John Henry Carpenter

Infobox Person
name = John Henry Carpenter


caption =
birth_date = 1928 [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C04EFDE1F3FF932A35752C1A962958260 November 1, 1994 article] in "The New York Times"]
birth_place =
death_date = death date|1998|9|4
death_place =
other_names =
known_for = relationship with actor Bob Crane
occupation = video equipment salesman [http://tv.yahoo.com/bob-crane/contributor/295259/bio Bob Crane - Yahoo! TV ] ]
nationality =
footnotes = Carpenter's birth year is based on his age at time of acquittal for Crane's murder, which was 66 according to a November 1, 1994 article in "The New York Times".

John Henry Carpenter (1928 - September 4, 1998) was most widely known as the friend of actor Bob Crane who in June 1992 [ [http://www.crimelibrary.com/notorious_murders/classics/bob_crane/7.html The Bob Crane Case - Crime Library on truTV.com ] ] was accused of Crane's 1978 murder.__NOTOC__

Life

John Carpenter was of Native American heritage. [http://www.crimelibrary.com/notorious_murders/classics/bob_crane/3.html The Bob Crane Case - Crime Library on truTV.com ] ] He was born on an Indian reservation where as a teenager he often earned money as a migrant worker harvesting apricots. He served in the U.S. Army and was married twice. Following his retirement from the Army, he took a job marketing video technology, achieiving expertise in that field.

Relationship with Crane

Carpenter, a salesman specializing in video technology, met Crane via Richard Dawson, another cast member on "Hogan's Heroes". [ [http://www.doney.net/aroundaz/celebrity/crane_bob.htm Bob Crane ] ] The two men frequented bars together, picking up women and often recording their exploits in snapshots and on videotape.

Evidence suggests that Carpenter and Crane had an intense argument the night before Crane was bludgeoned to death in June 1978. Evidence also suggests that Crane must have known the person who murdered him. [ [http://www.franksreelreviews.com/shorttakes/crane.htm The Death of Bob Crane ] ] The district attorney at the time of Crane's death declined to prosecute Carpenter. Years later, the case was re-opened and Carpenter was tried and acquitted in 1994, although he was fired from work as punishment for being accussed for the murder of Crane. He always maintained his innocence, and later said he felt it a huge relief for his name to be cleared. One jury member later said in an interview that the jury believed there was insufficient proof to determine Carpenter's guilt and that "you cannot prove someone guilty on speculation".

Portrayal in "Auto Focus"

In the 2002 biopic "Auto Focus", Carpenter was played by Willem Dafoe. [ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0298744/ Auto Focus (2002) ] ]

The film strongly suggestsFact|date=May 2008 that Carpenter was bisexual and was sexually attracted to Crane. The film also symbolizes Carpenter's alleged bisexualityFact|date=May 2008 by portraying him as suffering from colorblindness. However, in the special features section, Carpenter's second wife adamantly asserts that Carpenter was completely heterosexual.Fact|date=May 2008

References