Mario Kassar and Andrew G. Vajna, and released on Friday, October 22, 1982.
Taglines:The film centers on John Rambo, a former member of the US Army's Green Berets (an elite Special Forces unit) who fought in Vietnam and was a Medal of Honor recipient for his actions there. Rambo has difficulty adjusting to civilian life and wanders the country as a drifter. The film begins as he is seeking out his friend Delmore Barry, apparently the only other Special Forces member from his unit to make it out of Vietnam alive.
Rambo finds out from Barry's widow that he died from cancer due to Agent Orange exposure, and she is...,
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0083944
Body Heat is a 1981 neo-noir film written and directed by Lawrence Kasdan. It stars William Hurt, Kathleen Turner, Richard Crenna, Ted Danson, J.A. Preston and Mickey Rourke. It may be cited as an example of postmodern pastiche, as its sets are an intentional mix of visual eras.
A substantial portion of the film was shot in downtown Lake Worth, Florida; and in the oceanside enclave of Manalapan. Both communities are located in east-central Palm Beach County, Florida.
The film launched Turner's movie career and was Kasdan's directorial debut.
Taglines:Ned Racine (Hurt), an inept and rather sleazy Florida lawyer, becomes entangled with Matty Walker (Turner), a ruthless femme fatale who is plotting to murder her wealthy husband (Crenna) and collect his entire estate. Racine murders the husband, enlisting the help of one of his shadier clients, an expert on incendiary devices (Mickey Rourke), to help him cover up the crime. The plot is similar to the made-for-TV remake film Double...,
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082089
Un flic ("A Cop"), also known as Dirty Money, is a 1972 French film, the last directed by Jean-Pierre Melville. It stars Alain Delon, Catherine Deneuve, and Richard Crenna.
The plot involves the efforts of a detective (Delon) to catch a team responsible for a lethal bank robbery, to foil a drug smuggling operation, and hold on to his mistress (Deneuve), whom he shares with a nightclub owner (Crenna), his friend and a prime suspect in the robbery. Adding to the detective's troubles is a female impersonator informant who seems to have a crush on him.
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http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0067900
Catlow is a 1971 western movie based on a 1969 western novel written by Louis L'Amour. The movie stars Yul Brynner as a renegade outlaw determined to pull off a Confederate gold heist. He is chased by a US Marshal (Richard Crenna) and a ruthless bounty hunter (Leonard Nimoy). Nimoy mentioned this film in both of his autobiographies because it gave him a chance to break away from his role as Spock on Star Trek. He mentioned that the time he made the film was one of the happiest of his life even though his part was rather brief....,
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0066900
Marooned is a 1969 film directed by John Sturges and starring Gregory Peck, Richard Crenna, David Janssen, James Franciscus, and Gene Hackman.The film was released only four months after the Apollo 11 moon landing and is tied to the topical public fascination with the event. It won the Academy Award for Visual Effects.The film was based on the 1964 novel Marooned by Martin Caidin; however, while the original novel was based on the single-pilot Mercury program, the film depicted a space station program resembling Skylab. Caidin rewrote the novel, incorporating appropriate material from the original version and updating it to follow the film.Caidin acted as technical advisor for the film. Three American astronauts, commander Jim Pruett (Crenna), "Buzz" Lloyd (Hackman) and Clayton "Stoney" Stone (Franciscus) are returning from five months at a space station, testing out new technologies and investigating the effects of extended exposure to zero gravity, when Lloyd begins to exhibit signs...,
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0064639
Wait Until Dark is a play by Frederick Knott.The mystery thriller's heroine is Susy Hendrix, a blind Greenwich Village housewife who becomes the target of three thugs searching for the heroin hidden in a doll her husband transported from Canada as a favor to a woman who since has been murdered. The trio tries to convince Susy her spouse has been implicated in the crime and the only way to protect him is to surrender the doll. More murder and mayhem ensue when she refuses, with the stage lights turned off for the final scene when Suzy levels the playing field by plunging her apartment into total darkness.After seven previews, the Broadway production, directed by Arthur Penn, opened on February 2 1966 at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre. Within the next eleven months, it transferred to the Shubert, the George Abbott, and the Music Box Theatres before it ended its run of 374 performances. The cast included Lee Remick, Robert Duvall, and Mitchell Ryan. Remick was nominated for the Tony Award...
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0062467
The Sand Pebbles is a 1966 film based on the 1962 novel The Sand Pebbles by Richard McKenna. It tells the story of a rebellious American sailor on a gunboat plying the rivers of China in the 1920s. It stars Steve McQueen, Richard Attenborough, Richard Crenna, Candice Bergen and Mako. The movie was adapted by Robert Anderson from the novel by Richard McKenna. It was directed by Robert Wise.
The film portrays racism and colonialism of the era, both on a small scale, showing how the American sailors interacted with Chinese coolies who operate the boat and Chinese bar girls on shore, and on a large scale by depicting the gunboat diplomacy used to dominate a vulnerable China, which was reduced to virtual anarchy by feuding warlords and political factions. This story of an Asian river conflict was released as the United States involvement in the Vietnam conflict was escalating, although the production preceded the peak of anti-war sentiment by several years.
The film was nominated for...
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0060934
Over-exposed was a 1956 film directed by Lewis Seiler. The movie starred Cleo Moore and Richard Crenna and featured Raymond Greenleaf, Jack Albertson, Isobel Elsom, and Jeanne Cooper in supporting roles.
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http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0049587
Richard Crenna was born in Los Angeles, Los Angeles County
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