Harold "Stubby" Kruger

From Openwaterpedia
Duke Kahanamoku, Buster Crabbe, Stubby Kruger and Johnny Weissmuller shown in El Segundo, California

Harold Herman Kruger, nicknamed Stubby (21 September 1897 in Honolulu, Hawaii – 7 October 1965 in Los Angeles, California) was an American competitive swimmer who represented the United States at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp, Belgium. Kruger swam in the event final of the men's 100m backstroke and finished fifth overall. Stubby won eight AAU National Championships with the Illinois Athletic Club, briefly held a world backstroke record, made two Olympic teams and starred as a comic in the Billy Rose Aquacades before becoming a full time stuntman in the movies.

In 1986 Kruger was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame at Fort Lauderdale, Florida as a Pioneer Swimmer and Diver.

Diving Career

As "King of Comedy Diving", he exhibited at the 1924 Olympic Games. Stubby was also king of the all-around swimming/diving pentathlon, a U.S. National Championship event in which he tied with Weissmuller in 1924 and won outright in 1925.

Acting Career

Kruger was a colleague of Johnny Weissmuller and performed at carnivals and fairs billed as the Incomparable Water Comedian. He also had a career in Hollywood as an actor and stunt double that began in the silent era and lasted well into the 1950s. His last film credit was as Spencer Tracy’s double in The Old Man and the Sea.

Filmography

  • Peter Gunn (TV Series)
  • Derelict / The Frog
  • 1960 Spartacus, Pirate (uncredited)
  • 1955 Mister Roberts, Schlemmer
  • 1954 Rocky Jones, Space Ranger (TV Series) , Posito Soldier
  • Rocky's Odyssey: Chapter I (1954) ... Posito Soldier
  • Blast-Off: Chapter I (1954) ... Posito Soldier (uncredited)
  • Rocky's Odyssey: Chapter II (1954) ... Posito Soldier (uncredited)
  • 1953 Devil's Canyon, Prisoner (uncredited)
  • 1952 Blackbeard, the Pirate, Pirate (uncredited)
  • 1946 Gentleman Joe Palooka, Fighter (uncredited)
  • 1946 Till the End of Time, Lifeguard (uncredited)
  • 1945 They Were Expendable, Boat Crewman (uncredited)
  • 1944 Atlantic City, Lifeguard (uncredited)
  • 1943 The Masked Marvel, J.D. Stone (uncredited)
  • 1942 The Talk of the Town, Baseball Player (uncredited)
  • 1942 Reap the Wild Wind, Pat (uncredited)
  • 1942 Broadway Big Shot, Dynamite (as Harold Kruger)
  • 1942 Duke of the Navy, Cookie
  • 1937 Captains Courageous, Crewman (uncredited)
  • 1936 Under Two Flags, Soldier of the 17th Company (uncredited)
  • 1935 Mutiny on the Bounty, Able-Bodied Seaman (uncredited)
  • 1932 Down to Earth, Swimmer (uncredited)
  • 1931 Water Bugs (Short), Stubby Kreuger, Comic Swimmer (as Stubby Kreuger)
  • 1931 Swim or Sink (Short) (as Stubby Kreuger)
  • 1927 The Beloved Rogue (uncredited)

International Professional Swimmers Association

Stubby was a member of the Board of Governors of the International Professional Swimmers Association founded in New York in 1927. The International Professional Swimmers Association was an international association organized on 21 September 1927 at the Hotel McAlpin in Manhattan, New York with its headquarters in New York City. The Association planned to issue a monthly publication to authenticate and keep records of a professional swimming events and to foster swimming throughout the world as an international sport.

Its officers included:

Its Board of Governors consisted of:

External links

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