Ben Chapman (actor)
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Benjamin F. Chapman Jr. (October 29, 1928 – February 21, 2008) was an American actor best known as playing the
Gill-man The Gill-man, commonly called The Creature from The Black Lagoon, or simply The Creature, is the movie monster of the 1954 black-and-white film ''Creature from the Black Lagoon'' and its two sequels '' Revenge of the Creature'' (1955) and '' Th ...
on land in the 1954 horror film ''
Creature from the Black Lagoon ''Creature from the Black Lagoon'' is a 1954 American black-and-white 3D monster horror film produced by William Alland and directed by Jack Arnold, from a screenplay by Harry Essex and Arthur Ross and a story by Maurice Zimm. It stars ...
''.


Early life

Born in
Oakland, California Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...
, he spent much of his childhood in
Tahiti Tahiti (; Tahitian language, Tahitian , ; ) is the largest island of the Windward Islands (Society Islands), Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France. It is located in the central part of t ...
and moved to San Francisco at age 12 or 13. A
Marine Corps Marines (or naval infantry) are military personnel generally trained to operate on both land and sea, with a particular focus on amphibious warfare. Historically, the main tasks undertaken by marines have included raiding ashore (often in supp ...
veteran of 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 ...
he served with the
1st Marine Division The 1st Marine Division (1st MARDIV) is a Marine (military), Marine Division (military), division of the United States Marine Corps headquartered at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. It is the ground combat element of the I Marine E ...
. He was believed to have earned 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 ...
, a
Bronze Star The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...
, and two
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, ...
s for battle injuries. However, after his death, the ''Marine Corps Times'' began an investigation of these claims based on the improbability of the claim of receiving Purple Hearts in the Chosin Reservoir campaign. Information from Marine Corps records, which were received a month after obituaries with the claims awards of valor and of serving at the Chosin Reservoir, reveal that Chapman did serve in Korea. The ''Marine Corps Times'' reports that, "according to Marine Corps officials and a copy of Chapman’s military Report of Separation," Chapman never received the Silver Star, Bronze Star or Purple Hearts. Before he played the Creature, he worked as a real estate executive.


Gill Man

Chapman was selected as the Gill Man due to his large size at 6'5". His famous suit was made out of a foam-rubber body suit and a large-lipped headpiece. He cited horror film predecessors Lon Chaney Sr. in ''
The Phantom of the Opera The Phantom of the Opera may refer to: Novel * The Phantom of the Opera (novel), ''The Phantom of the Opera'' (novel), 1910 novel by Gaston Leroux Characters * Erik (The Phantom of the Opera), Erik (''The Phantom of the Opera''), the title char ...
'' and '' The Hunchback of Notre Dame'' in the 1920s,
Bela Lugosi Blaskó Béla Ferenc Dezső (; October 20, 1882 – August 16, 1956), better known by the stage name Bela Lugosi ( ; ), was a Hungarian–American actor. He was best remembered for portraying Count Dracula in the horror film classic Dracula (19 ...
in ''
Dracula ''Dracula'' is an 1897 Gothic fiction, Gothic horror fiction, horror novel by Irish author Bram Stoker. The narrative is Epistolary novel, related through letters, diary entries, and newspaper articles. It has no single protagonist and opens ...
'' and
Boris Karloff William Henry Pratt (23 November 1887 – 2 February 1969), known professionally as Boris Karloff () and occasionally billed as Karloff the Uncanny, was a British actor. His portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in the horror film ''Frankenstei ...
in ''
Frankenstein ''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' is an 1818 Gothic novel written by English author Mary Shelley. ''Frankenstein'' tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a Sapience, sapient Frankenstein's monster, crea ...
'' and ''
The Mummy A mummy is an unusually well preserved corpse. Mummy or The Mummy may also refer to: Places * Mummy Range, a mountain range in the Rocky Mountains of northern Colorado in the United States * Mummy Cave, a rock shelter and archeological site in P ...
'' in the 1930s, and
Lon Chaney Jr. Creighton Tull Chaney (February10, 1906 – July12, 1973), known by his stage name Lon Chaney Jr., was an American actor known for playing Larry Talbot in the film '' The Wolf Man'' (1941) and its various crossovers, Count Alucard (Dracula ...
in '' The Wolf Man'' in the 1940s as inspirations to his character. In a 1993 interview, Chapman explained that there were really two actors who played the Gill Man. He was the creature on land;
Ricou Browning Ricou Ren Browning (February 16, 1930 – February 27, 2023) was an American stunt performer, filmmaker and actor. A skilled swimmer, he was known for his innovative underwater stunt work, notably in the 1954 film ''Creature from the Black Lagoo ...
was the actor in water sequences. However, Chapman was the one who participated in ''Creature'' related events. Chapman further relayed that the studio did not want the public to know that the Gill Man was a man in a suit The suit, made of latex rubber, made it impossible for Chapman to sit down so during breaks from filming he would rest in a studio back lot lake to keep from overheating.


Death

Ben Chapman died shortly after midnight on February 21, 2008, at the
Tripler Army Medical Center Tripler Army Medical Center (TAMC) is a major United States Department of Defense medical facility administered by the United States Army in the state of Hawaii. It is the tertiary care hospital in the Pacific Rim, serving local active and retire ...
in
Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...
. His son Ben Chapman III stated that he had "... heart problems ndbreathing problems." Other survivors include his wife of 25 years, self-proclaimed "Mrs Creature" Taylor Schlewitz; another son, Grant Chapman; stepdaughter Elyse Maree Raljevich; sister Moea (Harry) Baty; and "several" nieces and nephews. Chapman's ashes are to be scattered off Waikiki. Ilene Wong, co-producer along with Wayne Maeda of the Hawai'i All-Collectors Show which Chapman attended from 1999 to 2007, said that he was


See also


References


External links

* *
The Real Gillman
* ttps://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/01/movies/01chapman.html?ex=1362200400&en=58f13ebc1d077df1&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss New York Times: Ben Chapman, ‘Black Lagoon’ Creature, Dies at 79 {{DEFAULTSORT:Chapman, Ben 1928 births 2008 deaths 20th-century American male actors American male film actors Male actors from Oakland, California Military personnel from California United States Marine Corps personnel of the Korean War United States Marines