Actor Richard Kiel, famed for playing metal-toothed James Bond villain Jaws, died yesterday aged 74. The 7ft 2ins star, who appeared in dozens of movies in a career spanning over 50 years, is best known for playing the 007 baddie in the 1977 film The Spy Who Loved Me alongside Roger Moore. He returned in Moonraker two years later.
Kiel broke a leg last week and was admitted to a hospital in Fresno, California, however it was unclear if his death was connected to the injury. Born in Detroit, Michigan, in 1939 he had several jobs including a nightclub bouncer, a cemetery plot salesman as well as teaching maths at night school.
However his love of acting made him purse a career in Hollywood and he made his debut aged 21 in the hit western series Laramie. His distinctive height and features were as a result of a hormonal condition known as acromegaly.
Kiel famously suffered from a fear of heights which sometimes hindered his acting career. During Moonraker a stunt double was used because Kiel refused to be filmed on the top of a cable car at over 2,000ft. Kiel also appeared in golf comedy Happy Gilmore with Adam Sandler.
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