Ned Rubinstein

 is a supporting character featured in the 1980 slasher film Friday the 13th. He was played by actor Mark Nelson. Ned served as the "jokester" figure in the film and was one of eight people to be murdered in cold blood by the psychopathic Pamela Voorhees.

Biography
Ned Rubinstein was one seven camp counselors hired by Steve Christy to oversee renovation and repairs at Camp Crystal Lake in 1979. Ned was known for his impish nature and had a penchant for playing practical jokes; not all of which were appreciated by his peers. Ned drove to the camp with his friends Jack Marand and Marcie Cunningham. Ned assisted a co-worker named Brenda with cleaning up the archery range. While Brenda was setting up one of the targets, Ned showed off his archery skills by firing an arrow into the bulls eye, coming dangerously close to striking Brenda as well. Shortly thereafter, Ned's behavior earned him the scorn of a passing motorcycle cop named Officer Dorf. Dorf saw Ned dressed in nothing but his underwear and a Native American headdress, jumping about and making mock Indian cries. Dorf warned him to calm down and even referred to him as "Tonto". A short while later, Ned and the others went swimming in Crystal Lake. Ned staged a fake drowning incident and his Brenda brought him ashore and began administering mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. Ned took this opportunity to steal a kiss, but Brenda found little humor in his antics by this point.

Later that day, Ned was walking along a rocky path when he caught sight of someone entering one of the cabins. He went to investigate and encountered Pamela Voorhees, who had lost her own son in a drowning accident, was bent on revenge against anybody associated with Camp Crystal Lake. She slit Ned's throat with her hunting knife then propped his corpse on the top bunk of one of the beds. Jack and Marcie later came into the cabin to make love, never realizing that their friend was lying dead just inches above their heads.

Notes & Trivia



 * The character of Ned Rubinstein is the first in a string of "prankster" archetypes found throughout the Friday the 13th film series. Generally (though not always), these characters meet an untimely end at the hands of Jason Voorhees, or in this case, Pamela Voorhees. Other pranksters featured in the films include Ted (played by Stu Charno in Friday the 13th Part 2), Shelly Finkelstein (played by Larry Zerner in Friday the 13th Part III), and another Ted (played by Lawrence Monoson in Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter).


 * Ned Rubinstein's death took place off-camera. Presumably the murder weapon was the hunting knife that Pamela used to kill most of her other victims.


 * Ned Rubinstein was the fourth murder victim in the film. He was the second victim of the 1979 massacre and the first victim from this spree to actually be killed on the campground.