Kelly, Craig


Less-known performers of the European Cult Movies
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Johan Melle
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Kelly, Craig

Post by Johan Melle » 19/04/2021, 0:49

Spazi Stellari - Craig Kelly.jpg
Craig Kelly in Battaglie negli spazi stellari (1978)
Craig Kelly was an American actor whose career is a little bit of a mystery. From the late 1940s, he was active in the US, appearing in some low-budget films, serials shown in theaters, and some television productions, but all trace of him stops around the mid 1950s.

He then re-appeared around two decades later in various Italian films made during the late 1970s and early-to-mid 1980s. His largest during this period were in two cheap science fiction films directed by Alfonso Brescia: Anno zero - guerra nello spazio (1977) and Battaglie negli spazi stellari (1978), in both of which he plays substantial supporting parts, though without being credited. He also plays notable but uncredited bit parts in several other productions around the same time.

At present, it is not known what he was up to from the latter half of the 1950s and until the late 1970s, or at which point he arrived in Italy, but there are presumably some more roles to be discovered from this period. Another possibility is that he came to Italy looking for acting roles in the late 1950s and then - like a lot of other Americans and Brits - ended up working mainly with English dubbing instead.

Unfortunately, his rather common name makes it difficult to find any info, and there are apparently quite a few actors named Craig Kelly out there. On IMDb, for example, Craig's credits have been lumped together with another Craig Kelly who was active in a couple of Dirty Harry movies and American TV series in the 1970s.

Filmography

1950
  1. The Furies .... Anaheim's son (credited)

    1952
  2. Zombies of the Stratosphere (12-part serial) .... Mr. Steele (credited)

    1953
  3. Commando Cody - Sky Marshal of the Universe (12-part serial) .... Mr. Henderson (credited)

    1954
  4. Kraft Television Theatre (TV series) - season 8, episode 12: "Account Rendered" .... Charles (credited?)

    1958
  5. Edge of Fury .... Chub (credited)

    1977
  6. Anno zero - guerra nello spazio .... Commander Armstrong (uncredited)
  7. Emanuelle - Perchè violenza alle donne .... Hotel receptionist (uncredited)
  8. Kleinhoff Hotel .... Hotel guest (uncredited)

    1978
  9. Battaglie negli spazi stellari .... The Commander (uncredited)
  10. Quel maledetto treno blindato .... Colonel Brenner (uncredited)

    1979
  11. Caro papà .... Man at airport (uncredited)
  12. Dottor Jekyll e gentile signora .... P.A.N.T.A.C. board member (uncredited)
  13. Return of the Saint (TV series) - episode 19: "The Murder Cartel" .... Party guest (uncredited)

    1980
  14. Siamo fatti così: aiuto! .... Professor (uncredited)
  15. Storie di ordinaria follia .... Office worker who grows vines (uncredited)

    1981
  16. La nouvelle malle des indes (TV mini-series) - episode 1 .... East India Company director (credited as Kelly Creia)

    1983
  17. I nuovi barbari .... Amos (uncredited)
  18. The Lonely Lady .... Spectator in the crowd (credited)
Other credit

1980
  1. La bestia nello spazio .... Officer on TV screens (uncredited)

Filmography to check
Some additional titles in which Craig is listed by online sources that I have been unable to find copies of.
  • Kraft Television Theatre (TV Series) - season 1, episode 64: "Green Cars Go East" (1948)
  • Project X (1949) .... Martin
  • Racket Squad (TV Series) - season 2, episode 31: "The Case of the Cold Neck" (1952)
  • The Unexpected (TV series) - season 1, episode 8: "Mardi Gras" (1952) .... Bill Larsen
  • Playwrights '56 (TV series) - episode 1: "The Answer" (1955)
Last edited by FatmanDan on 05/01/2023, 19:13, edited 12 times in total.

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Re: Kelly, Craig

Post by Johan Melle » 19/04/2021, 0:50

The Furies (1950), credited, as Anaheim's son

Craig has only a short bit part here, speaking a few lines with Barbars Stanwyck.
Furies - Craig Kelly.jpg
Screenshot (1345)-min.png
Identification by FatmanDan
Last edited by FatmanDan on 02/03/2022, 22:08, edited 2 times in total.

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Re: Kelly, Craig

Post by Johan Melle » 19/04/2021, 1:02

Zombies of the Stratosphere (1952) (12-part serial shown in theatres). Craig is credited in all 12 episodes, but only appears in episodes 1, 2, 4, 7, 8, 10 and 12, as Mr. Steele, the government official who gives the protagonists their orders.

Chapter 1: "The Zombie Vanguard"
Stratosphere 1 - Craig Kelly1.jpg

Chapter 2: "Battle of the Rockets"
Stratosphere 2 - Craig Kelly.jpg

Chapter 4: "Contraband Cargo"
Stratosphere 4 - Craig Kelly.jpg

Chapter 7: "Death on the Waterfront"
Stratosphere 7 - Craig Kelly.jpg

Chapter 8: "Hostage for Murder"
Stratosphere 8 - Craig Kelly.jpg

Chapter 10: "Flying Gas Chamber"
Stratosphere 10 - Craig Kelly.jpg

Chapter 12: "Tomb of the Traitors"
Stratosphere 12 - Craig Kelly.jpg

Credit
Stratosphere 1 - Craig Kelly2.jpg

This serial was edited down to a feature-length film, Satan's Satellites, released in 1958, which I've not been able to find.

