RIP Bernie Casey! Hit Man! Iconic “Blaxploitation” Star – And NFL Great!

RIP Bernie Casey!

I hate having to share these stories: a great NFL player turned action star has passed away at the age of 78…

Here is a look at one of his best movies!

hit-man-movie-poster-1973

Hit Man!

The plot is a homage to the classic british thriller “Get Carter.” In “Hit Man”, a lawyer takes the law into his own hands as he goes after the men who killed his brother. During the course of his quest for revenge, he must slither through the grimy, underground pornography scene.

hitman

“Hit Man” featured two very distinctive elements of “blaxploitation” movies of the time: a HUGE afro, and a fancy hat!

Check out the trailer:

Hit Man


An Unlikely Action Star!

“Hit Man” stars the NFL pro wide receiver Bernie Casey – who played for the San Francisco 49’ers as well as the LA Rams! That’s right, this “Hit Man” was a pro football player, so I guess he knew all about kicking ass! In fact, Casey had an extensive acting career after he finished playing pro ball…

Bernie_Casey_49ers action star

As I said, “Hit Man” is an Americanized version of the British crime thriller “Get Carter” starring Michael Caine. Casey plays a very tough character here – bending the rules and breaking the law to get answers – and nothing will stop him from finding out what happened to his brother…

Bernie Casey Action film

“Hit Man” features many of the elements of a great blaxploitation film – and also includes many iconic locations around an early 70’s Los Angeles…

Bernie Casey Hit Man

Oh, and one other thing to note: “Hit Man” is also well known for featuring the “very nude” Pam Grier!

pam grier nude

Hello Pam!

This was early in Pam Grier’s career – she would, of course, go on to star in many blaxploitation films of her own – and I will have a report on that soon – and of course, Quentin Tarantino made a movie just for her – “Jackie Brown.”

hit-man-pam-grier-1972

But Pam Grier is showing off a lot of her self in “Hit Man.” She has a couple of extended nude scenes in the film, and then is involved in one of the strangest action sequences EVER – which I won’t give away here, but it is certainly unique!

Pam Grier nude

RIP to Bernie Casey!



Categories: 70's Cinema, 70's Music, Action Films, Art, Awards, Blaxploitation!, Books / Media, Cult Movies, documentary films, Exploitation films, Film Fight Club, Film Noir, Great Films, Grindhouse, Hollywood, Independent Cinema, Los Angeles, Memoirs, Movies, Music, New York, Obscure Movies, Politics, Revenge Movies, Sexploitation Movies, Talent/Celebrities, Uncategorized

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

11 replies

  1. Never heard of Hit Man but recognise Bernie Casey from the photo of him in Never Say Never Again. Will have to check out a Blaxploitation Get Carter. Big fan of Shaft and Shaft in Africa. Will have to check out Dolemite, love the quotes. Have you seen Black Dynamite?

    Liked by 1 person

  2. Reblogged this on johnrieber and commented:

    Some Tuesday Blaxploitation fun –

    Like

Trackbacks

  1. Blaxploitation! Dolemite! Naked Pam Grier! Hit Man! « JR-Sploitation!
  2. Rated “X” By An All-White Jury! The Incendiary “Sweet Sweetback’s Badass Song!” Blaxploitation’s Brilliant Godfather! | johnrieber
  3. Studly “Superfly”! Sexy “Sheba”! Blaxploitation’s Sexiest Stars! Pam Grier! Shaft! | johnrieber
  4. Female Empowerment Indeed! “Foxy Brown”! “Cleopatra Jones”! Blaxploitation’s Kick-Ass Women! – johnrieber
  5. You Want A “Wonder Woman”? Try Foxy Brown! Cleopatra Jones! Blaxploitation’s “Wonder Women!” – johnrieber
  6. RIP Bernie Casey! Hit Man! Iconic “Blaxploitation” Star – And NFL Great! – johnrieber
  7. Pam Grier! Foxy Brown! Tamara Dobson! Cleopatra Jones! Blaxploitation’s Time To Celebrate These Kick Ass Empowered Women! – JR-Sploitation!

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Times and Tides of a Beachwriter

Drift among the scribbles of writer Janet Gogerty

Hugh's Views & News  

WordPress & Blogging tips, flash fiction, photography and lots more!

Piglet in Portugal

A Creative Spirit

Dawn Pisturino's Blog

My Writing Journey

priorhouse blog

Photos, art, and a little bit of LIT.

Robin & Willow

Delicious Living

The Culinary Traveller

A food writer on the road around the world

DGKayewriter.com

Live, Love, Laugh & Don't Forget to Breathe!

Elizabeth Gauffreau

Fiction Writer in Poet's Clothing

Brookford Kitchen Diaries

Cooks inspired by books

The New Vintage Kitchen

A Vermont innkeeper's recipe box of seasonal vintage dishes, reimagined for today's cooks.

Lavender and Lime

♥ a food, travel and lifestyle blog ♥

Taking Up Room

Reviews. History. Life.

Cook and Drink

The Art of Flavours

the chef mimi blog

so much food, so little time...

Writing from the Heart with Brian

Think, Laugh, & Cry Each Day

Sunshine with Savannah

Writer aiming to cultivate kindness. | Exploring, learning, scribbling, seeking sunshine wherever I go.

Lisa Marie's Song of the Day

Daily music selected by Lisa Marie Bowman

New Classic Recipe

- Cookbook Reviews and Recipes

Rust Belt Girl

reading and writing the Rust Belt with Rebecca Moon Ruark

Take It Easy

Retired, not expired: words from the after(work)life. And music. Lots of music!

Hey, Traveler

Sharing travel tips, ideas, and anecdotes with fellow wanderers, dreamers, doers, and lovers of life

Stevie Turner

Author of Realistic Fiction

Cornwall in Colours

inspired by the colours of the land, sea and sky of Cornwall

Let's Go To The Movies

Film and Theatre Lover!

SoraNews24 -Japan News-

Bringing you yesterday's news from Japan and Asia, today.

Bite! Eat! Repeat!

All Food, All The Time...Because "Everyone Eats!"

A Teacher's Reflections

Thirty Years of Wonder

Tanooki Homemade Cafe

Celebrate Everyday with Food Holidays

In Saner Thought

"It is the duty of every man, as far as his ability extends, to detect and expose delusion and error"..Thomas Paine

Pete Springer

Passionate Teacher and Future Children's Author

Diary of A Movie Maniac

A Personal Journey Through Cinema & Television

The Binge Watcher

BlerdWatching Waaay Too Much TV

Robbie's inspiration

Ideas on writing and baking

Darlene Foster's Blog

dreamer of dreams, teller of tales

You can always start now

being curious, exploring, finding me

Realweegiemidget Reviews Films TV Books and more

You can't take the Scotland out of a girl... Reel entertainment reviews and more from that Darlin Husband’s Scottish, square-eyed and film-mad wife living in Finland.

I didn't have my glasses on....

A trip through life with fingers crossed and eternal optimism.

Through the Shattered Lens

Where mainstream meets grindhouse, exploitation, otaku and gamers

Laura's Books and Blogs

Writing tips, giveaways, reviews, essays, and more!

But I Smile Anyway...

Musings and memories, words and wisdom... of a working family woman

Invisibly Me

Live A Visible Life Whatever Your Health

Retired? No one told me!

Tonight I Dream. Tomorrow I Do!