Richard Harrison, 1936 – 2026

American actor Richard Harrison, who found more success overseas, died on Sept. 18. He was 90. The handsome Harrison started out onstage, then was signed to Fox, and had small roles in such films as South Pacific, West Point, Jeanne Eagels, and Tall Story. Frustrated at his slow rise, he went overseas, where he found success in Italy, Egypt, China, and Turkey, starring in   sword & sandal, spaghetti western, sci-fi, and ninja movies. His (translated) titles from the 1960s-70s include Messalina vs. the Son of Hercules, Secret Agent Fireball, Pussycat Pussycat I Love You, Stagecoach of the Condemned, Dig Your Grave, Friend—Zapata’s Coming, The Invisible Gladiator, Three Ruthless Ones—you get the idea. He largely retired from acting and moved back to the US in the 1990s. Harrison had few illusions about his career, saying, “In my opinion, it is a death wish for an actor to be in too many B or should I say C movies. Maybe my greatest contribution to cinema was not doing Fistful of Dollars, and recommending Clint Eastwood for the part.”