Darth Vader actor Dave Prowse dies aged 85

[IceWizard]

Darth Vader actor Dave Prowse
dies aged 85

Former weightlifter and actor best known for playing
Darth Vader in the Star Wars movies has died,
his agent has said



Darth Vader in a scene from The Empire Strikes Back, part of the
Star Wars trilogy. The actor who played Vader, Dave Prowse, has
died at age 85. Photograph:
Cine Text/Sportsphoto Ltd./Allstar


Guardian staff
Sun 29 Nov 2020 02.18 EST


David “Dave” Prowse, the actor best known for playing
Darth Vader in the original Star Wars trilogy, has died
at the age of 85, his agent has said.

Agent Thomas Bowington said: “It’s with great regret and
heart-wrenching sadness for us and million of fans around
the world, to announce that our client Dave Prowse MBE
has passed away at the age of 85.”

Jason Joiner, an events producer who worked with Prowse,
announced the death on a Facebook page dedicated to the
actor, adding: “Dave was dedicated to meeting the fans for
decades and lots of fans’ first ever guest they met was Dave
in the early days of Comic Cons and collators’ events. Dave
was larger than life and he will be so very much missed.
Our love and thoughts go out to his family.”

Prowse was a former bodybuilder who had a series of roles
as monsters and villains before being invited by George Lucas
to audition for the roles of Vader and Chewbacca. He chose
Vader and when asked why, replied: “Everyone remembers
the villain.”




David Prowse, right, with fellow Star Wars actor Peter Mayhew,
who played Chewbacca, in 1999.
Photograph: REX/Shutterstock



Born in Bristol in 1935, Prowse was, according to IMDB, raised
by his mother and never knew his father. He developed a passion
for bodybuilding and weight training in his early teens and
competed in Mr Universe competitions, where he became friends
with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Lou Ferrigno. He also shredded
phone books under the stage-name Jack the Ripper.

He won the British heavyweight weightlifting championship
three times and was selected to represent England at the 1962
Commonwealth Games in Perth, Australia.

Prowse’s first film was 1967’s Casino Royale, where he played
Frankenstein’s Monster. Although the casting was based on
Prowse’s stature, he developed a strong interest in acting and
decided to pursue it further. His CV included roles in
A Clockwork Orange and many Hammer Horror films, and he
was the personal trainer who prepared Christopher Reeve for
the role of Superman in 1978.

Prowse was in the Vader suit for much of the Sith Lord’s screen
time and reputedly even got to speak his lines on set, though
his west country tones were dubbed over with those of
American actor James Earl Jones in post-production, and
many of the fight scenes featured British Olympic fencer
Bob Anderson.




Prowse as the Green Cross Man in a 1970s road safety campaign.
Photograph: Evening Standard/Getty Images



To add insult to injury, when Vader’s face was finally shown to
audiences as he lay dying in 1983’s Return of the Jedi, producer
George Lucas chose to cast the British stage actor
Sebastian Shaw instead.

Prowse and Lucas later fell out, leading to Prowse being banned
from official Star Wars activities in 2010

Despite the fame he won as Vader, Prowse said he was most
proud of his role as the Green Cross Man in a long-running
British road safety campaign, for which he was awarded and
MBE in 2000.

In a column for the Guardian in 2014, Prowse wrote:
“Many people will know me for being the ultimate screen villain,
Star Wars’ Darth Vader. But being a “goodie goodie” and
heading up the Green Cross Code campaign, helping to save
thousands of lives has always been the ultimate honour.”


Dave was married for 57 years to Norma Scammell
and had 3 kids.
He was 85.

RIP