Ian Crafford, the British film editor whose four-decade career included Tommy Chong’s Still Smokin, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Never Say Never Again, and Field of Dreams, has died at 82.
Crafford passed away on July 22 at his home in Brazil following a long battle with cancer, his son Scott Crafford told The Hollywood Reporter.
For Cheech and Chong fans, Crafford’s most notable credit is his work as editor on Tommy Chong’s 1983 comedy Still Smokin. His extensive résumé also includes sound effects on the classic Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), picture editing on Sean Connery’s return as James Bond in Never Say Never Again (1983), and Phil Alden Robinson’s Oscar-nominated Field of Dreams (1989).
A Career Spanning Comedy, Bond, and Oscar Contenders
Crafford’s editing credits further included Frank Oz’s The Indian in the Cupboard, David Anspaugh’s The Game of Their Lives, and two films with Michael Apted: Class Action and Thunderheart.He collaborated three times with director John Boorman on The Emerald Forest, the Oscar Best Picture nominee Hope and Glory (for which Crafford earned a BAFTA nomination), and Where the Heart Is.
Born June 11, 1944, in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England, Crafford began with a summer job at Elstree Studios at age 17 and never returned to school. He started as an assistant editor on Carol Reed’s The Running Man and Michael Anderson’s The Quiller Memorandum, then moved into sound editing on films including Captain Apache, The Darwin Adventure, Fury, and Steppenwolf in the early 1970s.
He handled sound effects on Monty Python and the Holy Grail and, according to his son, became Sophia Loren’s preferred ADR specialist—“much to the chagrin of my mother,” Scott joked.
Crafford transitioned to picture editing with The Medusa Touch (starring Richard Burton and Lee Remick), a film produced by legendary Lawrence of Arabia editor Anne V. Coates. He later edited Snow White: A Tale of Terror and Savior, with his final credit on The Hot Potato in 2012.
He moved to the United States in 1988 to work on Field of Dreams. Time spent filming The Emerald Forest sparked his love for Brazil, where he eventually settled and spent his retirement.
Crafford is survived by his wife, Antonia, and his children Scott, Roberta, Monyka, and Paul.
