Bob Crane Net Worth

July 2024 · 10 minute read

Bob Crane net worth is
$250,000

Bob Crane Wiki Biography

Robert Edward Crane was born on 13 July 1928, in Waterbury, Connecticut USA, to Rosemary and Alfred Crane, of Irish and Russian descent. He was an actor, drummer, radio host and disc jockey, best known for starring as Colonel Robert E. Hogan in the television sitcom “Hogan’s Heroes”. He was murdered in 1978.

So just how wealthy was Bob Crane? According to sources, Crane had collected a net worth of over $250,000, acquired through his involvement in radio and television.

Bob Crane Net Worth $250,000

Crane’s family moved to Stamford, Connecticut during his childhood years, where he attended Stamford High School, matriculating in 1946. In 1948 he joined the US National Guard, being discharged two years later.

While still in high school, Crane had become a skilled drummer, however, during the early ’50s, he switched his focus to radio, landing his first radio job at WLEA in Hornell, New York, soon becoming the program director. Several months later, he returned to Connecticut and briefly served as morning personality and program director at WBIS in Bristol. He then began working at WLIZ in Bridgeport, soon being sent to its newly bought station, WICC, also in Bridgeport, where he hosted his morning show, in addition to being the station’s program director. Crane became a popular radio personality. All contributed to his net worth.

In the mid-’50s he was hired by CBS Radio to host the morning show at its Los Angeles station KNX, so he moved to Hollywood and began hosting “The Bob Crane Show”. His radio program became a huge success, topping the morning ratings, and bringing in guests such as Frank Sinatra, Marvin Gaye, Marilyn Monroe and Bob Hope as well. Due to his own personality and humor, Crane became known as ‘king of the Los Angeles Airwaves’, and was also named ‘Man of a Thousand Voices’, due to his brilliant voice impersonations. In addition to being a major celebrity interviewer and a skilled voice impersonator, he also frequently performed on drums in his show. His wealth grew much larger.

In the early ’60s, at the height of his successful radio career, Crane began making television guest appearances in shows like “The Dick Van Dyke Show” and “The Twilight Zone”, and went on to appear in the films “Return to Peyton Place” and “Man-Trap”. Opportunities continued to come his way and he landed a role in the popular “The Donna Reed Show”, playing Dr. Dave Kelsey for two years, establishing a reputation in the acting world and increasing his net worth.

In 1965 he was cast in a new CBS sitcom called “Hogan’s Heroes”, a comedy about a group of POWs in a Nazi prison camp, to play the lead part as Colonel Robert Hogan. The show became a great hit, finishing in the US TV top 10, earning Crane two Emmy Awards and cementing his reputation in Hollywood. He remained on the show for six seasons, until its cancellation in 1971. Aside from reinforcing his status in showbiz, the show significantly improved Cranes fortune.

After “Hogan’s Heroes” ended, Crane went on to land numerous other roles by the end of the decade, such as in the films “Superdad” and “Gus”, and in TV series like “Tenafly”, “Police Woman”, “Ellery Queen” and “The Love Boat”. He also starred in the short-lived NBC sitcom “The Bob Crane Show”, further expanding his wealth. He gained extensive theater experience too, starring in stage productions such as “Send Me No Flowers”, “Cactus Flower”, “Tunnel of Love” and “Beginner’s Luck”.

In 1978 Crane was murdered in a Scottsdale hotel room, a crime which remains a mystery.

In his personal life, Crane was married twice, firstly from 1949 to 1970 to Anne Terzian, with whom he had three children. In 1970 he married actress Patricia Olson, professionally known by her stage name Sigrid Valdis, who co-starred with him in “Hogan’s Heroes”. They had two children together. Although the couple separated in 1977, they reportedly reconciled shortly before his death.

Crane was involved in philanthropy, having supported organizations such as the Cerebral Palsy Foundation, the Cystic Fibrosis Fund Drive and the Arthritis and Rheumatism Foundation.


