He Had Done This Kind Of Thing A Hundred Times
By 1958, Tyrone Power had spent more than two decades making dangerous-looking things appear effortless on movie screens. Sword fights, horseback chases, battle scenes...it was all part of being one of Hollywood's great adventure stars. So there was little reason to think this particular scene would be any different.
Silver Screen Collection, Getty Images
Hollywood Had Made Him A Star Almost Overnight
Power struggled for several years before Lloyd's of London changed everything in 1936. Suddenly, the extraordinarily handsome 22-year-old was one of 20th Century-Fox's biggest attractions, beginning a remarkable run that would make him one of the defining leading men of Hollywood's Golden Age.
Screenshot from Lloyd's of London, Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corp. (1936)
He Became Hollywood's Swashbuckling Hero
Movies such as The Mark of Zorro and The Black Swan turned Power into the kind of star audiences expected to see with a sword in his hand. He didn't merely look convincing doing it, either. Swordplay became one of the things most closely associated with him.
Trailer screenshot, Wikimedia Commons
Then He Walked Away From Hollywood
At the height of his fame, Power enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II and became a transport pilot. He eventually flew missions in the Pacific, carrying supplies into combat areas and helping transport wounded servicemen out. This wasn't something dreamed up by a studio publicity department.
Smith Collection/Gado, Getty Images
Power Wanted More Than Good Looks
By the 1950s, Power had become increasingly determined to prove he could do more than play handsome romantic heroes. Nightmare Alley had already shown a darker side of him, and his performance in Billy Wilder's Witness for the Prosecution earned some of the strongest notices of his career.
Screenshot from Witness for the Prosecution, United Artists Corp. (1957)
His Life Was Changing Offscreen Too
In May 1958, Power married Deborah Minardos. Before long, she was expecting their first child together. Power already had two daughters from his marriage to Linda Christian, and he reportedly hoped the new baby would be a son.
Evening Standard, Archive/Getty Images
Then Came "Solomon And Sheba"
That September, Power and his new wife traveled to Spain, where he began playing King Solomon in director King Vidor's enormous biblical epic Solomon and Sheba. Gina Lollobrigida played Sheba, while Power's longtime friend George Sanders played Solomon's brother, Adonijah.
ullstein bild Dtl., Getty Images
It Was A Huge Production
The movie was being filmed around Madrid and Zaragoza with massive sets, enormous crowds of extras and the kind of spectacle Hollywood loved in the 50s. Power worked through weeks of demanding location shooting, eventually completing most of his scenes before production reached a particularly strenuous sequence.
(Sunset Boulevard, Getty Images
There Had Already Been Warning Signs
Power had reportedly been complaining about aches and pains during production, but he apparently connected them with his age and the physical strain of making the movie. He was only 44, and there was still no obvious reason for anyone to believe he was approaching his final day on a movie set.
November 15 Began Like Another Working Day
On the morning of November 15, 1958, Power was still working. He even recorded an interview for NBC radio from the set. Then he changed into costume and prepared for a long dueling sequence opposite George Sanders. Nothing about the morning suggested what was only hours away.
There Was An Almost Perfect Hollywood Irony
Power and Sanders had done this before. Sixteen years earlier, the two actors had crossed swords in The Black Swan. Now they were facing each other again, older men playing brothers locked in another cinematic duel. This time, however, the scene became frighteningly real.
The Duel Kept Going
The sequence required repeated takes, and Power continued performing the physically demanding sword fight. Eventually, he became visibly pale and asked for a rest. He went to his dressing room, where he complained of pain in his chest and arm.
He Put Down The Sword
After years of movie sword fights, Tyrone Power finally reached a point where he simply could not keep going. The scene stopped, and medical help was summoned. Power would never return to finish the duel—or perform for a movie camera again.
Carl Van Vechten, Wikimedia Commons
He Was Only 44
Power had suffered a massive heart attack. He was rushed to a Madrid hospital, but doctors were unable to save him. One of Hollywood's most recognizable leading men was gone at just 44 years old, leaving behind an unfinished film and a stunned cast and crew.
Sunset Boulevard, Getty Images
Then The Story Became Even More Eerie
Shortly before leaving for Spain, Power had filmed a public-service message connected to the American Heart Association about heart disease and the importance of medical care. Only months later, his own heart failed while he was working on one of the most physically demanding productions of his career.
Movie studio, Wikimedia Commons
But There Was An Even Stranger Family Parallel
When Power was 17, his actor father, Tyrone Power Sr., suffered a heart attack while working on The Miracle Man. The younger Power was there after his father collapsed and held him before he was taken to the hospital. Twenty-seven years later, while making another movie, Tyrone Power suffered the same fate.
Moffett Studio, Wikimedia Commons
Hollywood Had A Very Expensive Problem
Most of Solomon and Sheba had already been filmed, and Power was its star. Abandoning the production would have meant losing a fortune. Instead, the filmmakers made an extraordinary decision: they would replace Power and redo much of what had already been completed.
Yul Brynner Became King Solomon
Yul Brynner was brought in to take over the role. Large portions of Power's work had to be filmed again with Brynner, and Solomon and Sheba was eventually released in 1959. Yet the filmmakers couldn't erase Power from the movie completely.
Screenshot from Solomon and Sheba, United Artists Corp. (1959)
Tyrone Power Is Still In The Movie
Some distant shots, long shots and rear views of Power that had already been filmed were retained. That means viewers who know exactly where to look can still catch glimpses of Power in the finished Solomon and Sheba, even though Yul Brynner is officially its King Solomon.
Screenshot from Solomon and Sheba, United Artists Corp. (1959)
He Never Met The Son He Had Hoped For
Power's pregnant wife returned to the United States without him. On January 22, 1959, just over two months after Power's final day in Spain, Deborah gave birth to Tyrone William Power IV. He would grow up and become an actor himself, professionally known as Tyrone Power Jr.
20th Century-Fox, Getty Images
One Sword Fight Became His Final Scene
Tyrone Power had spent much of his career playing men who seemed almost impossible to defeat. Then, on an ordinary Saturday morning in Spain, he picked up a sword to film another scene with an old friend. Before the day was over, one of Hollywood's great leading men was gone—and the cameras would never film him again.
Sunset Boulevard, Getty Images
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