Bruce Kessler obit

Bruce Kessler, Prolific TV Director and Adventurer, Dies at 88

 

He was not on the list.

Bruce Kessler, a prolific TV director as well as a noted yacht designer, died April 4 in Marina Del Rey, Calif. after a brief illness. He was 88.

His brother Stephen confirmed his death.

Kessler started out racing cars at the age of 17 and at 21, he crashed at night during the 24 Hours of Le Mans, bailing out of the car before it burst into flames. He survived two more crashes before retiring from racing at 26 in 1962.

His first film, the Formula One short “The Sound of Speed,” represented the U.S. at the Cannes Film Festival. The technical expertise he brought to the film led to him being hired as technical advisor on racing and chase sequences for movies, and he served as second unit director for Howard Hawks on “Red Line 7000.”

With the help of Hawks as mentor, Kessler became a director for dozens of TV movies and series including “The Rockford Files,” “McCloud,” “Marcus Welby, MD,” “Mission: Impossible,” “The Knight Rider,” “The Fall Guy,” “CHiPs,” “Barnaby Jones,” “The Monkees,” “The A-Team” and “The Flying Nun.”

He later began designing boats, building a yacht, the Zopilote, built on the hull of a fishing trawler and created for marlin fishing. With his wife, actor Joan Freeman Kessler, he cruised and fished around North America. The couple circumnavigated the globe from 1990 to 1993, visiting 34 countries. The Zopilote’s innovative design proved influential and he became an authority on the subject. A model of the yacht is on display at the Del Ray Yacht Club in Marina Del Rey.

Born in Seattle, his family moved to Beverly Hills where he started his racing career among Hollywood celebrities such as James Dean and Steve McQueen.

He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Joan; brothers Rick and Stephen and many nieces and nephews and grandnieces and grandnephews.

 

Director

Lorenzo Lamas, Kathleen Kinmont, and Branscombe Richmond in Renegade (1992)

Renegade

5.9

TV Series

Director

1993–1997

5 episodes

 

Baywatch Nights (1995)

Baywatch Nights

3.8

TV Series

Director

1996

1 episode

 

Dick Van Dyke and Barry Van Dyke in Diagnosis Murder (1993)

Diagnosis Murder

6.8

TV Series

Director

1995

1 episode

 

Jack Scalia in Pointman (1995)

Pointman

7.2

TV Series

Director

1995

1 episode

 

Michael Chiklis in The Commish (1991)

The Commish

7.1

TV Series

Director

1994

5 episodes

 

Roma Downey, John Dye, and Della Reese in Touched by an Angel (1994)

Touched by an Angel

6.0

TV Series

Director

1994

1 episode

 

Don Michael Paul, Nestor Serrano, James Tolkan, and Billy Warlock in The Hat Squad (1992)

The Hat Squad

7.3

TV Series

Director

1992

1 episode

 

The 100 Lives of Black Jack Savage (1991)

The 100 Lives of Black Jack Savage

7.7

TV Series

Director

1991

 

Grand Slam (1990)

Grand Slam

8.1

TV Series

Director

1990

1 episode

 

The Young Riders (1989)

The Young Riders

7.7

TV Series

Director

1989

1 episode

 

Hardball (1989)

Hardball

7.1

TV Series

Director

1989–1990

 

Catherine Keener, Pat Morita, Kevin Conroy, Jack Wallace, and Richard Yniguez in Ohara (1987)

Ohara

6.9

TV Series

Director

1987

3 episodes

 

Dale Robertson and Ben Vereen in J.J. Starbuck (1987)

J.J. Starbuck

6.9

TV Series

Director

1987

1 episode

 

Richard Dean Anderson in MacGyver (1985)

MacGyver

7.6

TV Series

Director

1987

1 episode

 

Our House (1986)

Our House

7.1

TV Series

Director

1987

1 episode

 

Stacy Keach in The New Mike Hammer (1984)

The New Mike Hammer

6.8

TV Series

Director

1986

3 episodes

 

Ernie Hudson, Adam West, Randi Brooks, and Keenan Wynn in The Last Precinct (1986)

The Last Precinct

6.9

TV Series

Director

1986

1 episode

 

Riptide (1984)

Riptide

6.8

TV Series

Director

1984–1986

6 episodes

 

The Fall Guy (1981)

The Fall Guy

7.1

TV Series

Director

1983–1986

5 episodes

 

Brian Keith and Daniel Hugh Kelly in Hardcastle and McCormick (1983)

Hardcastle and McCormick

6.6

TV Series

Director

1983–1985

7 episodes

 

Fred Dryer and Stepfanie Kramer in Hunter (1984)

Hunter

6.9

TV Series

Director

1984–1985

3 episodes

 

Jon-Erik Hexum and Jennifer O'Neill in Cover Up (1984)

Cover Up

7.7

TV Series

Director

1984–1985

 

Mimi Rogers, Jim Varney, and Chad Everett in The Rousters (1983)

The Rousters

7.7

TV Series

Director

1984

1 episode

 

Lee Van Cleef, Shô Kosugi, and Timothy Van Patten in The Master (1984)

The Master

4.4

TV Series

Director

1984

1 episode

 

The Greatest American Hero (1981)

The Greatest American Hero

7.3

TV Series

Director

1981–1983

5 episodes

 

David Hasselhoff in Knight Rider (1982)

Knight Rider

6.9

TV Series

Director

1983

1 episode

 

T.J. Hooker (1982)

T.J. Hooker

6.1

TV Series

Director

1983

1 episode

 

George Peppard, Mr. T, Dirk Benedict, and Dwight Schultz in The A-Team (1983)

The A-Team

7.5

TV Series

Director

1983

2 episodes

 

