The Demons That Chased Bob

The co-author of an upcoming biography about Bob Crane, best known for his work in “Hogan’s Heroes,” interviewed me at length this evening.

Bob and I worked at the same radio station in Bridgeport, although not at the same time. Close enough so that his style influenced me greatly, and I wish we had been together as I was starting my career in broadcasting.

Bob had his demons, as do we all. Most of us keep them under control and, fortunately, they are minor and do little damage. His were great and eventually led to his tragic murder and subsequent smearing of his name and reputation.

The authors want to show the complete picture and have tentatively titled their book “Flipside,” the other side of Bob Crane.

We knew him as a devoted husband and father. A genuinely devoted person who struggled with an addiction he tried to overcome many times. It wasn’t until he was playing a show at a venue which was owned by a person who was also an ordained minister that he confessed the dark side of his life.

He told of his struggles to escape the sex-and-porn and desperately wanted to turn his life around. The minister advised him where to seek treatment, but his current partner (angry over the breakup?) killed him before he got there.