Filmmaker by Default

Robert W. Morgan

Filmmaker by Default

Robert W. Morgan entered the film business sideways. As the director to the 7 month-long 1974 American Yeti Expeditions as cosponsored through the National Wildlife Federation and supported by the 17-member Science Advisory Board of the American Anthropological Research Foundation, he appeared as himself for the televised Smithsonian series Monsters: Myth or Mystery and a Bostonian Films feature-length docudrama. Much of his unprecedented successes resulted from the advice and counsel of Native American elders who shared their legends as recounted in his nonfiction work, The Soul Snatchers as published by Pine Winds Press.

Ciye Nino Coshise, Apache Ingram Billie, Miccosukkee Pima, Papago and Apache

The nationwide publicity surrounding Morgan’s adventures attracted the attention of Bill Grefe, the president of Miami’s Ivan Tors Studios (Sea Hunt, Gentle Ben, Flipper, etc.). Robert provided Grefe with outlines to his future adventures in a film proposal entitled In Search of the World’s Mysteries that evolved into Leonard Nimoy’s popular TV series
In Search Of ….

Grefe encouraged Morgan to study screenwriting by working as a crewmember and a bit player in the feature film Impulse with William Shatner and Goldfinger’s famous Harold Oddjob Sakata

An accident on the set nearly cost Oddjob his life.
Shatner and Morgan's swift actions resulted in lifetime friendships.

Still a neophyte in the ways of Hollywood where iron-clad contracts are necessary to protect intellectual properties from idea-pirates, Morgan’s first-draft screenplays evolved into the disastrous Mako: the Jaws of Death and Lucky Lady with Burt Reynolds, Liza Minnelli, and Gene Hackman. Furious, Robert forced Grefe to use a pseudonym on Mako.

      Robert was then recruited by Miami’s Creative Film & Sound to write, co-produce, direct and co-star in its feature film, The Night Daniel Died. No one realized until years later they had made what became cult-classic film, Bloodstalkers.



       In 2008 alone, Morgan autographed 186 DVDs for domestic and international fans of the action/mystery/horror film aficionados. Not bad for a 30 year-old film.

      One would think this would launch a new career – and it certainly did, but not as he had planned. With the successful release of Bloodstalkers, the recently paroled CIA spy Frank A. Sturgis (Watergate) approached him to work with the award-winning book author Oscar Fraley about Sturgis’ life as a CIA operative. Fraley certainly had the credentials: he had authored 31 books including Hoffa: the Real Story and The Untouchables, a work that sold 1.5 million copies and was made into both a television series and a movie. Robert quickly penned a combined book and film proposal he entitled The Sturgis Files: Lies Our Fathers Told Us.

      However, before he could swing into action in Florida, Morgan was approached by a private group and offered the opportunity to write and direct a series of adventure films for a studio his group would build for him in Panama. This location would be perfect not only for The Sturgis Files but for three additional properties Morgan had developed.

      Josef Shaftel, the producer of The Naked Hills, The Sell Out, Alice in Wonderland, Gulliver’s Travels, etc., arrived from England to introduce Morgan to Hollywood’s Richard Fleischer, the director of Tora! Tora! Tora!, Barabbas, Fantastic Voyage, Mr. Majestik, The Boston Strangler, etc. Shaftel and Fleischer had read three of Robert’s screenplays and had agreed to the venture.

      Morgan appeared to be on top of the world - until he discovered the financiers for his films were major Mafia narcotics smugglers his films would be used as a money-laundering scheme devised by the infamous gangster Meyer Lansky.

      Robert did the unexpected. He gathered detailed information – people, places, actions, documentation – before alerting federal authorities. He then volunteered to work undercover for them for expenses only.

      What was his motivation? He knew dope peddlers were targeting the playground where his 11 year-old daughter attended school. When the local cop-shop turned a blind eye, Robert decided to extract his own revenge. Forgetting the corner dealer; he went after the big boys and became their constant companion for over three years.

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