Hart to Hart (1979)

Hart to Hart

6.7

TV Series

Director

1983

2 episodes

 

Noah Beery Jr., Karen Austin, Perry King, and Ray Vitte in The Quest (1982)

The Quest

7.5

TV Series

Director

1982

1 episode

 

Maud Adams, Dennis Franz, Craig T. Nelson, Daniel Hugh Kelly, and Richard Lawson in Chicago Story (1982)

Chicago Story

7.4

TV Series

Director

1982

1 episode

 

James Arness and Marshall Colt in McClain's Law (1981)

McClain's Law

7.5

TV Series

Director

1982

1 episode

 

Erik Estrada and Larry Wilcox in CHiPs (1977)

CHiPs

6.4

TV Series

Director

1979–1981

4 episodes

 

Border Pals

TV Movie

Director

1981

 

Claude Akins, Brian Kerwin, and Mills Watson in The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo (1979)

The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo

6.4

TV Series

Director

1981

1 episode

 

Sonny Shroyer and Samuel E. Wright in Enos (1980)

Enos

5.3

TV Series

Director

1981

1 episode

 

Hector Elizondo and Tom Mason in Freebie and the Bean (1980)

Freebie and the Bean

6.0

TV Series

Director

1980

1 episode

 

Greg Evigan in B.J. and the Bear (1978)

B.J. and the Bear

6.4

TV Series

Director

1980

2 episodes

 

Lorenzo Lamas, Marc McClure, Jimmy McNichol, and Michele Tobin in California Fever (1979)

California Fever

7.5

TV Mini Series

Director

1979

1 episode

 

Joanna Cassidy, Mark Harmon, and John Bennett Perry in 240-Robert (1979)

240-Robert

7.2

TV Series

Director

1979

1 episode

 

Buddy Ebsen in Barnaby Jones (1973)

Barnaby Jones

6.9

TV Series

Director

1978–1979

2 episodes

 

Deathmoon (1978)

Deathmoon

4.1

TV Movie

Director

1978

 

The Two-Five (1978)

The Two-Five

7.5

TV Movie

Director

1978

 

Cruise Into Terror (1978)

Cruise Into Terror

5.0

TV Movie

Director

1978

 

Murder in Peyton Place (1977)

Murder in Peyton Place

6.6

TV Movie

Director

1977

 

Dennis Weaver in McCloud (1970)

McCloud

6.9

TV Series

Director

1970–1977

7 episodes

 

Eddie Albert and Robert Wagner in Switch (1975)

Switch

7.1

TV Series

Director

1975–1977

4 episodes

 

Code R (1977)

Code R

7.1

TV Series

Director

1977

 

Robert Blake in Baretta (1975)

Baretta

6.7

TV Series

Director

1975–1977

3 episodes

 

Jack Klugman in Quincy M.E. (1976)

Quincy M.E.

7.3

TV Series

Director

1977

1 episode

 

Noah Beery Jr. and James Garner in The Rockford Files (1974)

The Rockford Files

8.2

TV Series

Director

1976

1 episode

 

Teresa Graves in Get Christie Love! (1974)

Get Christie Love!

6.4

TV Series

Director

1975

3 episodes

 

Kolchak: The Night Stalker (1974)

Kolchak: The Night Stalker

8.4

TV Series

Director

1975

1 episode

 

Raymond Burr and Barbara Sigel in Ironside (1967)

Ironside

6.9

TV Series

Director

1975

1 episode

 

Victor Buono in Assignment: Vienna (1972)

Assignment: Vienna

6.7

TV Series

Director

1972–1973

2 episodes

 

James Brolin, Robert Young, Barbara Sigel, and Elena Verdugo in Marcus Welby, M.D. (1969)

Marcus Welby, M.D.

7.0

TV Series

Director

1971–1972

3 episodes

 

Andrew Prine in Simon, King of the Witches (1971)

Simon, King of the Witches

5.8

Director

1971

 

Pete Duel and Ben Murphy in Alias Smith and Jones (1971)

Alias Smith and Jones

7.6

TV Series

Director

1971

1 episode

 

Kent McCord and Martin Milner in Adam-12 (1968)

Adam-12

7.7

TV Series

Director

1969–1970

3 episodes

 

Barbara Eden in I Dream of Jeannie (1965)

I Dream of Jeannie

7.4

TV Series

Director

1970

1 episode

 

It Takes a Thief (1968)

It Takes a Thief

7.5

TV Series

Director

1969

5 episodes

 

Lawrence P. Casey, Kevin Coughlin, and Jack Starrett in The Gay Deceivers (1969)

The Gay Deceivers

5.9

Director

1969

 

Barbara Bain, Martin Landau, Peter Graves, Peter Lupus, and Greg Morris in Mission: Impossible (1966)

Mission: Impossible

7.9

TV Series

Director

1969

1 episode

 

Killers Three (1968)

Killers Three

4.7

Director

1968

 

Angels from Hell (1968)

Angels from Hell

4.9

Director

1968

 

Sally Field in The Flying Nun (1967)

The Flying Nun

6.5

TV Series

Director

1968

1 episode

 

Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones, Michael Nesmith, Peter Tork, and The Monkees in The Monkees (1965)

The Monkees

7.5

TV Series

Director

1966–1967

4 episodes

 

The Sound of Speed (1962)

The Sound of Speed

Short

Director

1962

 

Second Unit or Assistant Director

Vacation Playhouse (1963)

Vacation Playhouse

7.5

TV Series

assistant director

1967

1 episode

 

Red Line 7000 (1965)

Red Line 7000

5.6

second unit director

1965

 

Producer

The Sound of Speed (1962)

The Sound of Speed

Short

producer

1962