Full NameBob Crane
Net Worth$250,000
Date Of BirthJuly 13, 1928
DiedJune 29, 1978, Scottsdale, Arizona, United States
Place Of BirthWaterbury, Connecticut, United States
Height1.78 m
ProfessionActor
EducationStamford High School
NationalityAmerican
SpouseSigrid Valdis (m. 1970–1978), Anne Terzian (m. 1949–1970)
ChildrenRobert David Crane, Robert Scott Crane, Karen Leslie Crane, Ana Marie Crane, Deborah Ann Crane
ParentsAlfred Thomas Crane, Rosemary Crane
SiblingsRobert Scott Crane, Karen Leslie Crane, Ana Marie Crane, Deborah Ann Crane
IMDBhttp://www.imdb.com/name/nm0186314/
NominationsPrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
MoviesGus, Superdad, The Wicked Dreams of Paula Schultz, The New Interns
TV ShowsThe Bob Crane Show, Hogan's Heroes, The Donna Reed Show
#Quote
1If I tell a joke that's not so funny, I have a faster-than-sound plane which shoots it down before it reaches San Francisco.
2Eventually, what you're looking for is gonna happen, and by the time it does happen, you'll be that much better along the way to what you should be. Don't get discouraged, and just keep on plugging along, and what you want will eventually be yours. You know, there's nothing to stop it if you just keep on working hard. And by working hard, I mean doing the best job you possibly can. Everything happens for the best, and I believe it completely.
3When I was a kid, I fell in love with Spencer Tracy in "Captains Courageous." That, to me, was the ideal. A good man, a brave man. What I would want to be. I'm still in love with that.
4It's not a concentration camp. It's a POW camp. We're not making light of atrocities. We're just trying to show how darn clever the Americans were. It was easy to see which letter writers hadn't watched the program. No one could see "Hogan's Heroes" and think we were making fun of war. Our comedy is done with characterization. It's outsmarting the boss; it's the kid with a snowball when the top hat goes by; it's getting the best of authority.
5The first station I started out with was a 250-watt station. I went to a 1,000-watt station, which was the Bridgeport station... And from the 1,000-watt, I went to the 50,000-watt, which is quite a jump, and it has happened to a lot of people. It's a fortunate thing to be in the right place at the right time.
6I don't smoke, I don't drink. Two out of three ain't bad.
#Fact
1Bob actually played the drums in the theme song at the beginning of the show.
2Radio show ''zero hour '' 1974.
3Studied with acting teacher Stella Adler in 1964.
4His last movie appearance was in the Walt Disney movie, Gus (1976), where he played an announcer named "Pepper Pot".
5Crane was basically bankrupt during the mid- to late-1970's and, shortly after his murder, his estate would come into millions of dollars from a new syndication deal for Hogan's Heroes (1965), which he owned a small part of.
6On January 25, 1978, Bob Crane taped an episode of Celebrity Cooks (1975) in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Crane's episode aired several times in Canada throughout the winter and spring of 1978 without incident. A network affiliate in the U.S. then purchased several episodes of "Celebrity Cooks" to run in syndication in the U.S. Crane's episode was supposed to lead off the U.S. syndicated run of the series, and it was scheduled to air in the U.S. on July 10, 1978. Immediately after Crane's murder on June 29, the episode was canceled. It was reported that Crane made numerous jokes about death, which would have made the episode too eerily prophetic. However, this claim was based on one network representative's uncorroborated opinion made just days after Crane's murder. "Celebrity Cooks" has officially gone on record to refute this false claim about Crane's appearance made by this network representative. Those who were there on the day of taping claim no such eerie or inappropriate behavior occurred, and that Crane was one of their best guests.
7Best remembered by the public for his starring role as Col. Robert Hogan in Hogan's Heroes (1965).
8The cause of death was bludgeoning with a video camera tripod. The video cable was wrapped around his neck postmortem.
9Father of Robert David Crane, and Scott Crane.
10Originally buried at Oakwood Memorial Park in Chatsworth, Los Angeles County. In 2003, many years after his death, he was moved to the prestigious Westwood Memorial Park on Glendon Avenue in Los Angeles. His marker is very elaborate and beautiful with writings and photographs of him and his widow Sigrid Valdis. It is located in the middle of the memorial park.
11Hobby was playing the drums. He was a life-long jazz buff who played with several amateur jazz groups over the years.
122002: Was the subject of a "noise opera" by the experimental band Facetious (released on CD under the title "Raw Biscuits: The Bob Crane Story").
13He discovered singer Marilyn McCoo on the 1960s show Hollywood Talent Scouts (1965).
14He was one of the first disc jockeys in the country to earn in excess of $100,000 per year (1960).

All pictures

Actor

TitleYearStatusCharacter
The Love Boat1978TV SeriesEdward 'Teddy' Anderson
The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries1977TV SeriesDanny Day
Quincy M.E.1977TV SeriesDr. Jamison
Gibbsville1976TV SeriesLawyer
Spencer's Pilots1976TV SeriesJoe Cozens
Gus1976Pepper
Ellery Queen1976TV SeriesJerry Crabtree
Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color1976TV Series
Joe Forrester1976TV Series
The Bob Crane Show1975TV SeriesBob Wilcox
Police Woman1974TV SeriesLarry Brooks
Tenafly1974TV SeriesSid Pierce
Superdad1973Charlie McCready
The Delphi Bureau1972TV SeriesCharlie Taggert
Patriotism1972ShortNarrator
Love, American Style1969-1971TV Series segment 'Love and the Waitress' / segment "Love and the Logical Explanation" / Howard segment "Love and the Modern Wife"

