Hal Needham
Highest Rated: 82% The War Wagon (1967)
Lowest Rated: 0% The Villain (1979)
Birthday: Mar 6, 1931
Birthplace: Memphis, Tennessee, USA
One of Hollywood's busiest and most accomplished stunt men for over two decades, Hal Needham broke into directing features via his friend, actor Burt Reynolds, who starred in several wildly popular if decidedly low-brow action-comedies for him, including "Smokey and the Bandit" (1977), "Hooper" (1978) and "The Cannonball Run" (1981). Critics despised Needham's cardboard scripts, which were largely constructed as filler between elaborate stunts and stale gags, but he deflected naysayers with good humor. Laughter seemed to be the key element of his work both on and offscreen, as evidenced by his penchant for running bloopers under the end credits of his films. Needham's career waned in the early 1980s, prompting a move to television, but his early movie efforts remained the epitome of crowd-pleasing, popcorn-driven entertainment for over three decades. He died in October 2013.
Photos
Hal Needham
Filmography
Movies
Credit | |||||
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No Score Yet |
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Hostage Hotel | Director | - | 1999 |
No Score Yet |
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Bandit: Bandit, Bandit | Director | - | 1994 |
No Score Yet |
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Bandit: Bandit Goes Country | Director | - | 1994 |
No Score Yet |
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Bandit: Beauty and the Bandit | Director | - | 1994 |
No Score Yet |
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Bandit: Bandit's Silver Angel | Director | - | 1994 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | B.L. Stryker: The King of Jazz | Director | - | 1989 |
No Score Yet |
|
Body Slam | Director | $8.5K | 1987 |
42% |
|
Rad | Director | $2.0M | 1986 |
12% |
|
Cannonball Run II |
Director, Screenwriter |
- | 1984 |
19% |
|
Stroker Ace |
Director, Screenwriter |
- | 1983 |
6% |
|
Megaforce |
Director, Screenwriter |
- | 1981 |
29% |
|
The Cannonball Run | Director | - | 1981 |
25% |
|
Smokey and the Bandit II | Director | - | 1980 |
0% |
|
The Villain | Director | - | 1979 |
No Score Yet |
|
Death Car on the Freeway | Director | - | 1979 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Stunts Unlimited | Director | - | 1979 |
57% |
|
Hooper | Director | - | 1978 |
72% |
|
Smokey and the Bandit |
Director, Writer |
- | 1977 |
No Score Yet |
|
W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings | Trooper Carson (Character) | - | 1975 |
No Score Yet |
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The Culpepper Cattle Company | Burgess (Character) | - | 1972 |
82% |
|
The War Wagon | Hite (Character) | - | 1967 |
57% |
|
McLintock! | Carter (uncredited) (Character) | - | 1963 |
No Score Yet |
|
Guns of the Timberland | Townsman (Character) | - | 1960 |
TV
Credit | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Cybill | Unknown (Guest Star) | 1995 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Fantasy Island | Unknown (Guest Star) | 1979 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Charlie's Angels | Unknown (Guest Star) | 1976-1977 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Mannix | Arnie (Guest Star) | 1971 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Gunsmoke | Cowboy (Guest Star) | 1963 1969 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Cimarron Strip | Unknown (Guest Star) | 1967 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Wagon Train | Unknown (Guest Star) | 1961 1963-1964 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Have Gun -- Will Travel | Unknown (Guest Star) | 1959-1963 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Laramie | Collins (Guest Star) | 1963 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Tales of Wells Fargo | Outlaw (Guest Star) | 1961 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Rebel | Unknown (Guest Star) | 1960 |