Pat Roach
Besides Harrison Ford Pat Roach is the only actor who appeared in all tree Indiana Jones movies.
Proud and passionate Englishman, Pat
Roach, was born and raised in Birmingham, England and grew to be a mountain of a
man standing at 6' 5" inches tall, with doorway wide shoulders and a barrel
chest.
Pat wrestled competitively under the name of "Bomber" Roach, and at one time
held both the British & European Heavyweight Wrestling Championships! Whilst
still in the wrestling game, Roach broke into acting with a bit part in the
Stanley Kubrick film _Barry
Lyndon (1976)_ . He quickly became popular as an enforcer or warrior figure and
appeared onscreen with some of Hollywood's biggest names. Many people would
remember him as the muscle bound, bald German guard who hands out a fist beating
to Harrison Ford in
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981),
before being cut down by a spinning plane propeller. He also played the big
shepard who´s shot at the Raven Bar-fight.
In other film roles, Roach nearly eliminates 007
Sean Connery in the Bond film
Never Say Never Again (1983),
in dual roles as a resurrected demon and as a fierce warrior, he fought
Arnold Schwarzenegger in the
Conan sequel Conan the Destroyer
(1984), and was back as a ferocious Indian guard pummeling poor
Harrison Ford once again in
Indiana Jones and the Temple of
Doom (1984), before falling into a rock crusher!
He also appeared in Indiana Jones
and the Last Crusade (1989),
(as the Gestapo-agent next the Col. Vogel at the Zeppelin start-off scene)
Red Sonja (1985) and
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves
(1991). Apart from his film activities, Pat ran a gymnasium in Birmingham,
operated a used appliance business in the local markets and was known as a warm
hearted and genial man who was happy to chat with admiring fans, sign autographs
and pose for photos.
Roach was also very popular with English TV audiences for his portrayal of
gentle giant "Brian Busbridge" in the series
"Auf Wiedersehen, Pet" (1983)
and was scheduled to appear in the fourth series of the show.
He passed away from cancer on July 17th, 2004. He was 67 years old.