Ricou Browning, who played the menacing Gill-Man in the iconic horror feature “Creature From the Black Lagoon,” has died at the age of 93 of natural causes at his home in Southwest Ranches, Florida.
Browning said he could routinely hold his breath for four minutes at a time and played the creature in the famed underwater swimming sequences in the 1954 3D classic which starred Julie Adams and Richard Carlson.
The film follows a scientific expedition to the Amazon that stumbles upon the creature, and the iconic design and scenes put Gill-Man in the Universal monster Hall of Fame alongside the likes of Frankenstein, Dracula, The Wolf Man and The Mummy. Browning also returned for the sequels in later years.
Browning also famously directed the harpoon-filled underwater fight scenes in the fourth James Bond film “Thunderball” in 1965 along with the same corresponding sequence in the unofficial remake “Never Say Never Again” in 1983.
Browning and his brother-in-law Jack Cowden wrote the story for what would become MGM’s “Flipper” in 1963. He also helmed many episodes of the subsequent TV series, was in charge of underwater operations on that show along with other series like “Sea Hunt” and “The Aquanauts”.
Among his other credits were serving as a stuntman on 1954’s “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea,” doubling for Jerry Lewis in “Don’t Give Up the Ship,” and serving as technical adviser on Mike Nichols’ “Day of the Dolphin”.
He also directed films like “Salty” and “Mr. No Legs,” episodes of the CBS series “Gentle Ben,” and the infamous Jaws-inspired “candy bar-in-the-pool” sequence in 1985 comedy classic “Caddyshack”.
Survivors include his four children, 10 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.
Source: THR
