What is Hal Needham?
[[File:Hal needham 2011.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Needham in July 2011]] '''Hal Brett Needham''' (March 6, 1931 &ndash; October 25, 2013) was an [[Americans|American]] stuntman, movie director, actor, and writer. He is known for directing the 1971 [[comedy]] movie ''[[Smokey and the Bandit]]'' and ''[[The Cannonball Run]]''. Needham received the [[Taurus World Stunt Awards]] Lifetime Achievement Award. Needham was born on March 6, 1931 in [[Memphis]], [[Tennessee]]. He was raised in [[Little Rock, Arkansas|Little Rock]], [[Arkansas]] and in [[St. Louis]], [[Missouri]]. Needham was married to Dani Crayne from 1981 until they divorced in 1996. Then he was married to Ellyn Wynne Williams from 1996 until his death in 2013. Needham died on October 25, 2013 from [[cancer]] in [[Los Angeles]], [[California]], aged 82.<ref>{{cite web|work=[[The Los Angeles Times]]|title=Hal Needham, veteran Hollywood stuntman and director, dies at 82|first=Steve|last=Chawkins|date=October 25, 2013|url=http://www.latimes.com/obituaries/la-et-mn-hal-needham-director-stuntman-dies-20131025,0,5895908.story#axzz2in053exb}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Truitt|first=Brian|title=Iconic stuntman, director Hal Needham dies at 82|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/movies/2013/10/25/hal-needham-appreciation/3196857/|work=USA Today|publisher=Gannett|accessdate=26 October 2013}}</ref> ==References== {{reflist}} ==Other websites== *{{imdb name|0624102}} *[https://www.npr.org/2011/02/07/133308299/stuntman-high-jumps-tall-stories-from-a-veteran Hollywood 'Stuntman!' Reveals Tricks Of Trade - NPR Interview] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20091026234706/http://ca.geocities.com/cannonballrunpitstop/halneedham.htm Interview with Hal Needham from January 2007] {{DEFAULTSORT:Needham, Hal}} [[Category:1931 births]] [[Category:2013 deaths]] [[Category:Cancer deaths in Los Angeles]] [[Category:American movie actors]] [[Category:American television actors]] [[Category:Stunt performers]] [[Category:Writers from Tennessee]] [[Category:Actors from Memphis, Tenne