RIP Dinny Powell

 

Stuntman, actor Dennis ‘Dinny’ Powell died in London, England on June 6, 2023. He was 91. The brother of stuntman, actor Nosher Powell [1928-2013], Dinny was born in Camberwell, London, England on July 27, 1932. The brothers started out as boxers but as the Film and TV business started to flourish in the late 1950s and early 1960s Dinny and Nosher found themselves in demand. The Powell family are from solid stock. Both Nosher and Dinny were imposing characters and were often cast as heavies in TV series like ‘The Avengers’, ‘The Saint’ and ‘Danger Man’. These early performances gave them Equity union status and the doors were open for the future. They also had the benefit of horsemanship on their side. Firstly, they were in westerns like “For a Few Dollars More” and major films such as “You Can’t Win ‘Em All” with Tony Curtis and Charles Bronson, and then the world of jousting came calling. The thing with being a fine horseman who is a film and television stuntman, is you don’t have opportunity to use this ability all the time. A jousting troupe was set up by fellow stuntman Max Diamond which employed the services of everyone who could ride. They not only got to create and perform great sword fights and fall off horses. Tours of the US and Australia became not only a great adventure, but was also a sort of, promotional exercise for the UK stuntmen. He’s remembered as the guy in “Superman II”, who is thrown through the wall by General Zod after he threatened Ursa. Even more memorable was his appearance as a bodyguard in the movie “Revenge of the Pink Panther”. With over 135 credits to his name Dinny was a remarkable man. He appeared in four Euro-westerns: “For a Few Dollars More” (1965) [stunts]; “Sky Bandits” – (1986) [stunts]; “The New Zorro” (TV) (1990) and “Red Dwarf: Gunmen of the Apocalypse” (TV) (1993) as Famine.