Richard Kiel (1939-2014)

"Well, here's to us."

-Richard Kiel's single line of dialogue as Jaws to Dolly, Jaw's girlfriend, in Moonraker-

The wonderful, hulking, charming 7'2" actor Richard Kiel (1939-2014) has unfortunately passed away. I'm always saddened a bit to see these wonderful childhood icons, figures and role models pass away each year.

I have such great fondness for the Roger Moore years of James Bond 007. While not considered critical favorites, The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) and Moonraker (1979) remain two of my very favorite James Bond films. They will forever remain so.






Roger Moore and Richard Kiel are two big reasons I love those films. Kiel popularized the villain Jaws and made him a big, dumb, but lovable baddie in The Spy Who Loved Me. I'll never forget the climax of The Spy Who Loved Me when the scene became essentially Jaws versus Jaws in the shark tank. Two scenes were shot. One envisioned the shark winning, the other Jaws would survive. It was clear Kiel would return for Moonraker. Jaws was still a strong man in Moonraker but he was softened a bit because kids like myself absolutely adored him.





Scene after scene of Kiel's screen time in the 007 films are unforgettable. And he barely said a word apart from that wonderful final line in Moonraker. He didn't have to say a thing. His physical presence was everything in those films. His command of the screen was electric with Moore.

Kiel also figured prominently in To Serve A Man (1962) for The Twilight Zone. Other genre favorites included The Fall Guy, (1981), Land Of The Lost (1977), Starsky & Hutch (1976), Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Gilligan's Island, Emergency!, The Monkees and I Dream Of Jeannie. He was also nearly retained for the role of The Incredible Hulk in the 1970s.

For some reason the world seemed a little better with the likes of Richard Kiel in it. Kiel passed away at 74. Here's to us indeed. We were lucky to have him.

Please check back. I plan to upload my favorite Richard Kiel moments as Jaws here at Musings Of A Sci-Fi Fanatic in the days ahead. It will be fun to revisit those films.

FAB FRIDAY Photo 8: Bach And... Billington

Queue the James Bond theme!  Skyfall is here.

It's another FAB FRIDAY!  It's all things FAB and wonderful from the world of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson.  To the casual eye this image of the absolutely sensational Barbara Bach (and man she is sensational) is often mistakenly identified as a sensual embrace between Bach and James Bond 007's Roger Moore.  It's incredible how little attention is paid to the details, but for those who truly love their James Bond, this oversight wouldn't happen.

This image taken from the opening segment of The Spy Who Loved Me [1977] features one of the all-time sexiest of James Bond girls in Russian Agent Triple XXX/Anya Amasova opposite one handsome Michael Billington of UFO as Sergei Barsov.  Funny how men with hairy backs were considered highly desirable in the 1970s.  Today models are hairless and photo shopped to glossy perfection!

Billington was actually once considered to fill the shoes of 007 and with his good looks and suave demeanor.  He may have fit the bill nicely.  Billington actually screen-tested five times [Live And Let Die, The Spy Who Loved Me, Moonraker, For Your Eyes Only and Octopussy.  Following my all-time favorite Bond film, The Spy Who Loved Me, Moore's three-film contract concluded [Live And Let Die, The Man With The Golden Gun and The Spy Who Loved Me].  Thus, Moore [my all-time favorite Bond], negotiated on a film-by-film basis.  Billington was alleged to be Albert R. Broccoli's first choice had Moore been unavailable.

Apparently, the incredibly sexy Bach [perhaps one of the most attractive women I've ever laid eyes upon and my all-time favorite Bond girl] was screen testing too - for the wedding market.  She married Ringo Starr in 1981.  So honestly, how the heck did Starr pull that off!?! I mean, just look at her. This is Ringo Starr.  I may not be the greatest judge of men, but he had to be a charmer or at least a former Beatle.

In my eager anticipation of Skyfall [2012], look to 2013 for plenty of James Bond fun here at Musings Of A Sci-Fi Fanatic.  All contents will be shaken not stirred.