Blind Dick

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Blind Dick is a character in the 1967 prison movie Cool Hand Luke played by Richard Davalos. He is named for his dark sunglasses that completely obscure his eyes. In the movie he is referred to as the "walking boss" because it is his job to oversee the operations performed by the prison chain gang and to ensure they are properly guarded while they work outside of the prison walls.

Although he never speaks throughout the duration of the film, his foreboding presence is easily recognized and inspires fear in the prisoners.

It is unknown as to whether the character is in fact blind. He sometimes walks with a cane, and his name is also a fairly obvious indication. However, he displays great skill as a sharpshooter, although some fans who support the theory that the character is indeed blind make the argument that he is equipped with heightened senses enabling him to hear his targets--an argument strengthened by the fact that he generally shoots only targets that are making constant noise such as birds calling, a rattlesnake rattling; near the end, he shoots Luke while he is speaking. However at one point he also shoots a silent snapping turtle.