Bruce Kessler, adventurer, racing driver and prolific television director, has died at the age of 88. The American, responsible for legendary fiction programs such as Baretta, The A-Team or MacGyver, died at his home in Marina del Rey, California; last Thursday as confirmed this Monday by several local media.
In addition to his best-known titles, Kessler is also responsible for other popular fiction programs such as CHiPs, The Greatest American Hero, McCormick, The Fall Guy or Renegade, among others. The last episode of his career aired in 1997.
A personal friend of greats like James Dean and Steve McQueen, Kessler earned the nickname “Little Lead Foot” for his love of automobile racing. He began driving his mother’s Jaguar XK120 in his youth, and was always passionate about four wheels.
What’s more, Kessler was supposed to travel with James Dean that fateful day in September 1955 in his silver Porsche to a race in Salinas, California. “Due to a last-minute change of plans, he arrived with another friend,” his brother, Stephen Kessler, wrote for The Santa Cruz Sentinel. The legendary actor died that same day.
His passion for cars made him go to the hospital several times, and although he did not meet a fatal fate as happened to James Dean; He did live his life. In 1958 he suffered a serious accident at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and, after two accidents, he decided to change his professional direction. Thus came his first works, such as the documentary The Sound of Speed ??(1962) or the films Angels From Hell (1968). or The Gay Deceivers (1969).
His love for cars transferred to boats and, perhaps because of this, the world of action fiction turned out to be a perfect fit. In 1965, she began her more than three-decade successful career in television. The Flying Nun, Adam-12, Marcus Welby, M.D., Get Christie Love!, Switch, Hardcastle, Riptide and The Commish, among others, are part of his extensive filmography.
Kessler says goodbye after suffering a brief illness, as confirmed by his brother to The Hollywood Reporter. He is survived by his wife, actress Joan Freeman, who shared the bill with Elvis Presley in Roustabout (1964).
