Sim Iness

Born in Oklahoma in 1930, Simeon Garland Iness attended USC where he specialized in discus throwing. His greatest triumph came on 22 July 1952 when he won the discus event at the Helsinki Olympics with a throw of 180 feet and six-and-a-half inches. He also won the NCAA in 1952 and 1953 setting a discus world record of 190 feet. Standing at six-feet-six and weighing 240 pounds, Iness was signed by Universal-International on 11 January 1954 to play the giant Herculanas in Sign of the Pagan, where he lost a memorable duel with Attila the Hun played by Jack Palance. However, after just two films for Universal, he resumed his career as a football and track coach. He died in California in 1996 at the age of 65.