The Late Great Ricou Browning

Ricou Browning, best known for playing the Creature in the underwater scenes of Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954) and its two sequels, died yesterday, February 27 2023 at the age of 93. He also co-created the TV series Flipper and directed episodes of the show.

Ricou Browning was born on February 16 1930 in For Pierce, Florida. He attended Florida State University. He went to work for well known swimmer and promoter Newt Perry in water shows at Weeki Wachee Springs in Florida. It was in 1953 that he was asked to show Wakulla Springs, Florida to location scouts from Universal looking for locations to film the upcoming movie Creature from the Black Lagoon. They ultimately cast Ricou Browning to play the Creature when he was underwater (Ben Chapman played the Creature on land). It was the same year that he served as a stunt diver on 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954).

Ricou Browning played the Creature in two sequels, Revenge of the Creature (1955) and The Creature Walks Among Us (1956). He also guest starred on episodes of the TV shows Sea Hunt and Flipper, and played Dr. Buron in the movie Flipper's New Adventure (1964). He served as an underwater swimming double for Jerry Lewis on Don't Give Up the Ship (1959). He was a stunt coordinator on  The Heavenly Kid (1985), and Opposing Force (1986).

Ricou Browning also served as a director of underwater sequences on the movies Thunderball (1965), Daring Game (1968), Lady in Cement (1968), and The Aquarians (1970). He served as a second unit director on the movies Thunderball (1965), Around the World Under the Sea (1966), Island of the Lost (1967), Hello Down There (1969), Joe Panther (1976), Hot Stuff (1979), Caddyshack (1980), Nobody's Perfekt (1981), and Police Academy 5: Assignment: Miami Beach (1988).  He also served as a second unit director on the TV show The Aquanauts.

Ricou Browning wrote the story for the movie Flipper (1963) and as a result is considered a co-creator of the television show of the same name. On the show he served as an associate producer and directed several episodes. He also directed episodes of Gentle Ben, Primus, and Salty as well as the movies Salty (1973) and Mr. No Legs (1978). He was underwater photography supervisor on the TV show Sea Hunt and underwater photographer on the movie Island of the Lost (1967).

Ricou Browning will always be remembered as the Creature from the Black Lagoon. His remarkable ability to swim made him, not to mention his ability to hold his breath, made him very convincing in the role. Of course, he did much more than play the Creature from the Black Lagoon. He was responsible for the story for the film Flipper, which led to the popular TV series of the same name. And he served as a director of underwater scenes on various movies and TV shows, and a supervisor on yet others. His expertise when it came to filming underwater would prove invaluable on many productions. From Creature from the Black Lagoon to his other projects, Ricou Browning made important contributions to film and television history.