In the 1990s, the serial was colorized for television broadcasts, and there are copies of this version floating around.
Stratosphere Colorized.jpg

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Re: Kelly, Craig

Post by Johan Melle » 19/04/2021, 1:11

Commando Cody - Sky Marshal of the Universe (1953) (12-part serial shown in theatres). Craig is credited and appears in all 12 episodes, as Mr. Henderson, the protagonist's boss.

Chapter 1: "Enemies of the Universe"
Commando Cody 1 - Craig Kelly1.jpg
Commando Cody 1 - Craig Kelly2.jpg
Commando Cody 1 - Craig Kelly3.jpg

Chapter 2: "Atomic Peril"
Commando Cody 2 - Craig Kelly.jpg

Chapter 3: "Cosmic Vengeance"
Commando Cody 3 - Craig Kelly.jpg

Chapter 4: "Nightmare Typhoon"
Commando Cody 4 - Craig Kelly.jpg

Chapter 5: "War of the Space Giants"
Commando Cody 5 - Craig Kelly.jpg

Chapter 6: "Destroyers of the Sun"
Commando Cody 6 - Craig Kelly.jpg

Chapter 7: "Robot Monster from Mars"
Commando Cody 7 - Craig Kelly.jpg

Chapter 8: "The Hydrogen Hurricane"
Commando Cody 8 - Craig Kelly.jpg

Chapter 9: "Solar Sky Raiders"
Commando Cody 9 - Craig Kelly.jpg

Chapter 10: "S.O.S. Ice Age"
Commando Cody 10 - Craig Kelly.jpg

Chapter 11: "Lost in Outer Space"
Commando Cody 11 - Craig Kelly.jpg

Chapter 12: "Captives of the Zero Hour"
Commando Cody 12 - Craig Kelly.jpg

Credit (from Chapter 1)
Commando Cody 1 - Craig Kelly4.jpg

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Re: Kelly, Craig

Post by Johan Melle » 19/04/2021, 1:13

Edge of Fury (1958) credited, as Chub

Craig has a reasonably large supporting role in this low-budget crime-thriller that (according to the IMDb) was shot in 1953, but sat unreleased for five years.
Edge Of Fury - Craig Kelly1.jpg
Edge Of Fury - Craig Kelly2.jpg
Edge Of Fury - Craig Kelly3.jpg
Edge Of Fury - Craig Kelly4.jpg
Edge Of Fury - Craig Kelly5.jpg
Edge Of Fury - Craig Kelly6.jpg

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Re: Kelly, Craig

Post by Johan Melle » 19/04/2021, 1:17

Emanuelle - Perché violenza alle donne (1977) as Hotel receptionist

Craig's earliest known Italian roles so far start some 20+ years after his career in the US ended. Still recognizably him, though.
Perche Violenza - Craig Kelly1.jpg
Perche Violenza - Craig Kelly2.jpg
Perche Violenza - Craig Kelly3.jpg
Perche Violenza - Craig Kelly4.jpg

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Re: Kelly, Craig

Post by Johan Melle » 19/04/2021, 1:19

Kleinhoff Hotel (1977) as Hotel guest
Kleinhoff Hotel - Craig Kelly1.jpg
Kleinhoff Hotel - Craig Kelly2.jpg

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Re: Kelly, Craig

Post by Johan Melle » 19/04/2021, 1:23

Anno zero - guerra nello spazio (1977) as Commander Armstrong

This cheap Alfonso Brescia sci-fi film and its companion piece Battaglie negli spazi stellari, released the following year, appear to have been the most substantial parts Craig scored during the Italian phase of his career. But despite playing a major supporting role, he is not credited.
Anno Zero - Craig Kelly1.jpg
Anno Zero - Craig Kelly2.jpg
Anno Zero - Craig Kelly3.jpg
Anno Zero - Craig Kelly4.jpg
Anno Zero - Craig Kelly5.jpg

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Re: Kelly, Craig

Post by Johan Melle » 19/04/2021, 1:26

Battaglie negli spazi stellari (1978) as The Commander

Even though he's playing a different character here than he was in Anno zero - guerra nello spazio, it's really the same part for all intents and purposes, even down to wearing the exact same costume.
Spazi Stellari - Craig Kelly1.jpg
Spazi Stellari - Craig Kelly2.jpg
Spazi Stellari - Craig Kelly3.jpg
Spazi Stellari - Craig Kelly4.jpg
Spazi Stellari - Craig Kelly5.jpg
Spazi Stellari - Craig Kelly6.jpg

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Re: Kelly, Craig

Post by Johan Melle » 19/04/2021, 1:28

Quel maledetto treno blindato (1978) as Colonel Brenner

Craig gets a tiny but notable role here as a Nazi scientist who is killed by Bo Svenson.
Treno Blindato - Craig Kelly1.jpg
Treno Blindato - Craig Kelly2.jpg
Treno Blindato - Craig Kelly3.jpg
Treno Blindato - Craig Kelly4.jpg

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