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Bob Anderson is a Actor, Grip and Stunts British born on 15 september 1922 at Gosport (United-kingdom)
Robert James Gilbert "Bob" Anderson (15 September 1922 – 1 January 2012) was a British Olympic fencer, and a renowned film fight choreographer, with a cinema career that spanned more than 50 years and included films such as Highlander, The Princess Bride, The Mask of Zorro, The Lord of the Rings, and Die Another Day. He was regarded as the premier choreographer of Hollywood sword-fighting, and during his career he coached many actors in swordsmanship, including Errol Flynn, Sean Connery, Antonio Banderas, Viggo Mortensen and Johnny Depp. He also appeared as a stunt double for Darth Vader's lightsaber battles in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
As a competitive fencer, he represented Great Britain at the Helsinki 1952 Summer Olympic Games, and the World Championships in 1950 and 1953 in the sabre event. He finished tied for fifth in the team sabre event at Helsinki in 1952.
After his retirement from fencing competition, he studied under Prof. Roger Crosnier and was appointed the first official British National Coach, in charge of the National Training System, the day he was awarded his full Professorship. He succeeded Prof. Crosnier as President of the British Academy of Fencing. During the late 1950s to the 1970s he travelled around Britain, and between fencing courses he combined his official duties with television and film work. Eventually emigrating to Canada, he went on to become technical director of the Canadian Fencing Association in Ottawa. During the 1960s and 1970s he was also the president of the British Academy of Fencing.
Anderson's cinema career began in 1953 when he choreographed fights for and coached Errol Flynn in The Master of Ballantrae. During rehearsal for a scene he accidentally slashed Flynn on his thigh, leading to notoriety in Hollywood as "the man who stabbed Errol Flynn". He went on to work as a stunt performer and/or fight choreographer in films such as The Guns of Navarone and the Bond films From Russia With Love and Casino Royale. His stature in Hollywood was cemented when he was selected by Stanley Kubrick in 1974 to act as the sword master for Barry Lyndon.
Anderson subsequently went on to be involved in all three of the original Star Wars films. Anderson did not receive much recognition for his work for years after their initial release. Mark Hamill in 1983 revealed, "Bob Anderson was the man who actually did Vader's fighting. It was always supposed to be a secret, but I finally told George I didn't think it was fair any more. Bob worked so bloody hard that he deserves some recognition. It's ridiculous to preserve the myth that it's all done by one man." Anderson in 1994 specified that for The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi he staged the lightsaber duels and also wore the Vader costume in fight scenes. David Prowse, who played Vader, said he did his own swordplay in the first Star Wars film but afterward, "having one of the principals do his own stunts made [the filmmakers] very weird from an insurance point of view."
Anderson continued to work in cinema for the next 30 years, and was responsible for the swordsmanship in many films, including Highlander, The Princess Bride, The Three Musketeers, The Mask of Zorro, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl and The Lord of the Rings film trilogy. Shortly before his death he was working on The Hobbit. He had a reputation for being a perfectionist, with director Martin Campbell giving him the nickname "Grumpy Bob". Anderson was interviewed at length for the 2009 documentary on cinematic sword-fighting, Reclaiming the Blade, where he commented, "I never took up the sword, I think the sword took me up."
(2003)
(Stunt Coordinator)
(1983)
(Stunts)
(1980)
(Stunts)
(2001)
(Grip)
Source : Wikidata
Bob Anderson
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Nationality United-kingdom
Birth 15 september 1922 at Gosport (United-kingdom)
Death 1 january 2012 (at 89 years) at West Sussex (United-kingdom)
Birth 15 september 1922 at Gosport (United-kingdom)
Death 1 january 2012 (at 89 years) at West Sussex (United-kingdom)
Biography
Anderson was educated at The Royal Hospital School, in Raleigh House. It was here that he began to fence. Anderson joined the Royal Marines and won several combined services titles in the sport of fencing. He served in the Mediterranean during World War II.As a competitive fencer, he represented Great Britain at the Helsinki 1952 Summer Olympic Games, and the World Championships in 1950 and 1953 in the sabre event. He finished tied for fifth in the team sabre event at Helsinki in 1952.
