He played one of the most terrifying monsters of Hollywood’s Golden Age, Riku Browning, who has died aged 93.

A specialist in water shows and underwater productions, Riku Browning worked in tourist attractions until Universal studios and director Jack Arnold called him to supervise the marine sections of “The Strange Creature from the Black Lake” in 1954. A monster costume that he is happy to accept.

It was a success, and Browning found himself directing sequels: Revenge of the Creature from the Black Lake (1955) and The Creature Among Us (1956). A few years later, he was called back to work on an episode of Remous with Lloyd Bridges (1961), again for an underwater session.

Then he started a project close to his heart, Flipper, a series about family and dolphin friendship. A co-creator of the popular series, he produced 38 episodes from 1964 to 1967. In the process, he continued his apprenticeship with another family series, Mon ami Ben (like Flipper, but with a bear).

He then began his career as a director of second installments, most notably James Bond on Thunderball. In 1969, he reunited with Jack Arnold years later in Creature from the Black Lake for Hello Down There, the story of a family who agrees to live in a prototype underwater house.

In 1973, he directed his first solo feature film, Salty, a comedy about the friendship between a sea lion and two children who lost their parents in a hurricane. The project also produced a one-season series that aired from 1974 to 1975. His second and final film would be Infernal Pursuit (1978), Nanari’s flagship offering a bowler who is skilled in kung fu.

He will then return to second team production with Joe Panther, Le Golf en folie or Police Academy 5. He then ended his career and died on February 27, 2023 at the age of 93.