Edward Bunker died Tuesday at age 71 of complications from diabetes. Born in Hollywood, Bunker spent his childhood in foster homes and reform school. He went to San Quentin prison at age 17 and was their youngest inmate.
While incarcerated, Bunker wrote the crime fiction classic No Beast So Fierce, which first came out in 1973. The novel, about a former criminal trying to go straight, was the basis of the film Straight Time starring Dustin Hoffman.
Bunker also acted in more than two-dozen films. Notably, he played Mr. Blue in the Quentin Tarantino film Reservoir Dogs.
His last published book was the 2000 memoir Education of a Felon, and his last onscreen appearance was as a convict in the remake of The Longest Yard.
This story was originally broadcast on July 12, 1993.
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