After his retirement from fencing competition, he studied under Prof. Roger Crosnier and was appointed the first official British National Coach, in charge of the National Training System, the day he was awarded his full Professorship. He succeeded Prof. Crosnier as President of the British Academy of Fencing. During the late 1950s to the 1970s he travelled around Britain, and between fencing courses he combined his official duties with television and film work. Eventually emigrating to Canada, he went on to become technical director of the Canadian Fencing Association in Ottawa. During the 1960s and 1970s he was also the president of the British Academy of Fencing.
Anderson's cinema career began in 1953 when he choreographed fights for and coached Errol Flynn in The Master of Ballantrae. During rehearsal for a scene he accidentally slashed Flynn on his thigh, leading to notoriety in Hollywood as "the man who stabbed Errol Flynn". He went on to work as a stunt performer and/or fight choreographer in films such as The Guns of Navarone and the Bond films From Russia With Love and Casino Royale. His stature in Hollywood was cemented when he was selected by Stanley Kubrick in 1974 to act as the sword master for Barry Lyndon.
Anderson subsequently went on to be involved in all three of the original Star Wars films. Anderson did not receive much recognition for his work for years after their initial release. Mark Hamill in 1983 revealed, "Bob Anderson was the man who actually did Vader's fighting. It was always supposed to be a secret, but I finally told George I didn't think it was fair any more. Bob worked so bloody hard that he deserves some recognition. It's ridiculous to preserve the myth that it's all done by one man." Anderson in 1994 specified that for The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi he staged the lightsaber duels and also wore the Vader costume in fight scenes. David Prowse, who played Vader, said he did his own swordplay in the first Star Wars film but afterward, "having one of the principals do his own stunts made [the filmmakers] very weird from an insurance point of view."
Anderson continued to work in cinema for the next 30 years, and was responsible for the swordsmanship in many films, including Highlander, The Princess Bride, The Three Musketeers, The Mask of Zorro, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl and The Lord of the Rings film trilogy. Shortly before his death he was working on The Hobbit. He had a reputation for being a perfectionist, with director Martin Campbell giving him the nickname "Grumpy Bob". Anderson was interviewed at length for the 2009 documentary on cinematic sword-fighting, Reclaiming the Blade, where he commented, "I never took up the sword, I think the sword took me up."
Best films
(2003)(Stunt Coordinator)
(1983)(Stunts)
(1980)(Stunts)
(2001)(Grip)
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Filmography of Bob Anderson (8 films)
Actor
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Reclaiming the Blade (2009)
, 1h18Directed by Daniel McNicoll
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Science fiction, Documentary, Action, Adventure
Themes Documentary films about business, Documentary films about the film industry
Actors Viggo Mortensen, John Rhys-Davies, Karl Urban, Bob Anderson
Roles Self
Rating76%
The Three Musketeers (1993)
, 1h45Directed by Stephen Herek
Origin Austria
Genres Comedy, Swashbuckler, Action, Adventure, Romance
Themes Children's films
Actors Charlie Sheen, Kiefer Sutherland, Chris O'Donnell, Oliver Platt, Tim Curry, Rebecca De Mornay
Roles King's Fencing Instructor (uncredited)
Rating63%
In 1625 France, following in his late father's footsteps, D'Artagnan (Chris O'Donnell) sets off to Paris in hopes of becoming a member of the Musketeers, a band of men sworn to serve and protect the King of France. D'Artagnan is pursued by Gérard and his brothers, who accuse him of blemishing their sister's honor. Gérard saw his sister kissing d'Artagnan goodbye or as d'Artagnan put it "she wanted to give me something to remember her by!" At Musketeer Headquarters, Captain Rochefort (Michael Wincott) and the cardinal's guards have disbanded the musketeers as per the orders of Cardinal Richelieu (Tim Curry), the King's minister, ostensibly to help fight in an impending war with England. Rochefort confides to the Cardinal that there are three musketeers that have refused to relinquish their duties: Athos (Kiefer Sutherland), Porthos (Oliver Platt), and Aramis (Charlie Sheen).
