--- name: "Richard Crenna" canonical: "https://film.one/person/richard-crenna" fi1m_id: "richard-crenna" imdb_id: "nm0001077" tmdb_id: 16554 wikidata_id: "Q318607" roles: ["Actor","Director"] born: "30 November 1926" died: "17 January 2003" reviewed_on_fi1m: 6 average_fi1m_score: 66 average_as: "actor" average_over: 5 updated: "2026-10-04T23:22:01.989945+00:00" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Richard Crenna ## Identity Richard Crenna - **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/richard-crenna - **Type:** Person - **Fi1m ID:** richard-crenna - **IMDb ID:** nm0001077 - **TMDB ID:** 16554 - **Wikidata ID:** Q318607 - **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Crenna, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q318607, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001077/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/16554 Actor and director. Born 30 November 1926 in Los Angeles, California, USA. Died 17 January 2003. ## Details - **Work:** Actor, Director - **Born:** 30 November 1926, Los Angeles, California, USA - **Died:** 17 January 2003 - **Active:** 1966–1993 - **Also known as:** Dick Crenna, Richard McKenna, Charley Weaver, Richard Donald Crenna - **Titles on Fi1m:** 6: 5 acting, 1 directing - **Frequently works with:** [Buzz Feitshans](https://film.one/person/buzz-feitshans.md), [Sylvester Stallone](https://film.one/person/sylvester-stallone.md) - **Primetime Emmy Awards:** 1 Emmy (1 won) - **Average Fi1m score:** 66, as actor, over 5 titles - **Fi1m score by decade:** 1960s 66 (1), 1970s 83 (1), 1980s 65 (3), 1990s 67 (1) - **Fi1m against the critics:** 66 to 62 across 4 titles - **Score spread:** 1 at 80+, 3 at 60–79, 1 under 60 - **Lead roles:** 2 of 5 acting credits billed first or second - **Genres:** Action 3, Thriller 3, War 3, Drama 2, Adventure 1, Comedy 1 - **Screen time:** 10 hours of reviewed films - **Box office:** $492m across 5 films with figures - **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Crenna, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q318607, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001077/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/16554 ## Streaming the US now - **Amazon Prime Video:** [*First Blood*](https://film.one/film/first-blood.md) (74), [*Rambo III*](https://film.one/film/rambo-iii.md) (39) - **The Roku Channel:** [*The Rockford Files*](https://film.one/tv/the-rockford-files.md) (83) For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country. ## Fi1m on Richard Crenna > Richard Crenna made authority convincing, from military officers to slick mentors. We value his steadiness in a supporting part, especially when the man who appears to know best gives us reason to be wary. Richard Crenna plays a man in charge and we seldom question how he got the job. He is persuasive as an officer; with the slicker mentor figures, that same confidence can make us wary. We value the steadiness he brings to a supporting part, particularly in Lawrence Kasdan’s *Body Heat* (1981). It gives the leading actors someone substantial to play against. The comic juvenile Walter Denton in *Our Miss Brooks* (1952) is a long way from those officers. By *The Sand Pebbles* (1966), playing Captain Collins alongside Steve McQueen, Crenna had moved into dramatic cinema. He subsequently worked largely in supporting parts and television rather than becoming a regular film leading man. We would not count that as a failure; these were often parts that needed somebody who could make an impression without taking over. In *Body Heat*, he plays Edmund Walker in a film whose chief attraction remains William Hurt and Kathleen Turner. Their foolish desire carries a carefully made thriller that sometimes follows older noir too dutifully. We were drawn in more than we expected, because the leads make that attraction credible even when the plot feels familiar. Crenna’s supporting contribution gives them a useful contrast, and Kasdan keeps the central