Richard Brooker
| Richard Brooker | |
|---|---|
.JPG) | |
| Born |
20 November 1954 Münster, West Germany |
| Died |
8 April 2013 (aged 58) United Kingdom |
| Cause of death | Heart attack |
| Occupation | Stuntman, trapeeze artist, actor, director, producer, businessman. |
Richard Brooker (20 November 1954 – 8 April 2013) was an English actor and stuntman, perhaps best known for his role in Friday the 13th Part III as Jason Voorhees.
Career
Brooker, a former trapeze artist, started his career in acting in a casting magazine, "Dramalogue". He began his career in the third Friday the 13th film, and later appeared in small film roles in Deathstalker, Deep Sea Conspiracy, and the television series Trapper John, M.D.. Brooker later became a director, for such notable series such as Bill Nye the Science Guy, and worked as producer on several sports channels and programmes, such as Fox Sports, polo and horse shows. He later shifted from filmmaking and acting to business, creating his own website design company, Production Access Network.
Personal life
He was in a relationship with Shannon McMurray from 1995 to 2000, with whom he had two daughters, Madison and Cameron.
Acting career
From "Dramalogue", he was selected to be the third machete-wielding serial killer Jason Voorhees in Friday the 13th Part III as director Steve Miner wanted a bigger man for the role (standing at 6' 3"). Notably, he is the first actor to don the now iconic hockey mask as Jason, which would later become the series trademark. He did all his own stunts and wore blue jeans and a sweatshirt for the duration of filming. Brooker also wore white foam padding under his sweatshirt throughout filming to give him a more stocky appearance, since Brooker was slim and toned in real life due to his former career as a trapeze performer.
Brooker died of a heart attack on 8 April 2013 at his home in London, England at age 58 less than one month after his final convention appearance which was the Full Moon Tattoo & Horror Festival in Nashville, Tennessee.[1] He appeared in episode 7 of Hell's Kitchen's 11th season, which paid tribute to him at the end of its 18 April 2013 broadcast.
References
- ↑ "RIP Richard Brooker". DreadCentral.