Hollywood sword master, Bob Anderson, passes away at age 89.

You would be forgiven for reading that headline, scrunching up your face in concentration, and then silently muttering “Who?”. But I can almost guarantee, that if you are any sort of film fan, that you’ve seen this man’s work.

An English Olympic level fencer in the 1950’s, Bob Anderson was the go-to sword master in Hollywood for many a decade. His career stretched back to swashbuckling with Errol Flynn, to famously crossing lightsabers with Obi Wan Kenobi as Darth Vader, to even teaching Jack Sparrow how to stick people with the pointy end.

His list of stunt/fighting choreography and consultancy is a veritable film geek wishlist, including the aforementioned as well as several James Bond titles, Doctor Who, Superman, Guns of Navarrone, Highlander, Zorro, The Princess Bride and Lord of the Rings amongst others. He was most recently working on Peter Jackson’s adaptation of The Hobbit.

With his passing, the film world is certainly one star poorer. Anderson passed away peacefully in hospital on the morning of January first.

Last Updated: January 3, 2012