I was just reading the script of Lethal Weapon online. As those who has the seen movie, there is a scene in which the General (Mitchell Ryan) burns Joshua's (Gary Busey) arm while holding a client to do it with a cigarette lighter. So two guys are holding their client while The General grabs the arm with the lighter and Busey holds willingly his arm against the flame to show they are not to be messed with. In the script this described as an 'old G. Gordon Liddy maneuvre'. I don't know how many Gordon Liddy's are out there but the chances that this is a reference to this actor are pretty likely. Though I'm still looking for a link to it, maybe he was famous for doing things like that. His past is quite notorious. Before his acting career he was active in politics. He served in the Korean War, joined the FBI, became prosecutor, politician, worked undercover for the White House and was even involved in the Watergate Scandal. Spend years in jail for burglary, conspiracy and wiretapping. He also wrote a book that was made in a television movie. In the book he states he and compagnion was send out to kill a journalist. He played himself in Oliver Stone's Nixon and has played several guest starring roles in tv-shows, including MacGyver. He played Strickland in Collision Course. He als had his own radio show for twenty years and is now retired.