Rupert Crosse

For the British lawyer, see Rupert Cross.

Rupert Crosse
Crosse (center) with Bill Cosby and Beah Richards on The Bill Cosby Show, 1970
Born	(1927-11-29)November 29, 1927 New York City, New York, U.S.
Died	Nevis, West Indies
Cause of death	Lung cancer
Nationality	American
Ethnicity	African American
Alma mater	Bloomfield College
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1959–1972
Spouse(s)	Chris Calloway (m. 1970–73)
Children	1
Relatives	Cab Calloway (father-in-law)

Rupert Crosse (November 29, 1927 – March 5, 1973) was an American television and film actor. Crosse was the first African American to be nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for his role in the 1969 adaptation of William Faulkner's The Reivers.

Early life and career

Born in New York City, Crosse was raised by his grandparents in Nevis after the death of his father. He returned to the United States to serve in the Army for two years before entering Bloomfield College. Crosse later worked at Brooklyn College as a counselor. After studying acting under John Cassavetes, Crosse appeared in two of Cassavetes' films: Shadows (for which he won a Venice Film Festival Award) and Too Late Blues (1962).

A life member of The Actors Studio, Crosse made numerous guest appearances on television in the decade prior to landing the role of Ned McCaslin in the 1969 film The Reivers, directed by and starring fellow Studio members Mark Rydell and Steve McQueen, respectively. His last onscreen role was in the sitcom The Partners, alongside Don Adams. Shortly before his death, Crosse was cast as Mulhall in The Last Detail (1973), but backed out after being diagnosed with terminal cancer.

Personal life

In 1970, Crosse married singer Chris Calloway, daughter of Cab Calloway. They had one son, Rupert Osaze Dia Crosse, who was nine months old at the time of Crosse's death. Their son died in 2002 from a heart condition brought on by prior drug abuse. Calloway died of breast cancer in August 2008.

Death

On March 5, 1973, Crosse died of lung cancer in Nevis.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1959	Shadows	Rupert
1959	Johnny Staccato	Redtop	Episode: "Collector's Item"
1961	Rawhide	A Trooper	Episode: "Incident of the Buffalo Soldier"
1961	Have Gun – Will Travel	Aaron Jedediah Gibbs	Episode: "The Hanging of Aaron Gibbs"
1961	Too Late Blues	Baby Jackson
1962	The Dick Powell Show		Episode: "Borderline"
1963	Alfred Hitchcock Presents	Dr. Paul Mackey	Episode: "Diagnosis: Danger"
1963	Twilight of Honor	Jailer's assistant	Uncredited
1963	The Great Adventure	William Still	Episode: "Go Down, Moses"
1963–1964	Ben Casey	George	2 episodes
1964	Marnie	Office worker	Uncredited
1964–1966	The Man from U.N.C.L.E.	General Molte Nobuk Corporal Remy	2 episodes
1965	Ride in the Whirlwind	Indian Joe
1965	Wild Seed	Hobo	Alternative title: Fargo
1965	The Wackiest Ship in the Army		Episode: "The Lady and the Luluai"
1966	Dr. Kildare	George Parker	2 episodes
1966	That Girl	Police officer	Episode: "I'll Be Suing You"
1966	Daktari	Kukuia	Episode: "The Test"
1966	Run for Your Life	Hotel Clerk	Episode: "The Treasure Seekers"
1966	The Girl from U.N.C.L.E.	Tchelba	Episode: "The Jewels of Topango Affair"
1967	CBS Playhouse	Funeral director	Episode: "The Final War of Olly Winter"
1967	I Spy	Chester	Episode: "Cops and Robbers"
1967	Cowboy in Africa	Jama	Episode: "Incident at Derati Wells"
1967	Waterhole #3	Prince
1967	The Monkees	Thursday	Episode: "Monkees Marooned"
1968	Felony Squad	Ray Hawkins	2 episodes
1969	The Reivers	Ned McCaslin	Nominated: Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor
1970	Bonanza	Davis	Episode: "The Power of Life and Death"
1970	Storefront Lawyers	Johnson	Episode: "The Emancipation of Bessie Gray"
1970	The Bill Cosby Show	Felix E. LeBlanc	Episode: "The Lincoln Letter"
1970	Bracken's World	Freddy Webster, Sr.	Episode: "Will Freddy's Real Father Please Stand Up?"
1971	Confessions of a Top Crime Buster	Detective George Robinson	Television movie
1971–1972	The Partners	Detective George Robinson	20 episodes

External links

• Rupert Crosse at the Internet Movie Database