Stallone and Willis feared dead in Hollywood quake

13.04.06: ACTION MOVIE heroes Sylvester Stallone and Bruce Willis are feared to be among the dozens killed when an earthquake ripped Los Angeles apart yesterday, devastating film studios from Beverly Hills to Hollywood.

Police have not determined accurate fatality figures, nor released any names, but Willis and Stallone have not been seen since the MGM Studios collapsed during shooting for their latest film, Godshatter.

Search-and-rescue teams report no signs of life beneath the rubble, and hope of finding the two action icons was fading fast.

"The characters they played got out of worse than this," said a rescue worker, "but this isn't the movies. We don't hold out much chance of finding them alive."

The quake struck without warning during the early morning rush hour and most of the fatalities occurred when packed freeway overpasses collapsed on top of other heavily used roads.

"The timing could not have been worse but given the number of people on the roads the fatalities could have been much higher," said a police spokeswoman.

Aftershocks continued throughout the day and the National Guard was mobilised. Armed shopowners backed up by private security forces have kept looting to a minimum.

Daily Variety says "the impact on the entertainment industry will be hard, though tourism is likely to be even harder hit.

Some of the most expensive damage was to Disneyland and Universal Studios