R.I.P. Ben Chapman (1928-2008)
Hoo-boy... it was already a dreary day and now this....
Hollywood actor Ben Chapman --one of the last men to play a classic Universal monster (and a super-nice guy to boot) passed away in Hawaii early this morning.
From the Creature from the Black Lagoon Yahoo Group:
Ben Chapman passed away this morning at 12:15 AM Hawaii time. He was
admitted to the hospital two days ago and died peacefully in his
hospital bed. He had a living will and they turned off his life
support yesterday about noon Hawaii time. They will be having a
memorial service at a Catholic Church located near the beach and he
will be cremated. He turned 79 last October.
My sincere hope is that he died peacefully and with no pain or suffering.
My best thoughts are for the Gill-man who carried a fallen female and entered into movie monster stardom!
Our Gill Man (on land) will be forever remembered, not just as the body of the imposing Creature, but for his priceless recollections, his detailed memories and willingness to share this will Monster Kids the world over.
A gentle giant and a heck of a nice guy.
Personally I have to include these shots I took as well: The whole Creature gang photo-op for the fans at CreatureFest 2003 in Wakulla Springs. (left to right) Ben Chapman, Julia Adams, Ginger Stanley and Ricou Browning --together again at this event for the first time in 50 years.
And here's Ben with and signing my own Creature Mask for posterity.
Thanks again Ben... and rest in peace.
Labels: Ben Chapman, Creature From the Black Lagoon, Creaturefest 2003, Universal Studios, Wakulla Springs
posted by C. Martin Croker at 11:58 AM
3 Comments:
Ben was a one of a king guy who loved his family, his friends and his fan's. The last of the classic Universal monster's(and one of the coolest guys ever)is gone and it's a huge loss. He'll be missed bigtime.
~Heres to you Benny!~
5:11 PM
Ah I just found this blog while looking for info on Aurora model kits, the white mans porn and crack combined. This is just an amazing amount of cool photos and information.
Yes Ben Chapman, what a nice guy, we are losing a great generation here and not enough monster kids are stepping to the plate.
Just popping by to say hello and say how much I enjoyed your blog. I do a horror host show out of Raleigh, North Carolina, called Monster Creature Feature. I noticed Los Straitjackets listed in your favs, we interviewed them recently and its posted on our site at www.mcftv.com.
We are also working with Cripsy, formerly of Southern Culture on the Skids and his new band Killer Filler.
Yours in the her after,
Ormon Grimsby
12:00 AM
The thing that sucks about getting older is that one by one, the people you admire pass away.
Ben Chapman portrayed my favorite movie Monster, the Creature.
Sad news indeed.
7:02 AM
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