Ben Chapman: 1928-2008 (Creature from the Black Lagoon)

Although you probably wouldn’t recognise his face, but Ben Chapman was one of the enduring icons of cinema. He died this month at age 79 but we remember him here because when he was 25 he played The Gill Man, the strange amphibian protagonist of Creature from the Black Lagoon.

To be accurate, he was one of two actors who portrayed the creature: Ricou Browning was responsible for most of the underwater scenes but it is Chapman’s imposing 6’5” frame that fans remember as the misunderstood monster.

The Creature from the Black Lagoon spawned a couple of lesser sequels, but its impressive creature design ensured it a cultural longevity that outstripped most other sci-fi flicks of the era. It’s remembered even in serious scientific circles: When Jenny Clack of Cambridge university discovered a hitherto unseen fossil amphibian in 1998, she named it Eucritta melanolimnetes, Greek for “the creature from the black lagoon.”

Ben Chapman was a regular on the movie fan convention circuit, and though he had many other achievements to his name, including a distinguished Korean War record, he will always be remembered as the guy who was The Creature from the Black Lagoon.

Listen to Episode 17 -Rocket Science as we discuss the top 5 sea creatures in film including the legendary Creature from the Black Lagoon.

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