Richard Hugh Lynch was born on February 12, 1940 in Brooklyn, New York City. He is one of seven children. Before starting a career as an actor, he joined the United States Marine Corps in 1958. He served for four years where he made Corporal, and did a tour of the Middle East with the Sixth Fleet. He began his training with Herbert Berghof and Uta...
[on Menahem Golan] He is the supreme bandit of Hollywood. The Godfather of Israel -- any producer from Israel, they owe it all to Menahem. I know he has a reputation for being a dastardly guy, but he fed my family, and he's always been straight with me. I remember Chuck [Chuck Norris] telling me at the time [1985], "If you're going to work with Menahem, get your cash on the barrel head." There's no deal on the back end, no points -- it's cash and carry. What can I say about Menahem? Tough old Israeli Jew who's been loyal to me and I've been loyal to him. He's one of the few producers I've known who's driven out to me and knocked on the kitchen window. There's no bullshit with Menahem. And he's an artist in his own right.
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[on acting in movies for Ruggero Deodato] Ahh, Ruggero Deodato. Yeah, he's all bullshit. He's a little man, he's short, and he's got a big mouth. But I love Ruggero -- I had more fun working with him than anybody else. I know all about his crassness and his brutality, but you can't let it reach you. He's very talented, and he can be very funny -- you have to have a thick skin with him. He'll test your mettle, but when he knows that you know he's bullshitting you ... I had a lot of good times with him.
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[2009 comment on being typecast as villains] Typecasting set in for me the day I beat the shit out of Al Pacino [in Scarecrow (1973)]. Typecasting set in with The Seven-Ups (1973). I could have stopped, but I didn't have much of a choice in that. The parts were presented to me, and I wanted to work as an actor. Most of those parts were the antagonist, so in the end, I established myself as a Hollywood heavy. However, I know other actors who chose not to do something like that, and they've had very marginal careers. I've had a career. I've survived attrition, and I've been able to work for the better part of thirty-five plus years.
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[on playing villains] You always got to find the humanity in the character, no matter how bad he is. If you play him on the money, you're in trouble.
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I've always felt like a thoroughbred without the proper track to run on.
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Fact
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Played 2 parts in the Original Battlestar Galactica shows, "Wolfe" in the Battlestar Galactica episodes (The gun on ice planet zero) and "Professor Xaviar" in Galactica 1980.
He was a lifetime member of the Actors Studio in New York City.
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He was an honorary member of the Academy of Motion Pictures, Arts, and Science.
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He served in the United States Marine Corps.
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He was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Madrid Film Festival in Madrid, Spain.
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He is survived by his sisters, Carole J. Taylor and Cathy L. Jones; his brother, Barry J. Lynch. He is predeceased by his son, Christopher Lynch. A memorial service was held at Hollywood Forever Funeral Home on June 24, 2012.
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Lynch was an honorary member of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences.
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Lynch was the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Madrid Film Festival.
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His body was donated to medical science.
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Found dead in his home in Palm Springs, California on June 19, 2012 by actress Carol Vogel. She had not heard from him for several days and went to check on him. Finding his front door ajar, she entered and found him on his kitchen floor.
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Was sharing an apartment with actor Don Calfa at the time of his LSD fueled accident.
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Born to Irish parents. Frequently visited his family's native Cork.
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In 1967 after taking LSD (acid), he set himself on fire in Central Park behind the Metropolitan Museum of Art near Cleopatra's Needle. After recuperation, he candidly spoke about it in an anti-drug documentary. He made use of his scarred face to play sinister-looking characters in horror films.
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Is fluent in Swahili, Russian, Spanish, German and Italian.
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