pair where they belong. This is a good place to appreciate him without pretending that the film is his. Colonel Samuel Trautman in *First Blood* (1982), alongside Sylvester Stallone, became his most widely recognised role, continued across the first three Rambo films. It is effective casting, though it can encourage us to notice the job before the actor. Phil Brody, the slick mentor in *The Flamingo Kid* (1984), offers a less straightforward use of the same assurance. Start with *Body Heat* if the uniform is all that comes to mind; the film is worth the evening even when its borrowed noir habits show. ## Biography Richard Crenna was an American actor who worked in radio, television and film. He began his career as a child performer on radio in the 1930s and later appeared in the CBS series *Our Miss Brooks* (1952–1956) as Walter Denton and the ABC series *The Real McCoys* (1957–1963) as Luke McCoy. He studied theatre arts at the University of Southern California. Crenna transitioned to dramatic roles in films including *Wait Until Dark* (1967), *Body Heat* (1981) as Edmund Walker, *The Flamingo Kid* (1984) and the first three *Rambo* films (1982–1988) as Colonel Samuel Trautman. He also directed for television and received an Emmy Award for his lead performance in the 1985 television film *The Rape of Richard Beck*. He appeared in the miniseries *Centennial* (1978–1979). Crenna was born in Los Angeles on 30 November 1926 and died there on 17 January 2003. *Sources: imdb.com, en.wikipedia.org.* ## On Fi1m (6) ### Performed in (5) — the average rests on these - *Hot Shots! Part Deux* (1993), Fi1m 67, as Col. Denton Walters — [page](https://film.one/film/hot-shots-part-deux.md) - *Rambo III* (1988), Fi1m 39, as Trautman — [page](https://film.one/film/rambo-iii.md) - *First Blood* (1982), Fi1m 74, as Col. Samuel Trautman — [page](https://film.one/film/first-blood.md) - *Body Heat* (1981), Fi1m 83, as Edmund Walker — [page](https://film.one/film/body-heat.md) - *The Sand Pebbles* (1966), Fi1m 66, as Captain Collins — [page](https://film.one/film/the-sand-pebbles.md) ### Directed (1) - *The Rockford Files* (1974), Fi1m 83, Director — [page](https://film.one/tv/the-rockford-files.md) ## Complete filmography (128) Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page. - *Rambo* (2008), as Col. Samuel Trautman (archive footage) (uncredited) - *Out of the Ashes* (2003), as Jake Smith - *The Day Reagan Was Shot* (2001), as Ronald Reagan - *By Dawn's Early Light* (2001), as Ben Maxwell - *Murder, She Wrote: A Story to Die For* (2000), as Warren Pierce - *Judging Amy* (1999), series, as Jared Duff - *To Serve and Protect* (1999), as Howard Carr - *To Serve and Protect* (1999), series, as Howard Carr - *Wrongfully Accused* (1998), as Fergus Falls - *Heart Full of Rain* (1997), as Arliss Dockett - *Deep Family Secrets* (1997), as Clay Chadway - *20,000 Leagues Under the Sea* (1997), as Professor Aronnax - *The Real Las Vegas* (1996), as Narrator (voice) - *E! True Hollywood Story* (1996), series, Actor - *Race Against Time: The Search for Sarah* (1996), as John Porter - *Sabrina* (1995), as Patrick Tyson - *Jade* (1995), as Governor Edwards - *JAG* (1995), series, as Harmon Rabb Sr. (voice) - *In the Name of Love: A Texas Tragedy* (1995), as Luke Constable Sr. - *A Pyromaniac's Love Story* (1995), as Tom Lumpke (uncredited) - *Janek: The Silent Betrayal* (1994), as Frank Janek - *Chicago Hope* (1994), series, as Martin Rockwell - *Jonathan Stone: Threat of Innocence* (1994), as Jonathan Stone - *The Forget-Me-Not Murders* (1994), as Frank Janek - *Hot Shots! Part Deux* (1993), as Col. Denton Walters — Fi1m 67, [page](https://film.one/film/hot-shots-part-deux.md) - *Hearts of Hot Shots! Part Deux—A Filmmaker's Apology* (1993), Actor - *A Place to Be Loved* (1993), as George Russ - *Terror on Track 9* (1992), as Det. Frank Janek - *Intruders* (1992), series, as Dr. Neil Chase - *Pros and Cons* (1991), series, as Mitch O'Hannon - *And the Sea Will Tell* (1991), as