Who's left?

With the passing of Mark Forest on January 7, many speculated over the remaining PEPLUM stars. Mark was one of the big stars, and as I mentioned in his obit, his death sorta signals the end of an era. But there are still a good number of actors of the genre who are still with us. Many of them had a similar career as Mark, certainly Ed Fury, so the era is still not completely over. We're in the twilight phase I guess. 

I won't list regular actors, like Roger Browne (MARS - GOD OF WAR) or Mark Damon (THE SON OF CLEOPATRA) or Brett Halsey (THE MAGNIFICENT ADVENTURER), who are still with us. I'll only list the bodybuilder/actors, known for their work in physique modelling before heading to Rome. I also won't list stars like Lou Ferrigno who became famous decades after the Golden Era of the PEPLUM genre.

ED FURY

Ed Fury starred in multiple PEPLUM movies, including the popular URSUS series. Ed is 93 years old today. I can't find a current photo of him. This screenshot is from THE SEVEN REVENGES.



KIRK MORRIS

Kirk Morris is alive. He was born in 1942. He's the star of many PEPLUM movies, including MACISTE IN HELL. He's aging fairly well.

RICHARD HARRISON

Richard Harrison is one of the biggest PEPLUM stars left. He made 9 genre movies in the early 1960s, including PERSEUS THE INVINCIBLE (1963; Medusa against the Son of Hercules).

PETER LUPUS

Peter is still alive. He's famous for his role in MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE TV series but Peter made 4 PEPLUM movies in the 1960s, including HERCULES AND THE TYRANTS OF BABYLON (left).



HOWARD ROSS

Howard, born Renato Rossini, is still with us. In fact, he celebrated his birthday recently, on January 10. Howard was in many PEPLUM productions, including SAMSON AND THE MIGHTY CHALLENGE in which he played Maciste. 



PIETRO TORRISI

Bodybuilder Pietro Torrisi starred in many PEPLUM movies of the Golden Era, as supporting actor, but he had lead roles in the movies from the 1980s, including THE THRONE OF FIRE with Sabrina Siani.



GIOVANNI CIANFRIGLIA

Giovanni didn't have a lead role in PEPLUM movies but he was famous for being the body double/stuntman for Steve Reeves and he appeared in small roles here and there but his unforgettable role as Antaeus in HERCULES THE AVENGER solidified him as a PEPLUM star. Below: Giovanni in a recent documentary on the genre. 

SAMSON BURKE

Canadian-born Samson is still alive. He's a regular at signing conventions. The movie above:  VENGEANCE OF URSUS. He's most famous for playing Hercules in THE 3 STOOGES MEET HERCULES.

So, there's still a fair number of PEPLUM stars left but the list will dwindle fast since most of the are 80 years and older.