When Sean Connery punched a gangster’s face — Flashback

Sean Connery was a tough Scottish actor. We’re looking back at the time when he was working on the film Another Time, Another Place in London. 

His co-star, Lana Turner, found herself entangled with a boyfriend who was a genuine mob enforcer. 

Dressed in unmistakable lime green suits and sporting pistol cufflinks, this formidable figure could have stepped out of a gangster movie.

At the time, Connery had yet to earn his legendary status as James Bond, but his real-life heroics were already in motion. 

When tensions escalated on the film set due to the boyfriend's menacing presence, Connery refused to back down. 

Armed only with his fists, he took a stand against the man, bravely confronting the looming threat head-on.

As the cameras rolled and the lights dimmed on the set of Another Time, Another Place, the chemistry between Lana Turner and Sean Connery was undeniable. 

However, it wasn't just their onscreen romance that set tongues wagging; whispers of a real-life connection between the two began to circulate, igniting a firestorm of gossip and intrigue.

Tabloids eagerly ran photos of Connery gallantly escorting Turner to West End shows and sharing intimate dinners at London's most exclusive restaurants. 

The rumors soon caught the attention of Hollywood papers, where they inevitably reached Turner's boyfriend in question, Johnny Stompanato.

Stompanato's jealousy and rage were unleashed by the murmurs of an off-screen romance.

Johnny had been warned to stay away from Hollywood starlet Ava Gardner by none other than Frank Sinatra, took the rumors as a personal affront. 

In a fit of anger, he called Turner and made threatening remarks about disfiguring her or worse.

Fearing for Connery's safety, she swiftly told Johnny to stay away from the film set. 

Straight out of a Hollywood thriller, the film set witnessed a real-life drama that could have easily been mistaken for an action-packed movie sequence.

Turner and Connery were interrupted by the gangster, who brandished a pistol and issued a chilling demand for Connery to remove his hands from Turner. 

The future Bond star disarmed the enforcer with a swift twist of his wrist and followed up with a powerful punch that sent him reeling.

Turner alerted Scotland Yard to escort Johnny off the set and leading to his deportation from England for violating the country's gun laws. 

The dramatic encounter was said to be captured on film, but the footage has remained an elusive mystery to this day.

Tragically, Johnny Stompanato had met a grim fate at Turner's residence on April 4, 1958. Turner's 13-year-old daughter, Cheryl Crane, was forced to defend her mother's life when she witnessed Stompanato attacking Turner.

Crane used a butcher knife to protect her mother, resulting in Stompanato's death.