Vincent Bugliosi - *And the Sea Will Tell* (1991), series, as Vincent Bugliosi - *Murder Times Seven* (1990), as Frank Janek - *Gabriel's Fire* (1990), series, Actor - *Last Flight Out* (1990), as Dan Hood - *Montana* (1990), as Hoyce Guthrie - *Murder in Black and White* (1990), as Frank Janek - *Stuck with Each Other* (1989), as Bert Medwick - *Mort Sahl: The Loyal Opposition* (1989), as Narrator - *The Case of the Hillside Stranglers* (1989), as Sgt. Bob Grogan - *Leviathan* (1989), as Dr. Glen 'Doc' Thompson - *Internal Affairs* (1988), as Frank Janek - *Rambo III* (1988), as Trautman — Fi1m 39, [page](https://film.one/film/rambo-iii.md) - *Plaza Suite* (1987), as Roy Hubley - *Kids Like These* (1987), as Bob Goodman - *Police Story: The Freeway Killings* (1987), as Deputy Chief Bob Devers - *The High Price of Passion* (1986), as Williams Douglas - *On Wings of Eagles* (1986), series, as H. Ross Perot - *A Case of Deadly Force* (1986), as Lawrence O'Donnell Sr. - *Doubletake* (1985), as Frank Janek - *Summer Rental* (1985), as Al Pellet - *The Rape of Richard Beck* (1985), as Richard Beck - *Rambo: First Blood Part II* (1985), as Col. Samuel Trautman - *The Flamingo Kid* (1984), as Phil Brody - *Passions* (1984), as Richard Kennerly - *Squaring the Circle* (1984), as The Narrator - *Allison Sydney Harrison* (1983), Director - *Table for Five* (1983), as Mitchell - *The Magic Statue* (1982), Director - *First Blood* (1982), as Col. Samuel Trautman — Fi1m 74, [page](https://film.one/film/first-blood.md) - *It Takes Two* (1982), series, as Dr. Sam Quinn - *The Day the Bubble Burst* (1982), as Jesse Livermore - *The Ordeal of Bill Carney* (1981), as Mason Rose - *Daniel Boone* (1981), as Daniel Boone - *Body Heat* (1981), as Edmund Walker — Fi1m 83, [page](https://film.one/film/body-heat.md) - *Fugitive Family* (1980), as Brian Roberts - *Joshua's World* (1980), as Dr. Joshua Torrance - *Death Ship* (1980), as Trevor Marshall - *Mayflower: The Pilgrims' Adventure* (1979), as William Brewster - *Better Late Than Never* (1979), Director - *Stone Cold Dead* (1979), as Sgt. Boyd - *Turnabout* (1979), series, Director - *Wild Horse Hank* (1979), as Pace Bradford - *A Fire in the Sky* (1978), as Jason Voight - *First, You Cry* (1978), as David Towers - *Devil Dog: The Hound of Hell* (1978), as Mike Barry - *Centennial* (1978), series, as Colonel Frank Skimmerhorn - *Grandpa Goes to Washington* (1978), series, Director - *The Evil* (1978), as C.J. Arnold - *Rosetti and Ryan* (1977), series, Director - *Lou Grant* (1977), series, Director - *James at 16* (1977), series, Director - *The War Between the Tates* (1977), as Professor Brian Tate - *All's Fair* (1976), series, Actor - *Breakheart Pass* (1975), as Gov. Richard Fairchild - *A Girl Named Sooner* (1975), as R.J. 'Mac' McHenry - *The Rockford Files* (1974), series, Director — Fi1m 83, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-rockford-files.md) - *Honky Tonk* (1974), as Candy Johnson - *Double Solitaire* (1974), as Charley Potter - *Shootout in a One-Dog Town* (1974), as Zack Wells - *Nightmare* (1974), as Howard Faloon - *Jonathan Livingston Seagull* (1973), as Father (voice) - *Double Indemnity* (1973), as Walter Neff - *The Man Called Noon* (1973), as Noon - *Footsteps* (1972), as Paddy - *Un Flic* (1972), as Simon - *Thief* (1971), as Neal Wilkinson - *Catlow* (1971), as Cowan - *Red Sky at Morning* (1971), as Frank Arnold - *Doctors' Wives* (1971), as Pete Brennan - *The Deserter* (1970), as Major Wade Brown - *Marooned* (1969), as Jim Pruett - *Midas Run* (1969), as Warden - *Star!* (1968), as Richard Aldrich - *Wait Until Dark* (1967), as Mike Talman - *The Sand Pebbles* (1966), as Captain Collins — Fi1m 66, [page](https://film.one/film/the-sand-pebbles.md) - *Summer Fun* (1966), series, Director - *Made in Paris* (1966), as Herb Stone - *John Goldfarb, Please Come Home!