Richard Kiel
Richard Kiel | |
---|---|
Kiel in 2004 | |
Born | Richard Dawson Kiel September 13, 1939 |
Died | September 10, 2014 Fresno, California, U.S. | (aged 74)
Resting place | Belmont Memorial Park, Fresno, California, U.S. |
Occupation(s) | Actor, voice artist |
Years active | 1960–2014 |
Notable credit | Jaws in the James Bond films |
Height | 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) |
Spouses | Faye Daniels
(m. 1960; div. 1973)Diane Rogers (m. 1974) |
Children | 4 |
Richard Dawson Kiel (September 13, 1939 – September 10, 2014)[1] was an American actor and voice artist. Standing 7 ft 2 in (218 cm) tall, he was known for his role as Jaws in the James Bond franchise, portraying the character in The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) and Moonraker (1979); he lampooned the role with a tongue-in-cheek cameo in Inspector Gadget (1999). His next-most recognized role is the tough but eloquent Mr. Larson in Happy Gilmore (1996). Other notable films include The Longest Yard (1974), Silver Streak (1976), Force 10 from Navarone (1978), Cannonball Run II (1984), Pale Rider (1985) and Tangled (2010).
Early life
Kiel was born in Detroit, Michigan.[2] His extraordinary height was a result of acromegaly, a condition caused by an excess of growth hormone.[3] Before becoming an actor, Kiel worked in numerous jobs, including a nightclub bouncer and a cemetery plot salesman.[4] From 1963 to 1965, Kiel worked as a night-school mathematics instructor in Burbank, California.[5]
Career
Television
Kiel made his acting debut in the Laramie episode "Street of Hate". This led to him appearing in many television shows throughout the 1960s and 1970s such as I Dream of Jeannie, Honey West, Gilligan's Island, The Monkees, Daniel Boone, Emergency!, Starsky & Hutch, Land of the Lost, The Fall Guy, Simon & Simon, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, and the memorable The Twilight Zone episode "To Serve Man".
Due to size, Kiel was often cast in villainous roles. He appeared as the towering — and lethal — assistant Voltaire to Dr. Miguelito Loveless in first-season episodes of The Wild, Wild West. In the Man from U.N.C.L.E. episode "The Vulcan Affair", Kiel appeared as a guard in Vulcan's plant and he portrayed Merry in "The Hong Kong Shilling Affair". In 1967 he played a monster in an episode of The Monkees ("I was a Teenage Monster").
He later appeared in an episode of The Wild Wild West titled "The Night of the Simian Terror" as Dimas, the outcast son of a wealthy family, banished because of birth defects that distorted his body and apparently affected his mind. The episode first aired February 16, 1968. This episode is significant because it allowed Kiel the opportunity to really act rather than just look intimidating.
In 1977 Kiel and Arnold Schwarzenegger were both considered for playing the Hulk in The Incredible Hulk. After Schwarzenegger was turned down due to his height, Kiel started filming the pilot. However, the producers quickly decided they wanted a more muscular Hulk rather than the towering Kiel so he was dismissed. Kiel later said he did not mind losing the part because as he could only see out of one eye, he reacted badly to the contact lenses he had to wear for the role. He also found the green makeup unpleasant and difficult to remove.[4] His scenes were then reshot with Lou Ferrigno.
Film
Kiel broke into films in the early 1960s with Eegah (1962), which was later featured on Elvira's Movie Macabre and Mystery Science Theater 3000, as were The Phantom Planet and The Human Duplicators. He also produced, co-wrote, and starred in The Giant of Thunder Mountain. He also had a brief non-speaking appearance leaving a gym in the Jerry Lewis movie The Nutty Professor.
The James Bond film producers spotted Kiel in Barbary Coast, and thought he was ideal for the role of Jaws in The Spy Who Loved Me (1977). He was one of the few Bond villains to appear in two Bond films, later appearing in Moonraker (1979). However, as he suffered from acrophobia (fear of heights), a stunt double was used during the cable car stunt scenes because Kiel refused to be filmed on the top of a cable car more than 2,000 feet (610 m) above the ground. He reprised his role of Jaws in the video game called James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing, supplying his voice and likeness. This was his second outing as a metal-toothed villain because he had played Reace in the 1976 comedy-thriller film Silver Streak, a year before being cast in The Spy Who Loved Me. Kiel also played in the 1985 film Pale Rider. Acting as the main antagonist's henchman, he redeems his character's status by saving the hero from a gunshot to the back.
