action hero : Spreety TV Online Glossary
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action hero n. 1. The protagonist (hero) in
an action genre work. 2. An actor who is famous for playing the lead in action
or adventure films.
The first action heroes came from silent serials, such as Pearl
White in The Perils of Pauline (1914), and westerns, such as Tom Mix who
played everyone in the West from a cowboy to an Indian and from a lawman to a
bandit. Many silent slapstick comedies were so violent and full of action that
their stars were as much action heroes as comedians. Buster Keaton and Harold
Lloyd were both well known for doing their own action stunts in an age before
stuntmen were in common use. Lloyd lost his right thumb and forefinger when a
prop bomb exploded in his hand during filming. (In subsequent films, Lloyd wore
a special glove with two fake fingers to fill in for his missing digits.)
Keaton broke his back on a railroad track when a stunt with a water tower went
wrong. (The injury was not diagnosed until years later.)
The most famous action hero of the Studio Era (1927–1954) was
Errol Flynn. Flynn is closely associated with the swashbuckler genre, such as Captain
Blood (1935) and The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), but he also
appeared in more contemporary action films such as Dive Bomber (1941).
Hong Kong became known as a
center for martial arts action films in the 1970s, principally due to the films
of Bruce Lee. Jackie Chan’s Hong Kong action career also began in the 1970s,
but continued into the 21st century with Hollywood films such as Shanghai
Noon (2000) and Rush Hour 3 (2007). Chan is famous for doing his own
stunts as well as for the humor in his physical work, much in the comedy/action
mold of Keaton and Lloyd.
The action hero with the largest-ever worldwide box office draw
was Arnold Schwarzenegger, whose 20-year action career kicked off with Conan
the Barbarian (1982) and continued through Terminator 3: Rise of the
Machines (2003) before it was interrupted by his entrance into politics.
(As with such statistics, it is difficult to compare Schwarzenegger’s
cumulative box office with that of action heroes of the past such as Douglas
Fairbanks and Errol Flynn due to the lack of complete records and the need to
adjust for inflation.) Other action heroes contemporary to Schwarzenegger
include Chuck Norris, Steven Seagal, Wesley Snipes, Jean-Claude Van Damme, and
Bruce Willis.
Also action star.
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