We don’t generally discuss the death of actors on this website, but with the launch of our Fictitious Athlete Hall of Fame, we thought we would change our thought process to commemorate the passing of our “fictitious” heroes.
With that said, today we mourn the loss of Richard Kiel, the seven foot plus behemoth that was known mostly as James Bond super villain, Jaws. Kiel’s character had the rare distinction of appearing in two films opposing “007”, The Spy Who Loved Me and Moonraker. However, when you are the size of Kiel, it can be expected that he would appear in some athletic films, two of which were nominees for our Hall of Fame.
Kiel played “Sampson” in Burt Reynolds’ 1974 film, the Longest Yard. Kiel’s role was of one of the prison inmates who were recruited to play Football against the Guards, and was granted a few memorable lines in the film.
Two decades later, Kiel played a brief but memorable supporting role in Happy Gilmore, as “Mr. Larsen”, Happy’s one time employer known specifically for having a large nail in his head. This character actually made the semi-final round for Contributors of our Fictitious Athlete Hall of Fame. Kiel also had a role as a mechanic/driver in the Cannonball Run II.
We would like to extend our condolences to the friends of family of Richard Kiel and invite you to have a Richard Kiel film fest. It will be entertaining, we guarantee!
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