# James Crabe

James Crabe, A.S.C. (August 19, 1931 – May 2, 1989) was an American cinematographer.
He was a regular collaborator of director John G. Avildsen, known for his work in Rocky and The Karate Kid, as well as other movies from the 1970s and 80s, like The China Syndrome, Night Shift, and Thank God It's Friday.
Crabe was also a two-time Primetime Emmy Award winner, received multiple nominations the ASC Awards, and one from the Academy Awards.

## Biography

James Crabe was one of the few openly gay cinematographers in Hollywood. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Cinematography for director John G. Avildsen's The Formula (1980). He also photographed Avildsen's films Save the Tiger (1973), W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings (1975), Rocky (1976), The Karate Kid (1984), The Karate Kid Part II (1986), Happy New Year (1987) and For Keeps (1988) as well as Thank God It's Friday (1978), The China Syndrome (1979), and Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment (1985).
He won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Cinematography for a Limited Series or Movie for The Letter (1982) and was nominated for The Entertainer (1976), Eleanor and Franklin: The White House Years (1977) and his final film Baby M (1988). He won Outstanding Cinematography for a Series for The New Mike Hammer episode "More Than Murder" in 1984.

## Death

On May 2, 1989, James Crabe died at his home in Sherman Oaks, California, from complications of AIDS at the age of 57. The Karate Kid Part III was dedicated to his memory.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1962 | The Proper Time | Tom Laughlin | |
| 1962 | The Soldier | Richard A. Colla | Short film |
| 1964 | Everybody Loves It | Phillip Mark | |
| 1965 | One Way Wahine | William O. Brown | |
| 1966 | Agent for H.A.R.M. | Gerd Oswald | |
| 1970 | Zig Zag | Richard A. Colla | |
| 1972 | All About Alice | Ray Harrison | Uncredited |
| 1972 | The Honkers | Steve Ihnat | |
| 1973 | Save the Tiger | John G. Avildsen | |
| 1974 | Rhinoceros | Tom O'Horgan | |
| 1975 | W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings | John G. Avildsen | |
| 1976 | Rocky | John G. Avildsen | |
| 1978 | Sextette | Ken Hughes | |
| 1978 | Thank God It's Friday | Robert Klane | |
| 1979 | The China Syndrome | James Bridges | |
| 1979 | Players | Anthony Harvey | |
| 1980 | The Baltimore Bullet | Robert Ellis Miller | |
| 1980 | How to Beat the High Cost of Living | Robert Scheerer | |
| 1980 | The Formula | John G. Avildsen | Nominated- Academy Award for Best Cinematography |
| 1982 | Night Shift | Ron Howard | |
| 1984 | The Karate Kid | John G. Avildsen | |
| 1985 | Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment | Jerry Paris | |
| 1986 | The Karate Kid Part II | John G. Avildsen | |
| 1987 | Happy New Year | John G. Avildsen | |
| 1988 | For Keeps | John G. Avildsen | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1964 | Hollywood and the Stars | Mel Stuart | Episode "Natalie Wood: Hollywood's Child" |
| 1965-1966 | Time-Life Specials: The March of Time | William Kronick Alan Landsburg | Episodes "Frontiers of the Mind" and "The Longs: A Louisiana Dynasty" |
| 1972 | The Last of the Wild Mustangs | Gus Jekel | Documentary short |
| 1984 | Paper Dolls | Harry Winer | Episode "Pilot" |
| 1988 | Baby M | James Steven Sadwith | Miniseries |
Documentary film
| Year | Title | Director |
| 1965 | The Bold Men | William Friedkin |
| 1965 | Pro Football: Mayhem on a Sunday Afternoon | William Friedkin |
TV movies
| Year | Title | Director |
| 1970 | Sole Survivor | Paul Stanley |
| 1970 | Lost Flight | Leonard J. Horn |
| 1971 | A Step Out of Line | Bernard McEveety |
| 1971 | Sweet, Sweet Rachel | Sutton Roley |
| 1973 | The Great American Beauty Contest | Robert Day |
| 1974 | The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman | John Korty |
| 1975 | The Entertainer | Donald Wrye |
| 1975 | F. Scott Fitzgerald in Hollywood | Anthony Page |
| 1976 | The Disappearance of Aimee | Anthony Harvey |
| 1977 | Eleanor and Franklin: The White House Years | Daniel Petrie |
| 1978 | A Death in Canaan | Tony Richardson |
| 1979 | Strangers: The Story of a Mother and Daughter | Milton Katselas |
| 1982 | The Letter | John Erman |
| 1983 | Two Kinds of Love | Jack Bender |
| 1984 | More Than Murder | Gary Nelson |
| 1984 | Family Secrets | Jack Hofsiss |
| 1984 | Concrete Beat | Robert Butler |
| 1985 | The Hugga Bunch | Gus Jekel |
| 1985 | The Covenant | Walter Grauman |
| 1986 | Long Time Gone | Robert Butler |
| 1986 | George Washington II: The Forging of a Nation | William Graham |
| 1986 | When the Bough Breaks | Waris Hussein |
| 1987 | Deadly Care | David Anspaugh |
| 1987 | Code Name: Dancer (aka Her Secret Life) | Buzz Kulik |