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
, 2h4Directed by Irvin Kershner
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Science fiction, Action, Adventure
Themes Space adventure films, Monde imaginaire, Dans l'espace, Sur une planète fictive, Films about extraterrestrial life, Films about disabilities, Space opera, Children's films, Films about extraterrestrial life, Robot films
Actors Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, David Prowse
Roles Imperial Officer (uncredited)
Rating84%
Three years after the destruction of the Death Star, the Rebel Alliance has been driven from their former base on Yavin IV by the Galactic Empire. Princess Leia leads a contingent including Han Solo and Luke Skywalker in a new base on the icy planet Hoth. The Imperial Fleet, led by Darth Vader, continues to hunt for Rebels’ new base by dispatching probe droids across the galaxy.
Candleshoe (1977)
, 1h41Directed by Norman Tokar
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Comedy-drama
Themes Heist films, Children's films
Actors David Niven, Helen Hayes, Jodie Foster, Leo McKern, Sydney Bromley, John Alderson
Rating67%
Con-artist Harry Bundage (McKern) believes that the lost treasure of pirate captain Joshua St. Edmund is hidden at Candleshoe, the large country estate of Lady St Edmund (Hayes). Having gained access to Captain St. Edmund's hidden will with the help of a corrupt former cleaning woman at Candleshoe, Harry recruits American Casey Brown (Foster)—-an unwanted foster child and hooligan-—into the plot, employing her to pose as Lady St Edmund's granddaughter, the Honourable Margaret, 4th Marchioness of St Edmond, who was kidnapped at age four by her father and subsequently disappeared after her father's death. Casey is the right age to pass for Margaret and possesses several identifying scars that young Margaret was known to have. Casey agrees to go along with the con and discover further clues in exchange for a cut of the treasure.
Some Girls Do (1969)
, 1h28Directed by Ralph Thomas
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Comedy, Action, Adventure, Spy
Themes Spy films, Transport films, Aviation films
Actors Richard Johnson, Daliah Lavi, Beba Loncar, James Villiers, Florence Desmond, Maurice Denham
Roles Senior Aerodynamics Engineer (uncredited)
Rating56%
Drummond is hired after a series of inexplicable accidents befall the people and companies who are responsible for developing the world's first supersonic airliner, the SST1. Drummond, with the help of another agent, uncovers a plot by a mastermind named Carl Petersen, who stands to gain eight million pounds if the aircraft is not ready by a certain date. Petersen has developed a number of robots: beautiful girls with electronic brains to help him sabotage the SST1 project by means of infrasound (sound waves with too low frequency to be detected by the human ear) which can be directed at people or objects with devastating results.
Cameraman
A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001)
, 2h26Directed by Steven Spielberg
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Science fiction, Adventure
Themes Films about children, Environmental films, Post-apocalyptic films, Films about religion, Films set in the future, Political films, Dystopian films, Children's films, Robot films, Disaster films
Actors Haley Joel Osment, Jude Law, Frances O'Connor, Brendan Gleeson, Ashley Scott, William Hurt
Roles Grip
Rating71%
In the late 21st century, global warming has flooded coastlines, drastically reducing the human population. There is a new class of robots called Mecha, advanced humanoids capable of emulating thoughts and emotions. David (Haley Joel Osment), a prototype model created by Cybertronics of New Jersey, is designed to resemble a human child and to display love for its human owners. They test their creation with one of their employees, Henry Swinton (Sam Robards), and his wife Monica (Frances O'Connor). The Swintons' son, Martin (Jake Thomas), was placed in suspended animation until a cure can be found for his rare disease which is caused by the Sinclair virus. Initially frightened of David, Monica eventually warms enough to him to activate his imprinting protocol, which irreversibly causes David to have an enduring childlike love for her. He is also befriended by Teddy (Jack Angel), a robotic teddy bear, who takes it upon himself to care for David's well-being.
