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    Bob Yerkes, Bruised but Durable Hollywood Stuntman, Dies at 92

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    A body double to the stars, he performed sometimes bone-breaking feats in movies like “Return of the Jedi” and “Back to the Future.” And he was still at it in his 80s.Bob Yerkes, who was set on fire, thrown down stairs and hurled from skyscrapers, bridges and trains during a nearly 70-year career in Hollywood as a stunt double for Arnold Schwarzenegger, Charles Bronson and other big-screen stars, died on Oct. 1 in Northridge, Calif. He was 92.His death, in a hospital, was confirmed by Tree O’Toole, a stuntwoman who had been his caretaker. He had recently been ill with pneumonia.Though he was virtually unknown to audiences, Mr. Yerkes was a Tinseltown legend.In the 1980s alone, he flew through the air as Boba Fett in “Return of the Jedi,” hung from a clock tower as Christopher Lloyd’s character in “Back to the Future” and clung to scaffolding atop the Statue of Liberty in “Remo Williams.”“He is one of the few stuntmen I would say have celebrity status in the stunt business,” Jeff Wolfe, the president of the Stuntmen’s Association of Motion Pictures, said in an interview. “His lack of fear was kind of renowned.”Mr. Yerkes (rhymes with “circus”) performed stunts in the films “The Towering Inferno” (1974), “Poltergeist” (1982), “Ghostbusters” (1984) and “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” (1988), as well as on television in “Gilligan’s Island,” “Wonder Woman,” “Starsky and Hutch” and “Dukes of Hazzard.”He was concussed more times than he could remember.“I’m better now, though,” he said in a 2016 video produced by My Gathering Place International, a religious organization. “It used to be that when I’d talk, I wouldn’t finish a sentence.”We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Mark Dodson, Voice of ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Gremlins’ Characters, Dies at 64

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      He voiced Salacious B. Crumb, the monkey-lizard pet of Jabba the Hutt in “Return of the Jedi,” as well as Mogwai in both “Gremlins” films.Mark Dodson, who voiced strange puppet creatures in “Star Wars,” including Salacious B. Crumb, the cackling monkey-lizard pet of Jabba the Hutt, and “Gremlins” films, died on Saturday. He was 64.His death was confirmed in statements on social media by his agent, Peter DeLorme, and the Evansville Horror Con, the Indiana fan convention where he had been scheduled to appear over the weekend. No cause of death was given.Mr. Dodson’s voice acting career began in 1983 on “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi,” when he voiced Salacious B. Crumb, the court jester of Jabba the Hutt that was known for its maniacal laugh, as well as some of the furry forest creatures known as Ewoks.In a 2020 interview with “Screaming Soup!,” Mr. Dodson explained how he had gotten the Crumb role by accident.He was auditioning for Adm. Ackbar, a leader during the Clone Wars, but was so nervous that he asked for a break to compose himself, he said. He was then overheard using a deranged voice that the casting director thought was perfect for Crumb.That led Mr. Dodson to voice several of the Mogwai in “Gremlins,” the 1984 comedy-horror film about a young man who accidentally unleashes a horde of malevolently mischievous monsters on a small town on Christmas Eve.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Jeremy Bulloch, Who Played Boba Fett in ‘Star Wars’ Movies, Dies at 75

