Rupert Crosse was great in this.
I always wondered why I never saw him again. He was a great sidekick for McQueen. IMDB cleared up the mystery. He became sick and died only a few years after this film.
shareI always wondered why I never saw him again. He was a great sidekick for McQueen. IMDB cleared up the mystery. He became sick and died only a few years after this film.
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Yes, he was. He and McQueen played off each other superbly. I read in a McQueen bio that the director, Mark Rydell, found a problem in that Mcqueen was great in his first few takes, but got bored easily and lost effectiveness the more he had to re-do a scene, whereas Crosse was ineffective early, but 'warmed up' to give of his best once a few takes had been done.
So a lot of scenes were done with Rydell himself 'standing in' for McQueen until he felt Crosse was sufficiently warmed-up, and would then call McQueen in and shoot the scene for real!
A nice anecdote, I think.
Rest in peace, Mr. Crosse.
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