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David Hess, Songwriter of Elvis Hits and Horror Actor, Dead at 69

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David Hess, a songwriter who penned hits for Elvis Presley and an actor in several horror films, died Friday, Oct. 7 of a heart attack at his home in Tiburon, Calif., the New York Times reports. He was 69 years old.

In 1956, Hess recorded the first version of the Otis Blackwell tune 'All Shook Up' before it became a hit for Elvis Presley. Hess became a professional songwriter for Shalimar Music and went on to write and co-write such songs as Presley's 'I Got Stung' and Pat Boone's No. 1 hit 'Speedy Gonzalez.' Hess also recorded several solo albums, producing the Top 10 folk hit 'Two Brothers,' and later became head of A&R for Mercury.

He made the jump to acting in 1972, starring in Wes Craven's first movie, 'The Last House on the Left,' which was one of the pioneering films in the slasher genre. After that, he got several more roles playing villains in horror flicks, appearing in 'House on the Edge of the Park' and Craven's 1982 'Swamp Thing.'

Hess is survived by his wife Regina, a brother, two sisters, three sons and a daughter.

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mhsden

RIP

October 14 2011 at 5:09 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Joe

IN 1956 HESS WOULD HAVE BEEN 14 YEARS OLD.ELVIS WAS JUST GETTING STARTED.ALL SHOOK UP DID NOT COME OUT UNTIL LATER. I REMEMBER HEARING HEARTBREAK HOTEL IN 1959, AND ALL SHOOK UP LATER THAN THAT.STORY WOULD MAKE BETTER SENSE IF HESS WAS 79 YRS OLD.I'M A ROCKER THAT KNOWS BIG RECORD COMPANY IN DETROIT BEFORE MOTOWN.ONE OF PEFORMERS IS STILL AROUND,LAST HEARD OF 2 YEARS AGO.

October 14 2011 at 2:52 AM Report abuse +1 rate up rate down Reply
lorenzobrieba

David Hess as Krug Stillo & Fred J. Lincoln as Weasel Podowski were the last of the native born NY actors. Their roles in Wes Craven's "Last House on the Left" is a cult classic in the same category as 'Night of the Living Dead', 'the Texas Chain Saw Massacre', and 'The Town that Dreaded Sundown'.

I forgot all about David Hess until now upon hearing of his death. It's sad that at times we only recall people after they die. At least he seemed to have lived an interesting artistic life. R.I.P.

October 14 2011 at 1:17 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
armandsmith

He had to be 75 for if he was 69 he would of been 14 yrs old when he sang all shook up.

October 14 2011 at 12:47 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Darth Sidious

Way to wait a week before reporting on this one.

October 13 2011 at 11:57 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
miss cathy

that was a good one

October 13 2011 at 11:41 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
zorr001

giant ants

October 13 2011 at 11:04 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
dennisiddm

75? Well makes it alittle easier to cope with that vs 69..
It's a Shame of course
But we all will go sometime and Maybe this was one of the easy ways to go
Imagiine having cancer and jsut waiting to Die in a Nursing Home? Dwindling away, day by day..That's the way I watched my Dad Go
and my Mother? Sitting in a Wheel Chair , Blind , on Dialysis, took 2 Long yrs for her to go..and she was 72.
May sound Inappropiate , but Hope I go the way he did..

October 13 2011 at 10:49 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
David Szulkin

He was 75, not 69. You'd think the AOL reporter would have noticed this is the NY Times obit since that is where all the other info was taken from...David was a good friend of mine and I will miss him.

October 13 2011 at 10:23 PM Report abuse +3 rate up rate down Reply
yo

thanks for the songs he wrote they became famous to other singers, but if it was not
david these songs would be nowhere. RIP

Yvonne

October 13 2011 at 10:12 PM Report abuse +1 rate up rate down Reply