- Love and the Particular Girl/Love and the Fountain of Youth/Love and the House Bachelor/Love and the Waitress 1971 ... segment 'Love and the Waitress'

Night Gallery1971TV SeriesEllis Travers (segment "House - With Ghost")
The Doris Day Show1971TV SeriesBob Carter
Hogan's Heroes1965-1971TV SeriesCol. Robert E. Hogan
Arsenic and Old Lace1969TV MovieMortimer Brewster (as Robert Crane)
The Wicked Dreams of Paula Schultz1968Bill Mason
The Red Skelton Hour1967TV SeriesCol. Hogan
The Donna Reed Show1963-1965TV SeriesDr. Dave Kelsey Dr. Dave Blevins
The New Interns1964Drunken Prankster at Baby Shower (uncredited)
Channing1963TV SeriesProf. Arlen
The Alfred Hitchcock Hour1963TV SeriesCharlie Lessing
The Dick Van Dyke Show1962TV SeriesHarry Rogers
General Electric Theater1953-1961TV SeriesHarry
Man-Trap1961Ralph Turner
Return to Peyton Place1961Peter White (uncredited)
The Twilight Zone1961TV SeriesDisc Jockey

Self

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Biography2000TV Series documentaryHimself
Celebrity Cooks1978TV SeriesHimself
Dinah!1975-1977TV SeriesHimself
Break the Bank1976-1977TV SeriesHimself
You Don't Say1975TV SeriesHimself
The Mike Douglas Show1970-1975TV SeriesHimself - Actor / Himself
Celebrity Sweepstakes1975TV SeriesHimself
Mitzi and a Hundred Guys1975TV SpecialHimself (uncredited)
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson1968-1975TV SeriesHimself - Guest / Himself / Himself - Guest Host
Herbie Day at Disneyland1974TV Short documentaryHimself
Tattletales1974TV SeriesHimself
Stand Up and Cheer1972-1974TV SeriesHimself
Laugh-In1972TV SeriesHimself
Make Mine Red, White and Blue1972TV MovieHimself
The Hollywood Squares1966-1972TV SeriesHimself - Panelist
Rollin' on the River1972TV SeriesHimself
The Virginia Graham Show1971TV SeriesHimself
The Honeymoon Game1971TV MovieHimself
The Pet Set1971TV Series documentaryHimself
Can You Top This1971TV SeriesHimself
The 13th Annual TV Week Logie Awards1971TV SpecialHimself
The Real Tom Kennedy Show1970TV SeriesHimself
The Barbara McNair Show1970TV SeriesHimself
The Rosey Grier Show1969TV SeriesHimself - Guest
The Leslie Uggams Show1969TV SeriesHimself
The Steve Allen Show1969TV SeriesHimself - Guest
The Match Game1969TV SeriesHimself - Team Captain
Della1969TV SeriesHimself
Allen Ludden's Gallery1969TV SeriesHimself
The Joan Rivers Show1969TV SeriesHimself
It's Happening1969TV SeriesHimself
The Storybook Squares1969TV Series
Funny You Should Ask1968TV SeriesHimself
Operation: Entertainment1968TV SeriesHimself - Host
The Pat Boone Show1968TV SeriesHimself
Everybody's Talking1967TV SeriesHimself
The Woody Woodbury Show1967TV SeriesHimself
Dateline: Hollywood1967TV SeriesHimself
The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour1967TV SeriesHimself
P.D.Q.1967TV SeriesHimself
The Linkletter Show1965-1966TV SeriesHimself
What's My Line?1966TV SeriesHimself - Panelist
Password All-Stars1966TV SeriesHimself - Celebrity Contestant
The Merv Griffin Show1966TV SeriesHimself
Hollywood Talent Scouts1966TV SeriesHimself-- Guest / Himself
The Face Is Familiar1966TV SeriesHimself
The Lucy Show1966TV SeriesHimself
The Danny Kaye Show1966TV SeriesHimself
The Hollywood Palace1965TV SeriesHimself - Singer
Stella Adler and the Actor1964TV Movie documentaryHimself
The New Steve Allen Show1963TV SeriesHimself - Guest
Your First Impression1962TV SeriesHimself
The Jack Paar Tonight Show1962TV SeriesHimself
The Tonight Show1962TV SeriesHimself - Actor

Archive Footage

Nominated Awards

YearAwardCeremonyNominationMovie
1967Primetime EmmyPrimetime Emmy AwardsOutstanding Continued Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Comedy SeriesHogan's Heroes (1965)
1966Primetime EmmyPrimetime Emmy AwardsOutstanding Continued Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Comedy SeriesHogan's Heroes (1965)
1966Gold MedalPhotoplay AwardsMost Promising New Star (Male)

Known for movies


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