Real Crime/Paranormal/Conspiracy Theories Book III

Life of Bob Crane Part I

Robert Edward Crane (July 13,1928 – June 29, 1978) was an American actor, drummer, radiopersonality, and disc jockey known for starring in the CBS situationcomedy Hogan's Heroes.

Crane was a drummer from age 11, and hebegan his career as a radio personality, first in New York City andthen in Connecticut. He then moved to Los Angeles where he hosted thenumber-one rated morning show. In the early 1960s, he moved intoacting, eventually landing the lead role of Colonel Robert Hogan inHogan's Heroes. The series aired from 1965 to 1971, and Cranereceived two Emmy Award nominations.

Crane's career declined after Hogan'sHeroes. He became frustrated with the few roles that he was beingoffered and began performing in dinner theater. In 1975, he returnedto television in the NBC series The Bob Crane Show, but the seriesreceived poor ratings and was canceled after 13 weeks. Afterward,Crane returned to performing in dinner theaters and also appeared inoccasional guest spots on television.

Crane was found bludgeoned to death inhis Scottsdale, Arizona, apartment while on tour in June 1978 for adinner theater production of Beginner's Luck. The murder remainsofficially unsolved. His previously uncontroversial public imagesuffered due to the suspicious nature of his death, and posthumousrevelations about his personal life.

Early life

Crane was born in Waterbury,Connecticut, the youngest of two sons of Alfred Thomas Crane and RoseMary Ksenich Crane - the original spelling of the family name wasCrean. He spent his childhood and teenaged years in Stamford. Cranebegan playing drums, and by junior high was organizing local drum andbugle parades with his neighborhood friends. He joined his highschool's orchestra and its marching and jazz bands. Crane alsoplayed for the Connecticut and Norwalk Symphony Orchestras as part oftheir youth orchestra program. He graduated from Stamford High Schoolin 1946. In 1948, he enlisted for two years in the Connecticut ArmyNational Guard, and was honorably discharged in 1950.

In 1949, Crane married his high-schoolsweetheart, Anne Terzian. They had three children – Robert David,Deborah Anne, and Karen Leslie.

Career

Early career

In 1950, Crane began his career inradio broadcasting at WLEA in Hornell, New York. He soon moved toConnecticut stations WBIS in Bristol, and then WICC in Bridgeport, a1,000-watt operation with a signal covering the northeastern portionof the New York metropolitan area. In 1956, Crane was hired by CBSRadio to host the morning show at its West Coast flagship KNX in LosAngeles, California, partly to re-energize that station's ratings andpartly to halt his erosion of suburban ratings at WCBS in New YorkCity. In California, Crane filled the broadcast with sly wit,drumming, and such guests as Marilyn Monroe, Frank Sinatra, and BobHope. His show quickly topped the morning ratings with adultlisteners in the Los Angeles area, and Crane became "king ofthe Los Angeles airwaves".

Crane's acting ambitions led toguest-hosting for Johnny Carson on the daytime game show Who Do YouTrust? and appearances on The Twilight Zone (uncredited), Channing,Alfred Hitchcock Presents, and General Electric Theater. After CarlReiner appeared on his radio show, Crane persuaded Reiner to book himfor a guest appearance on The Dick Van Dyke Show.