8 movies that killed…literally

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Enter the Dragon, 1973, Bruce Lee, age 32

Bruce Lee (father of Brandon Lee, above) suffered repeated seizures while performing dubbing work in Hong Kong for his film, Enter the Dragon. The martial arts phenomenon died of cerebral edema, an acute swelling of his brain.

Much controversy surrounded Lee’s death, which was not directly associated with the film. Doctors and forensic scientists were unable to agree on what ultimately killed the actor: a severe reaction to a pain killer (for a ruptured disc in his back) or an extreme abuse of cannabis. The coroner labeled the official cause as “death by misadventure.

The Flight of the Phoenix, 1965, Paul Mantz, age 62

Legendary aviator Paul Mantz came out of retirement to perform stunt work for The Flight of the Phoenix. The famous pilot had accumulated a fortune as a Hollywood pilot and was prepared to give up flying for good. When business partner Frank Tallman broke his leg in an accident, Mantz stepped in to complete Tallman’s aerial scenes for Flight. While flying over a desert in Arizona, Mantz’s plane crashed into a small hill. The daredevil died immediately.

An FAA investigation revealed that Mantz had consumed alcohol before the flight, which impaired his “efficiency and judgment.” Friends dispute the findings that Mantz had been drinking before the flight, but they did acknowledge that he indulged the previous evening.

The Conqueror, 1956, John Wayne, age 72

John Wayne was surprisingly miscast as Genghis Khan in The Conqueror, but that wasn’t the film’s biggest problem. Of 220 cast and crew on the set of the 1956 film, 91 (including Wayne) subsequently developed some form of cancer, and 46 died from these cancers. The Conqueror was filmed near a nuclear weapons test site in Nevada, and critics suggest that radioactive fallout contaminated the film set.

Wayne didn’t die on the set, but family, friends, and fans agree that it was this movie that killed him. The beloved actor was diagnosed with lung cancer in 1964 and stomach cancer in 1979. Whether or not the film is to blame, it is important to note that Wayne also smoked six packs of cigarettes a day.

No lawsuits were filed, but many agree that there was a connection between the dozens of illness contracted by cast and crew members and the leftover radiation. The U.S. government who had tested nuclear weapons in the vicinity two years prior to the filming, is on record as having assured the filmmakers that the area was safe.

The Warrens of Virginia, 1923, Martha Mansfield, age 24

Silent film star Martha Mansfield was between takes when tragedy struck. The Warrens of Virginia actress was relaxing in a car when a passerby lit a cigarette and accidentally flicked his match into the automobile. Mansfield’s costume, a large and highly flammable Civil War-era gown, went up in flames, and Mansfield died one day later from severe burns. Fox Films paid $600 of Mansfield’s contract to her mother.

Today’s filmmakers are fortunate. They can utilize digital technology to create special effects that, if conducted in real life, could put lives in danger. And with the Miller’s being held accountable for a death on his film set, a new precedent is set.

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