Robert W. Tessier (June 2, 1934 – October 11, 1990) was an American actor and

stuntman A stunt performer, often called a stuntman or stuntwoman and occasionally stuntperson or stunt-person, is a trained professional who performs daring acts, often as a career. Stunt performers usually appear in films or on television, as opposed ...

who was best known for playing heavy, menacing characters in films and on television.

Early life

Born in

Lowell, Massachusetts Lowell () is a city in Massachusetts, United States. Alongside Cambridge, Massachusetts, Cambridge, it is one of two traditional county seat, seats of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Middlesex County. With an estimated population of 115,554 in ...

, of

Abenaki The Abenaki ( Abenaki: ''Wαpánahki'') are Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands of Canada and the United States. They are an Algonquian-speaking people and part of the Wabanaki Confederacy. The Eastern Abenaki language was pred ...

and French descent, Tessier served as a

paratrooper A paratrooper or military parachutist is a soldier trained to conduct military operations by parachuting directly into an area of operations, usually as part of a large airborne forces unit. Traditionally paratroopers fight only as light infa ...

in the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

earning both a

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

and

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the president to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

Performing career

Tessier was an accomplished

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike; uni (if one-wheeled); trike (if three-wheeled); quad (if four-wheeled)) is a lightweight private 1-to-2 passenger personal motor vehicle Steering, steered by a Motorcycle handlebar, handlebar from a saddle-style ...

rider doing stunts in the circus. These skills helped him secure his first film role in '' The Born Losers'' directed by Tom Laughlin. With his shaven head, size and threatening appearance, Tessier went on to play a series of villainous roles on both TV and in film. Tessier starred as the menacing convict "Connie Shokner" in the 1974 comedy-drama '' The Longest Yard'' with

Burt Reynolds Burton Leon Reynolds Jr. (February 11, 1936 – September 6, 2018) was an American actor most famous during the 1970s and 1980s. He became well known in television series such as ''Gunsmoke'' (1962–1965), '' Hawk'' (1966) and '' Dan Augus ...

(whom he counted as one of his friends) and as Kevin in '' The Deep''. He also played alongside

Charles Bronson Charles Bronson (born Charles Dennis Buchinsky; November 3, 1921 – August 30, 2003) was an American actor. He was known for his roles in action films and his "granite features and brawny physique". Bronson was born into extreme poverty in ...

, as a bare knuckle fighter in the film '' Hard Times'' and as a main villain in '' Breakheart Pass''. In his spare time, Tessier was an accomplished

cabinet maker A cabinet is a case or cupboard with shelves or drawers for storing or displaying items. Some cabinets are stand alone while others are built in to a wall or are attached to it like a medicine cabinet. Cabinets are typically made of wood (solid ...

often making pieces for his co-stars.

Death

Tessier died of

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

October 11, 1990, aged 56. He was survived by his six children, mother and two sisters.

Filmography

* '' The Born Losers'' (1967) – Cueball (as Robert W. Tessier) * '' The Glory Stompers'' (1967) – Magoo * '' The Sidehackers'' (1968) – Jake (as Bob Tessier) * '' Run, Angel, Run!'' (1969) – Gang Leader (uncredited) * '' Five the Hard Way'' (1969) – Jake (as Bob Tessier) * ''The Babysitter'' (1969) – Laurence Mackey * '' Cry Blood, Apache'' (1970) – Two Card Charlie * '' The Hard Ride'' (1971) * ''The Jesus Trip'' (1971) – Duncan * '' Private Duty Nurses'' (1971) – Super bouncer * ''Outlaw Riders'' (1971) – Beans (as Bob Tessier) * ''

The Velvet Vampire ''The Velvet Vampire'', also known as ''Cemetery Girls'', is a 1971 American vampire film directed by Stephanie Rothman. It stars Celeste Yarnall, Michael Blodgett, Sherry Miles, Gene Shane, Jerry Daniels, Sandy Ward, and Paul Prokop. It has b ...

'' (1971) – Biker (as Bob Tessier) * ''Gentle Savage'' (1973) – Greywolf * '' The Longest Yard'' (1974) – Connie Shokner * '' Little House on the Prairie (Survival)'' (1975) - Chief Jack Lame Horse * ''How Come Nobody's on Our Side?'' (1975) – Bike Rider (as Bob Tessier) * '' Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze'' (1975) – Dutchman * '' Hard Times'' (1975) – Jim Henry * '' Breakheart Pass'' (1975) – Levi Calhoun * '' The Deep'' (1977) – Kevin * '' Another Man, Another Chance'' (1977) – Blacksmith * ''

Hooper ''Hooper'' may refer to: Place names in the United States: * Hooper, Colorado, town in Alamosa County, Colorado * Hooper, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Hooper, Nebraska, town in Dodge County, Nebraska * Hooper, Utah, place in Weber Cou ...

'' (1978) – Amtrac * '' Starcrash'' (1979) – Chief Thor * '' The Villain'' (1979) – Mashing Finger * ''

Steel Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon that demonstrates improved mechanical properties compared to the pure form of iron. Due to steel's high Young's modulus, elastic modulus, Yield (engineering), yield strength, Fracture, fracture strength a ...

'' (1979) – Cherokee * ''

The Cannonball Run ''The Cannonball Run'' is a 1981 action-comedy film directed by Hal Needham, produced by Hong Kong firm Golden Harvest, and distributed by 20th Century-Fox. Filmed in Panavision, it features an all-star ensemble cast, including Burt Reynolds ...