Although earlier roles had offered him little dialogue, his role in Happy Gilmore (1996) was quite the opposite. As Mr. Larson, Happy Gilmore's former employer, Kiel exchanges several one-liners with both Adam Sandler's Happy and Christopher McDonald's Shooter. Kiel took a quieter profile after Happy Gilmore's release, but left semi-retirement to record a role for Tangled (2010). In the acclaimed animated Disney film, he portrayed Vlad, a surprisingly soft-hearted thug who collects ceramic unicorns.
Personal life
Kiel's first marriage was to Faye Daniels in 1960. They divorced in the early 1970s. He later married Diane Rogers. They had four children and nine grandchildren.[2] He co-authored a biography of the abolitionist Cassius Marcellus Clay called Kentucky Lion. Kiel was also a born-again Christian. His website states his religious conversion helped him to overcome alcoholism.[6]
Health
In 1992, Kiel suffered a severe head injury in a car accident, which affected his balance. He was subsequently forced to walk with a cane to support himself (as shown in his appearance in Happy Gilmore, where he is seen leaning on a person or a cane). Later, Kiel used a scooter or wheelchair.
Death
On September 10, 2014, three days short of his 75th birthday, Kiel died at St. Agnes Medical Center in Fresno, California, of a heart attack, possibly caused by coronary artery disease.[1][7]
Filmography
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8a/Eegah-RichardKiel2.jpg/220px-Eegah-RichardKiel2.jpg)
Features
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1960 | The D.I. | Ugly Marine | Uncredited |
1961 | Run of the Hunted | Toland's Assistant | Uncredited |
1961 | The Phantom Planet | The Solarite | |
1962 | Eegah | Eegah | |
1963 | House of the Damned | Giant | |
1963 | The Nutty Professor | Bodybuilder #1 | Uncredited |
1963 | Lassie's Great Adventure | Chinook Pete | |
1963 | 30 Minutes at Gunsight | Tv Short | |
1964 | Roustabout | Strong Man | Uncredited |
1964 | The Nasty Rabbit | Ranch Foreman | Uncredited |
1965 | Two on a Guillotine | Tall Man at Funeral | Uncredited |
1965 | The Human Duplicators | Dr. Kolos | |
1965 | Brainstorm | Psychiatric Hospital Patient | Uncredited |
1966 | The Las Vegas Hillbillys | Moose | |
1967 | A Man Called Dagger | Otto | |
1968 | Now You See It, Now You Don't | Nori | TV Movie |
1968 | Skidoo | Beany | |
1970 | On a Clear Day You Can See Forever | Blacksmith | Uncredited |
1973 | Deadhead Miles | Big Dick | |
1974 | The Longest Yard | Samson | |
1975 | Flash and the Firecat | Tracker | |
1976 | Gus | Large Man | |
1976 | Silver Streak | Reace | |
1977 | The Spy Who Loved Me | Jaws | |
1977 | The Incredible Hulk | 0 | TV Series, One scene, Uncredited |
1978 | Wu zi tian shi | Steel Hand | |
1978 | Force 10 from Navarone | Captain Drazak | |
1978 | They Went That-A-Way & That-A-Way | Duke | |
1979 | The Humanoid | Golob | |
1979 | Moonraker | Jaws | Nominated – Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor |
1981 | So Fine | Eddie | |
1983 | Hysterical | Captain Howdy | |
1983 | Phoenix | Steel Hand | |
1984 | Aces Go Places 3 | Big G | |
1984 | Cannonball Run II | Arnold / Mitsubishi Driver | |
1985 | Pale Rider | Club | |
1985 | Qing bao long hu men | Laszlo | |
1989 | Think Big | Irving | |
1989 | The Princess and the Dwarf | Unknown role | |
1991 | The Giant of Thunder Mountain | Eli Weaver | |
1996 | Happy Gilmore | Mr. Larson | |
1999 | Inspector Gadget | Jaws | |
2009 | The Awakened | Jasper | |
2010 | The Corpse of Albert Cradette | Albert Cradette | |
2010 | Tangled | Vladimir | Voice |
Television
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9b/Barbara_Eden_Larry_Hagman_I_Dream_of_Jeannie_1965.jpg/220px-Barbara_Eden_Larry_Hagman_I_Dream_of_Jeannie_1965.jpg)
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1960 | Klondike | Duff Brannigan | Episode: "Bare Knuckles" |
1961 | Laramie | Rake - Tolan's helper | Episode: "Run of the Hunted", Uncredited |
1961 | The Phantom | Big Mike | |
1961 | Thriller | Master Styx | Episode: "Well of Doom" |
