Benny E. Dobbins, aka Ben, Bernie, or Bennie Dobbins (November 16, 1932 – February 5, 1988)[1] was an American stuntman, actor, stunt coordinator, and second unit director.
Bennie Dobbins | |
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Born | Los Angeles County, California, US | November 16, 1932
Died | February 5, 1988 Vienna, Austria | (aged 55)
Years active | 1957–1988 |
As coordinator and director, Dobbins is known for films such as Planes, Trains and Automobiles, The Running Man, Extreme Prejudice, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Commando, and Weird Science.
As a stuntman and actor Dobbins was frequently omitted from the end credits. Even in his credited work, he is often given generic character names such as Cowboy #2 in Gunsmoke (S17E21 "Yankton") and 1st Bandit in The Six Million Dollar Man (S1E12 "The Coward").
Dobbins died in Austria after suffering a heart attack near the ski resort of Schladming during the filming of Red Heat starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. Dobbins was a co-director on the film, and was coordinating the stunts when he collapsed. He was airlifted from the film location by helicopter to a hospital where, later, a doctor pronounced him dead.[1]
Filmography
editA partial filmography follows.[2][3]
Second unit director/Stunts
editYear | Title | Stunts | Second unit director | Director |
---|---|---|---|---|
1971 | Dirty Harry | Yes | No | Don Siegel |
1973 | Magnum Force | Yes | No | Ted Post |
1974 | Blazing Saddles | Yes | No | Mel Brooks |
1980 | Used Cars | Yes | No | Robert Zemeckis |
1982 | 48 Hrs. | Yes | No | Walter Hill |
First Blood | Yes | No | Ted Kotcheff | |
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial | Yes | No | Steven Spielberg | |
1985 | Weird Science | Yes | Yes | John Hughes |
Commando | Yes | Yes | Mark L. Lester | |
1986 | Ferris Bueller's Day Off | Yes | Yes | John Hughes |
1987 | Extreme Prejudice | Yes | Yes | Walter Hill |
The Running Man | Yes | Yes | Paul Michael Glaser | |
Planes, Trains and Automobiles | Yes | Yes | John Hughes | |
1988 | Red Heat | Yes | Yes | Walter Hill |
Actor
edit- Gunsmoke (1972) as Cowboy #2 (S17E21 "Yankton")
- The Six Million Dollar Man (1974) as 1st Bandit (S1E12 "The Coward")
References
edit- ^ a b "Obituaries : Benny Dobbins; U.S. Action Film Director". Los Angeles Times. Feb 7, 1988. Retrieved Aug 11, 2022.
- ^ Turner Classic Movies: https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/51110|0/Bennie-Dobbins#overview
- ^ TV Guide: https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/bennie-dobbins/credits/3000551238/