[6] American International Pictures asked Hessler to step in to produce and direct The Oblong Box (1969), starring Vincent Price, when Michael Reeves became unavailable.
[3] Price was meant to be in Hessler's (and Wicking's) next film, a version of Murders in the Rue Morgue (1971), but clashed with AIP so Jason Robards played the lead instead.
[10] In an article in Sight and Sound it was said Hessler "has an almost instantly recognisable visual style, perhaps dating from his documentary days, which gives all his films a suggestion of the surreal.
[12] Hessler did a TV movie with Bette Davis, Scream, Pretty Peggy (1973) then made the Ray Harryhausen adventure The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1974).
He also directed episodes of Lucas Tanner, Amy Prentiss, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Kung Fu, Switch, The Blue Knight, Spencer's Pilots, The Eddie Capra Mysteries, Wonder Woman, CHiPs, and Hawaii Five-O.