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      #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }The Best of 2020Best ComedyBest TV ShowsBest BooksBest MoviesBest AlbumsAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyJeremy Bulloch, Who Played Boba Fett in ‘Star Wars’ Movies, Dies at 75Mr. Bulloch said he based his performance as the menacing bounty hunter in part on a Clint Eastwood role as a laconic gunslinger.Jeremy Bulloch in 2017 with the Boba Fett suit he wore in “The Empire Strikes Back” and “Return of the Jedi.”Credit…Associated PressDec. 17, 2020Jeremy Bulloch, the British actor who helped to make Boba Fett, the menacing bounty hunter with the dented helmet and T-shaped visor, one of the most popular characters in the “Star Wars” firmament, died on Thursday. He was 75.Mr. Bulloch’s death was confirmed by a statement on his website, which said he had spent his final weeks at St George’s Hospital in Tooting, London. Mr. Bulloch had health complications, including Parkinson’s disease, the statement said.Mr. Bulloch became an actor at an early age, starring in commercials before expanding into television, stage, and film.Among his credits were numerous TV shows from the 1970s and ’80s, including “Doctor Who” and “Robin of Sherwood.” He also played supporting roles in three James Bond features — “Octopussy,” “The Spy Who Loved Me” and “For Your Eyes Only.”But he was best known for playing Boba Fett in “The Empire Strikes Back” and “Return of the Jedi.”Mr. Bulloch landed the role thanks to his half brother, Robert Watts, who was an associate producer of “The Empire Strikes Back,” according to StarWars.com. “‘If the suit fits, the part’s yours,’” Mr. Watts once recalled telling Mr. Bulloch. “He came in and it fit.”Mr. Bulloch said that donning Boba Fett’s battered armor, jetpack and helmet was a pleasure and a life-changing experience, although the costume itself could be quite uncomfortable.He said he had modeled the mysterious mercenary’s slow, deliberate head nod and cold, imposing physicality on Clint Eastwood’s turn as the laconic gunslinging antihero in the classic Spaghetti western “A Fistful of Dollars.”“I thought of Boba Fett as Clint Eastwood in a suit of armor,” Mr. Bulloch once said, according to StarWars.com. Ben Burtt, the sound designer on “The Empire Strikes Back,” even added the sound of jangling spurs when Fett walked, the website said.Jason Wingreen, a character actor best known for playing the genial bartender Harry on the hit sitcom “All in the Family,” voiced Boba Fett in “The Empire Strikes Back.” Mr. Wingreen died in 2016. He was 95.Mr. Bulloch said that he had terrific memories of portraying the character.“When I walked on to the set for the very first time in the costume, George Lucas looked at the costume and sort of looked out and said: ‘Mm-hmm. Yup. OK. Well, welcome aboard. It’s not a big role, but I’m sure you’ll have fun,’” he recalled in a 2015 interview with the Boba Fett Fan Club, one of many encounters he had with fans of the character and the series.Mr. Bulloch said he remembered going home after that first day and exulting to his sons: “Yes! I’m doing this.” Their response: “Dad, we’ve got homework to do. We’ll talk later.”Mr. Lucas said in a statement on StarWars.com that “Jeremy brought the perfect combination of mystery and menace to his performance of Boba Fett, which is just what I wanted the character to convey.”Born on Feb. 16, 1945, in Market Harborough, Leicestershire, England, Mr. Bulloch also appeared in “The Empire Strikes Back” without Fett’s helmet as an Imperial officer escorting a captive Princess Leia. He had a small role in “Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith,” as the captain of the Tantive III, Captain Colton.Mr. Bulloch is survived by his wife, Maureen, three sons and 10 grandchildren.Mark Hamill, who played Luke Skywalker, said Mr. Bulloch “was the quintessential English gentleman.”“A fine actor, delightful company & so kind to everyone lucky enough to meet or work with him,” Mr. Hamill wrote on Twitter.Billy Dee Williams, who played Lando Calrissian, said, “Today we lost the best bounty hunter in the galaxy.”AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More

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      Dave Prowse, Man Behind Darth Vader’s Mask, Is Dead at 85

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      #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }What to WatchBest Movies on NetflixBest of Disney PlusClassic Holiday MoviesHoliday TVBest Netflix DocumentariesAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyDave Prowse, Man Behind Darth Vader’s Mask, Is Dead at 85Mr. Prowse went from being a weight lifting champion in Britain to helping portray one of the most memorable villains in movie history. But his voice did not make the edit.Dave Prowse, left, alongside probably his most famous character, Darth Vader, at a fan convention in Cusset, France, in 2013.Credit…Thierry Zoccolan/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesBy More