Take One, Action! takes you behind the scenes of swordplay in film - written by professional swordsman and film director Andy Wilkinson who has appeared in over seventy-three films, including many Hollywood blockbusters. Part memoir, part film and swordplay manual, this is a must read for all aspiring actors, swordsmen, fight choreographers and film directors. It will also appeal to theatre, film and fencing students, entertainment historians and those who thirst for an insight into the world of swordsmen and the art of making movies. It also incorporates intriguing nuggets of information from both swordplay and film worlds, such as: Why do spiral staircases rise clockwise? Which Hollywood star was a British Army fencing champion? Where did the term slapstick originate? With advice, anecdotes, a valuable guide to fencing terminology and illustrated with photos, this is an unusual guide to a greatly misunderstood art.

For silent film pioneers like Buster Keaton, everything that appeared on the screen in the film actually had to happen. The Directors and stunt co-ordinators who followed had to think out of the box to surpass the previous thrills. It was not until the 1970s that computers stepped in to fill in the blanks. The risks were real, the skills required in surviving such feats were breath-taking and the impact of this on the quality of the films was reflected in the audiences which loved them. We are still talking about these pioneering action sequences many years after they were made. These performers were the pioneers, the original daredevils who set the bar so high and those who follow in their footsteps must at least equal or surpass these moments in film. Hollywood's Pioneering Daredevils highlights the best, most ground-breaking and most memorable cinematic action of the golden age of Hollywood and how it has changed, from the birth of cinema to the very latest blockbusters. It introduces the innovators of these action sequences and their directors. These were the experts who mastered the art, sometimes paying the ultimate price to thrill us, and the stars who made daring-do their trademark signature in their films. What would a swashbuckler film be without Errol Flynn, a car or motorbike chase without Steve McQueen or a western without John Wayne? Written by someone who recognises and appreciates the skills involved, having done some of it himself, Hollywood's Pioneering Daredevils will enable readers to appreciate the creativity, innovation and the skills of the film daredevils of all ages, before computer generated imagery took over.