Posts from Peridot in thread „Hal Needham“

David Needham told me that Boone read that script and told Hal that it was a good one to showcase his acting and his stunts. Hal Needham had been attending Boone's acting classes and it was time for him to have a featured part. Boone was wise. Hal Needham did well as Buddy. Then again, Hal Needham did everything well. He was a helluva man, a helluva innovator and a really nice guy. We've lost a true Hollywood genius.

I was shocked to hear of the death of Hal Needham. Earlier that day I'd been watching him featured in an episode of Have Gun - Will Travel called Dream Girl. He was brilliant in the part, in the acting and the stunts.

Hal portrayed Buddy, a fellow who had fallen in love to with a girl named Ginny. Unbeknownst to him, she worked in a saloon. Buddy went off to earn a fortune as a prospector so he could return and marry Ginny. In five years he'd collected half a million dollar's worth of gold dust and returned to his girl, thinking that all that time she'd been waiting for him. Of course, Buddy was disillusioned at the end when he learned how Ginny earned her living and he destroyed the saloon in anger. I marveled at Hal Needham's grace and athleticism as he flew around the set, destroying chairs and the mirror. He cleared the bar in flying leaps like gravity had no hold on him. It was incredible how he moved. He never seemed to touch the floor. As I watched this as he lay dying.

Hal Needham was an incredible auteur. I'm proud that I got to know him a little. David Needham, his son, told me that he's glad he can pop in a DVD and see his dad anytime he wants. Surely that must be a comfort to his family. What I know from my own contact with Hal is that he was a gracious and a kind man and that he was incredibly generous to me. I shall miss him fiercely. The world has lost a true genius and an amazing innovator. We shall never see his like again.

RIP, Hal Needham. You earned it. You're doing stunts with the angels now and they're amazed how gravity truly has no hold on you at all. Fly free and fly high, there are no limits now.

I've taken the liberty of asking the son of famous stuntman Hal Needham, David Needham, to join us here. I thought he might enjoy our company.

Here's a direct quote from Hal Needham via his son, David, regarding the riding proficiency of Richard Boone:

Quote

As for Mr. Boone's horsemanship, Dad said after he came on board he worked with him to improve his posture on his horse. It wasn't that he insisted on 'old' horses, but you need to have a 'calm' horse that won't spook or move around when you come up to the camera. If you have a horse that's wild and moving all over the place, it would take all day just to get through a scene.

He said Boone was actually a pretty good horseman overall. He also said, as for the guy making these false statements about Boone and his horses: 'He's full of ----!'

There you have it from Hal Needham himself. RB hated horses but he could ride them.

Recently I've been in email contact with Hal Needham via his son, David. He's answered some of my Richard Boone questions as well as some stunt questions about HAVE GUN - WILL TRAVEL episodes. Hal Needham is one heck of a nice guy. When he doesn't remember the answer he says he doesn't know, but his memory's still good on most points. He's been very helpful. Some of the early stunts on HGWT went very wrong. He's shared with me which bones he broke on which stunt. It's amazing he survived being Richard Boone's stunt double!