Bob Anderson

Bob Anderson (September 15, 1922&mdash;January 1, 2012) was an English actor and fencer. Anderson also owns a claim to fame for being a swordfighting trainer for several films, as well as a stunt double for Darth Vader in Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back and Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. He served as the Swordmaster in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.

Early life and career
Bob Anderson was born in Hampshire, England. At some point in his life, he took a career in the art of fencing. As a competitive fencer, he represented Great Britain at the Olympic Games in 1952 and the World Championships in 1950 and 1953 in the sabre event. He finished tied for fifth in the team sabre event at Helsinki in 1952.

Anderson did not receive much recognition for his role in the Star Wars films for years after their initial release, in part because David Prowse was so lauded for his portrayal that director George Lucas did not want to detract from the boost it gave the actor's career. In a 1983 interview, however, Mark Hamill paid homage to Anderson's contribution, saying: "Bob Anderson was the man who actually did Vader's fighting. It was always supposed to be a secret, but I finally told George I didn't think it was fair any more. Bob worked so bloody hard that he deserves some recognition. It's ridiculous to preserve the myth that it's all done by one man."

Bob Anderson soon made a career in sword training for films. Among his credits as a fight choreographer and fencing coach are The Three Musketeers, First Knight, The Mask of Zorro''.

Pirates of the Caribbean
Sometime during his contribution to The Lord of the Rings trilogy, Bob Anderson had worked as the swordmaster for Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. In the documentary film Reclaiming the Blade, Bob Anderson shared his experiences working with Johnny Depp on the choreography for The Curse of the Black Pearl. He described that Depp's ability as an actor to pick up the sword to be "about as good as you can get."

Retirement and death
After his retirement from fencing competition, Anderson emigrated to Canada, where he went on to become technical director of the Canadian Fencing Association. Anderson died on New Year's Day 2012 in a West Sussex hospital, at the age of 89.

PotC films

 * Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl - Swordmaster