Team
, 3h21Directed by Peter Jackson
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Fantasy, Action, Adventure
Themes Films about animals, Films about magic and magicians, Monde imaginaire, Films about spiders, Middle-earth films
Actors Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Andy Serkis, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Cate Blanchett
Roles Stunt Coordinator
Rating85%
Gandalf leads Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, and King Théoden to Isengard where they reunite with Merry and Pippin, who helped the Ents destroy Saruman’s forces. With Saruman himself defeated, Gandalf retrieves Saruman’s palantír which is viewed by a curious Pippin, allowing Sauron to attack the Hobbit’s mind. Gandalf deduces Sauron will attack Gondor’s capital Minas Tirith, riding there with Pippin. They meet Lord Denethor, steward of Gondor, and Boromir’s father. Pippin declares his service to Denethor after Boromir died protecting him.
Return of the Jedi (1983)
, 2h14Directed by Richard Marquand
Origin USA
Genres Science fiction, Fantasy, Action, Adventure
Themes Films about children, Space adventure films, Monde imaginaire, Dans l'espace, Sur une planète fictive, Films about extraterrestrial life, Space opera, Children's films, Films about extraterrestrial life, Robot films
Actors Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, David Prowse
Roles Stunts
Rating79%
Luke Skywalker initiates a plan to rescue Han Solo from the crime lord Jabba the Hutt with the help of Princess Leia, Lando Calrissian, Chewbacca, C-3PO, and R2-D2. Leia infiltrates Jabba's palace on Tatooine disguised as a bounty hunter with Chewbacca as her prisoner. Lando is already there disguised as a guard. Leia releases Han from his carbonite prison, but she is captured and enslaved. Luke arrives soon afterward but after a tense standoff, he is captured. After Luke survives his battle with Jabba's Rancor, Jabba sentences him and Han to death by feeding them to the Sarlacc. Luke frees himself and battles Jabba's guards. During the chaos, Boba Fett, who has remained at Jabba's palace since delivering Han, attempts to attack Luke, but Han inadvertently knocks him into the Sarlacc pit. Meanwhile, Leia strangles Jabba to death, and Luke destroys Jabba's sail barge as the group escapes. While the others rendezvous with the Rebel Alliance, Luke returns to Dagobah where he finds that Yoda is dying. Before he dies, Yoda confirms that Darth Vader, once known as Anakin Skywalker, is Luke's father, and there is "another Skywalker". The spirit of Obi-Wan Kenobi confirms that this other Skywalker is Luke's twin sister, Leia. Obi-Wan tells Luke that he must fight Vader again to defeat the Empire.
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
, 2h4Directed by Irvin Kershner
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Science fiction, Action, Adventure
Themes Space adventure films, Monde imaginaire, Dans l'espace, Sur une planète fictive, Films about extraterrestrial life, Films about disabilities, Space opera, Children's films, Films about extraterrestrial life, Robot films
Actors Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, David Prowse
Roles Stunts
Rating84%
Three years after the destruction of the Death Star, the Rebel Alliance has been driven from their former base on Yavin IV by the Galactic Empire. Princess Leia leads a contingent including Han Solo and Luke Skywalker in a new base on the icy planet Hoth. The Imperial Fleet, led by Darth Vader, continues to hunt for Rebels’ new base by dispatching probe droids across the galaxy.
Candleshoe (1977)
, 1h41Directed by Norman Tokar
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Comedy-drama
Themes Heist films, Children's films
Actors David Niven, Helen Hayes, Jodie Foster, Leo McKern, Sydney Bromley, John Alderson
Roles Stunt Coordinator
Rating67%
Con-artist Harry Bundage (McKern) believes that the lost treasure of pirate captain Joshua St. Edmund is hidden at Candleshoe, the large country estate of Lady St Edmund (Hayes). Having gained access to Captain St. Edmund's hidden will with the help of a corrupt former cleaning woman at Candleshoe, Harry recruits American Casey Brown (Foster)—-an unwanted foster child and hooligan-—into the plot, employing her to pose as Lady St Edmund's granddaughter, the Honourable Margaret, 4th Marchioness of St Edmond, who was kidnapped at age four by her father and subsequently disappeared after her father's death. Casey is the right age to pass for Margaret and possesses several identifying scars that young Margaret was known to have. Casey agrees to go along with the con and discover further clues in exchange for a cut of the treasure.