In Memoriam: Joe Powell

Joe Powell (21 March 1922 - 30 June 2016) has passed away.

Joe Powell, doubling for Sean Connery on the set of "The Man Who Would be King"
PHOTO CREDIT:PENELOPE REIFFER

Joe Powell, who has died aged 94, was known as the “daddy of British stuntmen” for the gut-wrenchingly high-risk feats he performed in classic adventure films such as "Where Eagles Dare" and "The Guns of Navarone".

For "The Man Who Would Be King", John Huston’s adaptation of a Rudyard Kipling story filmed in the Atlas mountains, Powell, doubling for Sean Connery, had to plunge 100 ft from a collapsed rope bridge into a perilous ravine: if he had missed the target area covered with boxes to cushion his fall, he would have plummeted a further 2,000 ft. The co-star Michael Caine walked away saying: “I’m not going to watch this one.” Huston was delighted, saying it was “the darnedest stunt I ever saw”.

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Source: The Telegraph

Photo: From the set of "The Man Who Would Be King": Penelope Reiffer


Joe Powell in James Bond movies:

Stunts (uncredited) in "Casino Royale" (1967)
Stunt rigger (uncredited) / stunts (uncredited) in "You Only Live Twice" (1967)
Stunt double Blofeld (uncredited) in "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" (1969)
Stunt arranger in "A View to a Kill" (1985)

According to Movie-Dude.co.uk site Joe Powell acted also in "Casino Royale" (1967) having two roles: British Officer and Strong Man / Piper.

Joe Powell as British Officer in
"Casino Royale" (1967)
Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Joe Powell as Strong Man / Piper in
"Casino Royale" (1967)
Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC