Bob Cresse was born on June 19, 1936, in Sarasota, Florida, and later graduated from the University of Florida. Prior to his career in the film industry, Cresse worked the carnival circuit before moving to Los Angeles, California, where he secured a job as a bike messenger for MGM.
In the early 1960s, Cresse founded his own production and distribution company, Olympic International Films, which would go on to produce a number of low-budget exploitation movies. Not only did Cresse write and produce these films, but he also acted in several of them. His reputation for being tough and combative, often accompanied by his fondness for weapons and Nazi regalia, preceded him.
Cresse's life took a dramatic turn on Hollywood Boulevard, where he witnessed two men beating a woman while walking his dog. In an attempt to intervene, Cresse pulled out a gun and ordered the men to stop. However, one of the men, who identified himself as a police officer, shot Cresse in the stomach and killed his dog. Cresse spent seven months in the hospital recovering from his injuries.
Unfortunately, Cresse did not have health insurance, and his prolonged hospital stay left him financially drained, having depleted most of the funds he had stashed away in a Swiss bank account. Tragically, Cresse died of a heart attack at the age of 61 on April 6, 1998, in Miami, Florida.