1961 | The Rifleman | Carl Hazlitt | Episode: "The Decision" |
1962 | The Twilight Zone | Kanamit | Episode: "To Serve Man" |
1964 | The Man from U.N.C.L.E. | Henchman for Mr. Vulcan | Episode: "The Vulcan Affair" Uncredited |
1965 | The Man from U.N.C.L.E. | Merry | Episode: "The Hong Kong Shilling Affair" |
1965 | I Dream of Jeannie | Ali | Episode: "My Hero" |
1966 | Honey West | Groalgo | Episode: "King of the Mountain" |
1966 | My Mother the Car | Cracks | Episode: "A Riddler on the Roof" |
1966 | The Wild Wild West | Voltaire | Episodes: "The Night the Wizard Shook the Earth" 1965: "The Night That Terror Stalked the Town" 1965: "The Night of the Whirring Death" |
1966 | Gilligan's Island | Ghost | Episode: Ghost-a-Go-Go" |
1967 | The Monkees | Monster | Episode: "I Was a Teenage Monster" |
1967 | The Monroes | Casmir | Episode: "Ghosts of Paradox" |
1968 | I Spy | Tiny | Episode: "A Few Miles West of Nowhere" |
1968 | The Wild Wild West | Dimas | Episode: "The Night of the Simian Terror" |
1968 | It Takes a Thief | Willie Trion | Episode: "The Galloping Skin Game" |
1969 | Daniel Boone | Le Mouche | Episode: "Benvenuto...Who?" |
1970 | Disneyland | Luke Brown | Episode: "The Boy Who Stole the Elephant: Part 1 & 2" |
1974 | Kolchak: The Night Stalker | The Diablero | Episode: "Bad Medicine" |
1974 | Emergency! | Carlo | Episode: "I'll Fix It" |
1974 | Kolchak: The Night Stalker | The "Père malfait" | Episode: "The Spanish Moss Murders" |
1975 | Switch | Loach | Episode: "Death Heist" |
1976 | Starsky & Hutch | Iggy | Episode: "Omaha Tiger" |
1975 – 1976 | Barbary Coast | Moose Moran | 14 episodes, 1975–1976 |
1977 | Land of the Lost | Malak | Episodes: "Survival Kit" "Flying Dutchman" |
1977 | The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries | Manager | Episode: "The Mystery of the Haunted House" |
1977 | Young Dan'l Boone | Unknown role | Episode: "The Game" |
1981 | The Fall Guy | Animal | Episode: "That's Right, We're Bad" |
1983 | Simon & Simon | Mark Horton | Episode: "The Skeleton Who Came Out of the Closet" |
1988 | Out of This World | Norman | Episode: "Go West, Young Mayor" |
1989 | Superboy | Vlkabok | Episode: "Mr. and Mrs. Superboy" |
2000 | Bloodhounds Inc. | Mortimer | Episode: "Fangs for the Memories" |
Video games
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1997 | GoldenEye 007 | Jaws | Likeness only |
1998 | James Bond 007 | Jaws | |
2000 | 007: The World Is Not Enough | Jaws | Likeness only |
2000 | 007 Racing | Jaws | Archival footage |
2004 | James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing | Jaws | Voice work |
2010 | GoldenEye 007 | Jaws | Likeness only |
2012 | 007 Legends | Jaws | Likeness only |
See also
- John Aasen
- Ted Cassidy
- William Engesser
- Neil Fingleton
- André the Giant
- The Great Khali
- Rondo Hatton
- Henry Hite
- Lock Martin
- Carel Struycken
References
- ^ a b Weber, Bruce (September 11, 2014). "Richard Kiel Dies at 74; Played Jaws in Bond Films". The New York Times.
- ^ a b "Richard Kiel obituary". The Guardian (UK). September 11, 2014. Retrieved March 5, 2015.
- ^ "Why Was This Woman Gaining Weight Despite Her Diet?". Retrieved April 18, 2016.
- ^ a b "The Den of Geek interview: Richard Kiel". Den of Geek. January 6, 2009.
- ^ "Actor Richard Kiel taught math at Ogden's Radio School in '63". www.modestoradiomuseum.org.
- ^ Kiel, Richard. "Richard Kiel's Testimony". Official Richard Kiel Fan Club. Retrieved August 16, 2010.
- ^ "Bond Villain Died Of Heart Disease". TMZ. October 9, 2014. Retrieved November 20, 2014.
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- 1939 births
- 2014 deaths
- 20th-century American male actors
- 20th-century Christians
- 21st-century American male actors
- 21st-century Christians
- American Christians
- American male comedians
- American male film actors
- American male television actors
- American male video game actors
- American male voice actors
- American male writers
- American people of German descent
- Disease-related deaths in California
- Male actors from Detroit
- Male actors of German descent
- People with acromegaly
- Writers from Detroit