'' (1981) – Biker (as Bob Tessier) * '' The Sword and the Sorcerer'' (1982) – Verdugo * ''

Double Exposure In photography and cinematography, a multiple exposure is the superimposition of two or more exposures to create a single image, and double exposure has a corresponding meaning in respect of two images. The exposure values may or may not be id ...

'' (1982) – Bartender * '' The Lost Empire'' (1985) – Koro * '' Avenging Angel'' (1985) – Tattoo Artist * ''The Fix'' (1985) – Spook * ''No Safe Haven'' (1987) – Randy * ''One Man Force'' (1989) – Wilson * '' Beverly Hills Brats'' (1989) – Slick * '' Future Force'' (1989) – Becker * ''Nightwish'' (1989) – Stanley * ''Fertilize the Blaspheming Bombshell'' (1990) – Devil-master * '' Fists of Steel'' (1991) – Saylor (final film role)

Television

* ''

Kung Fu Chinese martial arts, commonly referred to with umbrella terms Kung fu (term), kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (sport), wushu (), are Styles of Chinese martial arts, multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater Ch ...

'' (1974) – Aztec Warrior * ''

Little House on the Prairie The ''Little House on the Prairie'' books comprise a series of American children's novels written by Laura Ingalls Wilder (b. Laura Elizabeth Ingalls). The stories are based on her childhood and adulthood in the Midwestern United States, Americ ...

'' (Survival, 1975) – Chief Jack Lame Horse (as Jack Lame Horse) * ''

The Last of the Mohicans ''The Last of the Mohicans: A Narrative of 1757'' is an 1826 historical romance novel by James Fenimore Cooper. It is the second book of the '' Leatherstocking Tales'' pentalogy and the best known to contemporary audiences. '' The Pathfinder'', ...

'' (1977) – Magua * ''

Centennial A centennial, or centenary in British English, is a 100th anniversary or otherwise relates to a century. Notable events Notable centennial events at a national or world-level include: * Centennial Exhibition, 1876, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. ...

'' (1978–1979) – Rude Water * ''Desperate Women'' (1978) – Outlaw (uncredited) * ''

Hart to Hart ''Hart to Hart'' is an American mystery television series that premiered on August 25, 1979, on ABC. The show stars Robert Wagner and Stefanie Powers as Jonathan and Jennifer Hart, respectively, a wealthy couple who lead a glamorous jetset ...

'' (1979) "Max in love" episode – Mover #1 * ''

Starsky & Hutch ''Starsky & Hutch'' is an American action television series, which consisted of a 72-minute pilot movie (originally aired as a '' Movie of the Week'' entry) and 92 episodes of 50 minutes each. The show was created by William Blinn (inspired ...

'' (2-part episode in 1979) – Soldier * ''The Billion Dollar Threat'' (1979) – Benjamin * '' Buck Rogers in the 25th Century'' (2 episodes both in 1979) – Marcos Marcilka * ''

The Dukes of Hazzard ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' is an American action comedy television series created by Gy Waldron that aired on CBS from January 26, 1979, to February 8, 1985, with a total of seven seasons consisting of List of The Dukes of Hazzard episodes, 147 ...

'' (1980) – Mitch Henderson * '' The Incredible Hulk'' (1980) – Johnny * ''

Vega$ ''Vegas'' (stylized as ''Vega$'') is an American crime drama television series starring Robert Urich that aired on ABC from September 20, 1978, to June 3, 1981, with the pilot episode airing April 25, 1978. ''Vegas'' was produced by Aaron Spel ...

'' (1980) – Sawyer * '' Fantasy Island'' (1981) – Flynt * '' The Fall Guy'' (1981–1986) – Thug / Harvey / Garvey / Prisoner * ''

CHiPs ''CHiPs'' is an American crime drama television series created by Rick Rosner and originally aired on NBC from September 15, 1977, to May 1, 1983. After the final first-run telecast on NBC in May 1983, the series went into reruns on Sundays fr ...

'' (1982) – Zorn * ''

The A-Team ''The A-Team'' is an American Action television, action television series that ran on NBC from January 23, 1983, to March 8, 1987, about a fictional team of former United States Army Special Forces who work as mercenaries while on the run from ...

'' (1983–1985) – Mute / Scully * '' Manimal'' (1983) – Sailor Poker Player (as Robert W. Tessier) * '' The Rousters'' (1983) – Bender * '' Magnum, P.I.'' (1984) – Murderer * '' Spenser: For Hire'' (1985) – Conan * ''

Amazing Stories ''Amazing Stories'' is an American science fiction magazine launched in April 1926 by Hugo Gernsback's Experimenter Publishing. It was the first magazine devoted solely to science fiction. Science fiction stories had made regular appearance ...

'' (1986) – Woodsman * '' Sledge Hammer!'' (1987) – Stoolie * '' B.L. Stryker'' (1989)

References

External links

* * *
First of a series of commercials Tessier did for Midas Muffler in the 1980s
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tessier, Robert 1934 births 1990 deaths 20th-century American male actors Male actors from Lowell, Massachusetts American male film actors American stunt performers Deaths from cancer in Massachusetts Military personnel from Massachusetts Recipients of the Silver Star United States Army personnel of the Korean War United States Army soldiers