Ed Fury Dies: Bodybuilder Actor Of ‘Ursus’ Sword & Sandal Low-Budget Epics Was 94
deadline.comEd Fury, a 1951 Mr. Muscle Beach winner who became one of the most successful male physique models of the era before launching a swords & sandal film career that rivaled the genre’s leading man Steve Reeves, died at his California home on Feb.
24. He was 94. His death was announced this week by his wife and family friends. A cause of death has not been specified. Born Edmund Holovchik in New York on June 6, 1928, Fury began lifting weights as a high school wrestler before moving to Southern California in the late 1940s, where he soon found his place among the Santa Monica Muscle Beach bodybuilding set.
He began modeling in the 1950s for physique studios like the Athletic Model Guild and Bruce of LA, appearing on many covers of the era’s male physique magazines and in a few physique film loops.
By 1953 Fury was one of the go-to bodybuilders when Hollywood needed a buff type. At first appearing uncredited (he was the King of Venus in Abbott and Costello Go To Mars, Olympic Team Member in Gentlemen Prefer Blonds, Actor In The Play in The Country Girl and Cowboy in the Saloon in Bus Stop) he landed his first featured and credited role in 1960’s Italian release Colossus and the Amazon Queen, a rare comedic take on the sword-and-sandal genre starring Rod Taylor.
Read more on deadline.com