Carmen Nigro

Not to be confused with Carmine Nigro.

Carmen Nigro
Nigro in 1976
Born(1905-10-10)October 10, 1905
Chicago, Illinois, USA
DiedSeptember 24, 1990(1990-09-24) (aged 84)
Speedway, Indiana, USA
Other namesKen Roady
Known forDisputed claims of career as a Hollywood stuntman

Carmen Nigro (October 10, 1905 – September 24, 1990)[1][2] was an American chef who professed to have worked for three decades as a Hollywood stuntman under the professional name Ken Roady. From 1969 he gained notability through media interviews in which he announced he had acted in a gorilla suit in many Hollywood films, most famously as the title role in the 1933 classic King Kong.[3][4] While Nigro's claims were accepted as fact by some journalists and authors during his lifetime,[5][6][7] film historians generally have disputed his account,[8][9][10][11] and regard him as an impostor.[12][13]

  1. ^ Greene, Bob (November 27, 1990). "Saying so long to Mr. Kong". Chicago Tribune – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ "United States Social Security Death Index". FamilySearch. Retrieved December 19, 2016. Carmen Nigro, 24 Sep 1990; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File
  3. ^ "'King Kong' reminisces about life on sky scraper". The Prescott Courier. March 22, 1976. A barrel-chested 5-foot-6, Nigro was the hairy beast in Mighty Joe Young, The Unholy Three, Tarzan and His Mate, Night of Horror and Ape Man Nabonga [sic]. His last gorilla movie was Gorilla at Large in 1954.
  4. ^ Greene, Bob (January 5, 1977). "Original King Kong Unhappy". The Free Lance Star. Fredericksburg, Virginia. p. 2.
  5. ^ Barris, Ted. "Not online, but on the line". Ted Barris. Archived from the original on December 16, 2011. Retrieved December 19, 2016.
  6. ^ Graubart, Judah L.; Graubart, Alice V. (1978). Decade of Destiny. Chicago: Contemporary Books. pp. 254–255. ISBN 9780809277292.
  7. ^ Robertson, Patrick (1991). The Guinness Book of Movie Facts & Feats (4th ed.). New York: Abbeville Press. p. 106. ISBN 9781558592360.
  8. ^ Glut, Donald F. (2005). "His Majesty, King Kong - IV". In Woods, Paul A. (ed.). King Kong Cometh!. London: Plexus. p. 64. ISBN 9780859653626. Nigro's claims are unable to be substantiated.
  9. ^ Berry, Mark F. (2005). The Dinosaur Filmography. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland. pp. 194–195. ISBN 9780786424535.
  10. ^ Hankin, Mike (2008). Ray Harryhausen - Master of the Majicks Vol. 2: The American Films. Los Angeles: Archive Editions. p. 66. ISBN 9780981782904.
  11. ^ Goldner, Orville; Turner, George E. (1975). The Making of King Kong: the Story behind a Film Classic. New Jersey: A.S. Barnes & Co. p. 87. ISBN 0498015106. The fact is that no gigantic motorised robots or men in ape-suits were used at any time in the making of the film.
  12. ^ Hise, James Van (1993). Hot Blooded Dinosaur Movies. Las Vegas, NV: Pioneer Books. pp. 73–74. ISBN 9781556983658.
  13. ^ Glut, Donald F. (2001). Jurassic Classics: A Collection of Saurian Essays and Mesozoic Musings. Jefferson, NC: McFarland. p. 192. ISBN 9780786462469. In Nigro's case, the claim seems to have been simply fraudulent.