Richard Crane
Encyclopedia
Richard Crane was a veteran character actor
whose career spanned three decades in films and television. His early career included many uncredited performances in feature films made in the 1940's. He is best remembered for his portrayal of the title role in the TV science fiction series Rocky Jones, Space Ranger
, which ran for two seasons starting in 1954. Of notable athletic ability, Crane also appeared in the outer-space adventure serial Commando Cody: Sky Marshal of the Universe
in 1953, as Cody's semi-comical sidekick, and was the hero of the 1951 serial based loosely on Jules Verne
's Mysterious Island. He later made numerous appearances in many popular TV shows including The Lone Ranger
, Death Valley Days
, Dragnet
, Lassie
, The Rifleman
, and Gang Busters
, on which he played gangster John Dillinger
and associate Homer Van Meter
. He died of a heart attack at the age of 50. He is buried in Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery
.
Character actor
A character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...
whose career spanned three decades in films and television. His early career included many uncredited performances in feature films made in the 1940's. He is best remembered for his portrayal of the title role in the TV science fiction series Rocky Jones, Space Ranger
Rocky Jones, Space Ranger
Rocky Jones, Space Ranger is a syndicated science fiction television serial originally broadcast in 1954. The show lasted for only two seasons and, though syndicated sporadically, dropped into obscurity. But because it was recorded on film rather than being broadcast live as were most other TV...
, which ran for two seasons starting in 1954. Of notable athletic ability, Crane also appeared in the outer-space adventure serial Commando Cody: Sky Marshal of the Universe
Commando Cody: Sky Marshal of the Universe
Commando Cody: Sky Marshal of the Universe is a science fiction television series or serial. It consists of twelve 25-minute episodes. The series was filmed and intended to be broadcast as a television limited series but, due to contract restrictions, it was originally released in theaters as a...
in 1953, as Cody's semi-comical sidekick, and was the hero of the 1951 serial based loosely on Jules Verne
Jules Verne
Jules Gabriel Verne was a French author who pioneered the science fiction genre. He is best known for his novels Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea , A Journey to the Center of the Earth , and Around the World in Eighty Days...
's Mysterious Island. He later made numerous appearances in many popular TV shows including The Lone Ranger
The Lone Ranger
The Lone Ranger is a fictional masked Texas Ranger who, with his Native American companion Tonto, fights injustice in the American Old West. The character has become an enduring icon of American culture....
, Death Valley Days
Death Valley Days
Death Valley Days is an American radio and television anthology series featuring true stories of the old American West, particularly the Death Valley area. Created in 1930 by Ruth Woodman, the program was broadcast on radio until 1945. It continued from 1952 to 1975 as a syndicated television series...
, Dragnet
Dragnet (series)
Dragnet is a radio and television crime drama about the cases of a dedicated Los Angeles police detective, Sergeant Joe Friday, and his partners...
, Lassie
Lassie (1954 TV series)
Lassie is an American television series that follows the adventures of a female Rough Collie named Lassie and her companions, human and animal. The show was the creation of producer Robert Maxwell and animal trainer Rudd Weatherwax and was televised from September 12, 1954, to March 24, 1973...
, The Rifleman
The Rifleman
The Rifleman is an American Western television program that starred Chuck Connors as homesteader Lucas McCain and Johnny Crawford as his son, Mark McCain. It was set in the 1880s in the town of North Fork, New Mexico Territory. The show, filmed in black-and-white with a half hour running time, ran...
, and Gang Busters
Gang Busters
Gang Busters was an American dramatic radio program heralded as "the only national program that brings you authentic police case histories." It premiered as G-Men, sponsored by Chevrolet, on July 20, 1935.-History:...
, on which he played gangster John Dillinger
John Dillinger
John Herbert Dillinger, Jr. was an American bank robber in Depression-era United States. He was charged with, but never convicted of, the murder of an East Chicago, Indiana police officer during a shoot-out. This was his only alleged homicide. His gang robbed two dozen banks and four police stations...
and associate Homer Van Meter
Homer Van Meter
Homer "Wayne" Van Meter was an American criminal and bank robber active in the early 20th century, most notably as a criminal associate of John Dillinger and Baby Face Nelson.-Early life:...
. He died of a heart attack at the age of 50. He is buried in Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery
Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery
Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery is located at 10621 Victory Boulevard in North Hollywood, California.The cemetery has a special section called the Portal of the Folded Wings Shrine to Aviation that is the final resting place for a number of aviation pioneers — barnstormers, daredevils and...
.