Alan Steel


Sergio Ciani, best known as Alan Steel, was an Italian bodybuilder and actor.
Born in Rome, Ciani started his career as a stuntman; then he became the body double for Steve Reeves in Hercules Unchained and in The Giant of Marathon, in which he also played a minor role. In the early 1960s he adopted the stage name Alan Steel and starred the leading roles in a number of peplum films with good commercial success. He had the distinction as being one of the very few native Italians to play the heroes of the peplum features. In addition to playing roles named either Hercules, Ursus, or Samson, he played Robin Hood in the 1976 adventure film Storia di arcieri, pugni e occhi neri. With the decline of the genre Steel thinned out his appearances, until his retirement at the end of the 1970s.
Ciani died in his sleep at his house in Ostia, Rome, at age 79, just two days short of what would have been his 80th birthday.

Partial filmography

  • Herod the Great as Palace Guard
  • Hercules Unchained as Megreo
  • The Giant of Marathon as Euros
  • Samson as Macigno aka Hercules
  • The Fury of Hercules as Kaldos
  • The Rebel Gladiators as Commodus
  • The Old Testament
  • Samson and the Slave Queen as Samson / Maciste
  • Hercules and the Masked Rider as Golia / Paco / Hercules
  • Hercules and the Black Pirates as Samson
  • Hercules Against Rome as Hercules
  • Hercules Against the Moon Men as Maciste / Hercules
  • Hercules and the Treasure of the Incas as William Smith / Samson
  • Samson and His Mighty Challenge as Hercules
  • 3 Avengers as Ursus
  • A... For Assassin as Giacomo
  • Un colpo da re as The Swede
  • Addio mamma as Franco Rinaldi, Patrizia's husband
  • Sapevano solo uccidere as Pedro
  • La furia dei Khyber as Capitano Miller
  • Fasthand as Cpt. Jeff Madison
  • The Little Cowboy as Monty Donovan
  • Dagli archivi della polizia criminale as Larry Brenton
  • Storia di arcieri, pugni e occhi neri as Robin Hood
  • Korkusuz cengaver as Korsan
  • Io tigro, tu tigri, egli tigra
  • ''Baby Love''