* (1965), as John Goldfarb - *Slattery's People* (1964), series, as James Slattery - *Wendy and Me* (1964), series, Director - *No Time for Sergeants* (1964), series, Director - *The Long Lost Life of Edward Smalley* (1963), as Edward Smalley - *Kraft Suspense Theatre* (1963), series, as Edward Smalley - *Vacation Playhouse* (1963), series, Director - *The Andy Griffith Show* (1960), series, Director - *The Real McCoys* (1957), series, as Luke McCoy · Director - *Our Miss Brooks* (1956), as Walter Denton - *Over-Exposed* (1956), as Russell Bassett - *Matinee Theater* (1955), series, Actor - *Frontier* (1955), series, Actor - *Cheyenne* (1955), series, Actor - *The Millionaire* (1955), series, as Ralph McKnight - *Our Miss Brooks* (1952), series, as Walter Denton - *It Grows on Trees* (1952), as Ralph Bowen - *The Pride of St. Louis* (1952), as Paul Dean - *Red Skies of Montana* (1952), as Noxon (uncredited) - *I Love Lucy* (1951), series, as Arthur Morton ## Gallery - ![Photo of Gale Gordon as principal Osgood Conklin and Richard Crenna as student Walter Denton from the television program Our Miss Brooks. (1955)](https://film.one/media/person/117674/gallery-565484058616.jpg) Photo of Gale Gordon as principal Osgood Conklin and Richard Crenna as student Walter Denton from the television program Our Miss Brooks. (1955) — The Bureau of Industrial Service for CBS-TV. In this era, ad and publicity agencies were often used by networks, program sponsors and studios to distribute publicity material. The Bureau, which was a division of ad agency Young & Rubicam, was widely used for this purpose by those in the industry., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/86/Gale_Gordon_Richard_Crenna_Our_Miss_Brooks_1955.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled) - ![Photo of Joan Blackman and Richard Crenna from the television program Slattery's People. (1965)](https://film.one/media/person/117674/gallery-3fc0c39cb8a8.jpg) Photo of Joan Blackman and Richard Crenna from the television program Slattery's People. (1965) — CBS Television, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Joan_Blackman_Richard_Crenna_Slatterys_People_1965.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled) - ![Photo of Kathleen Nolan and Richard Crenna as Kate and Luke McCoy from the television program The Real McCoys. (1960)](https://film.one/media/person/117674/gallery-32a4d602d3a1.jpg) Photo of Kathleen Nolan and Richard Crenna as Kate and Luke McCoy from the television program The Real McCoys. (1960) — ABC Television, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/Kathy_Nolan_Richard_Crenna_The_Real_McCoys_1960.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled) - ![Poster of American science-fiction film Marooned (1969).](https://film.one/media/person/117674/gallery-1e1bc205ace7.jpg) Poster of American science-fiction film Marooned (1969). — Unknown authorUnknown author, distributed by: Columbia Pictures, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2b/Marooned_1969_poster.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled) - ![Richard Crenna](https://film.one/media/person/117674/gallery-63930153e94e.jpg) Richard Crenna — Image via TMDB - ![Richard Crenna](https://film.one/media/person/117674/gallery-8c8257382f62.jpg) Richard Crenna — Image via TMDB - ![Richard Crenna](https://film.one/media/person/117674/gallery-98e1e431f5a0.jpg) Richard Crenna — John Mathew Smith & www.celebrity-photos.com from Laurel Maryland, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/10/Richard_Crenna_1998.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled) ## Awards ### Primetime Emmy Awards — 1 won - 1985: Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie (won), for *The Rape of Richard Beck* ### Other awards — 0 won, 1 nominated - Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actor - Razzie Award 1989: Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actor - Razzie Award (nominated), for *Rambo III* *From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.* --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/richard-crenna