Cec Linder

March 10, 1921 – April 10, 1992

Cec Linder, the second actor to play Felix Leiter, was born 88 years ago today. He was no Jack Lord but he was still a great Felix in 1964! The following dialogue is from one of my favorite Leiter scenes in Goldfinger:

Bond: Special plane, lunch at the White House… how come?

Leiter: The President wants to thank you personally.

Bond: Oh, it was nothing, really.

Leiter: I know that, but he doesn’t.

Bond: I suppose I’ll be able to get a drink there.

Leiter: I told the stewardess liquor for three.

Bond: Who are the other two?

Leiter: Oh, there are no other two.

Watch this video to see Bond ditch his dinner plans with Linder’s Leiter for Jill Masterson. Poor Felix…

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Related Articles:

Cec Linder Born 88 Years Ago Today

eBay Find: Original Linder/Leiter Press Photo

Cec Linder Passed Away 16 Years Ago Today

Discuss this Dr. No spoof in this thread on the FelixLeiter.com Forums, the only place dedicated to the discussion of Felix Leiter on the Internet.

According to our friends at CommanderBond.net, 1971′s Diamonds Are Forever will be screened at the Billy Wilder Theater in Los Angeles, California on July 18, 2008 at 7:00 PM. There’s no cost to attend the screening, however, tickets are required and are available at the Billy Wilder Theater box office one hour prior to start time. Limit one ticket per person on a first come, first served basis and members receive priority seating (subject to availability).

Diamonds Are Forever, Sean Connery’s final official James Bond film, features Norman Burton as Felix Leiter and Jill St. John as Tiffany Case. It’s not Connery’s best Bond film but it features Felix Leiter so it gets respect in my book. Make sure to mark your calendar if you’re going to be in LA next month!

For further information, call 310-206-FILM (3456) or visit the official website.

Here’s a sexy picture of Tiffany Case (Jill St. John) for your viewing pleasure.

Bernie Casey turns 69 years old today and all of us here at FelixLeiter.com would like to wish him a wonderful happy birthday!

Mr. Casey appeared in 1983′s unofficial James Bond film, Never Say Never Again, and was the first African American actor to portray Felix Leiter.

Discuss Bernie Casey’s 69th birthday in this thread on the FelixLeiter.com Forums, the only place dedicated to the discussion of Felix Leiter on the Internet.

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Happy 81st Birthday, David Hedison!

Rik Van Nutter Born 79 Years Ago Today

Cec Linder Passed Away 16 Years Ago Today

Rik Van Nutter

May 1, 1929 – October 15, 2005

Rik Van Nutter, the third actor to play Felix Leiter, was born 79 years ago today. I recently watched Thunderball and I really enjoyed his portrayal of our favorite CIA agent. He was certainly better than his predecessor, Cec Linder, and I wish he had returned in Diamonds Are Forever instead of Norman Burton. Not just for the sake of continuity (which there had been none of in the Leiter role at the time) but because Burton wasn’t that great.

Ever wonder how Van Nutter got the role? Check out 00Twelve’s An Uncommon Opportunity: How Rik Van Nutter Got the Role. It’s a fascinating read!

Speaking of Van Nutter, check out what I recently won on eBay:

Cec Linder

March 10, 1921 – April 10, 1992

Cec Linder, the second actor to play Felix Leiter, passed away 16 years ago today. He was no Jack Lord but he was still a great Felix in 1964! The following dialogue is from one of my favorite Leiter scenes in Goldfinger:

Bond: Special plane, lunch at the White House… how come?
Leiter: The President wants to thank you personally.
Bond: Oh, it was nothing, really.
Leiter: I know that, but he doesn’t.
Bond: I suppose I’ll be able to get a drink there.
Leiter: I told the stewardess liquor for three.
Bond: Who are the other two?
Leiter: Oh, there are no other two.

Watch this video to see Bond ditch his dinner plans with Linder’s Leiter for Jill Masterson. Poor Felix…

Dr. No, the first official James Bond film, stars Sean Connery as James Bond and Jack Lord as Felix Leiter. It’s set in Jamaica and see 007 investigating a mysterious island inhabited by an evil megalomaniac named Doctor Julius No (Joseph Wiseman).

The Inwood Theatre is located at 5458 West Lovers Lane at Inwood, Dallas, Texas 75209.

For further details about this upcoming screening or to purchase tickets, call 214-764-9106 or visit the official website.

The Felix Leiter figure isn’t based on the likeness of any of the actors but on Ian Fleming’s description of him in 1953′s Casino Royale:

Felix Leiter was about thirty-five. He was tall and thin with a bony frame and his lightweight tan-coloured suit hung loosely from his shoulders like the clothes of Frank Sinatra. His movement and speech were slow, but one had the feeling that there was plenty of speed and strength in him and that he would be a tough, cruel fighter. As he sat hunched over the table, he seemed to have some of the jack-knife quality of a falcon. There was this impression also in his face, in the sharpness of his chin and cheekbones and the wide wry mouth. His grey eyes had a feline slant which was increased by his habit of screwing them up against the smoke of the Chesterfields which he tapped out of the pack in a chain. The permanent wrinkles which this habit had etched at the corners gave the impression he smiled more with his eyes than with his mouth. A mop of straw-coloured hair lent his face a boyish look which closer examination contradicted.

This custom Felix Leiter figure has the post-shark attack hook and is shown greeting Bond in New York à la 1956′s Diamonds Are Forever. Very impressive!

CLICK HERE TO VIEW FIGURE

According to the site which was last updated in 2000:

Felix Leiter is a “Moving Soldier of the World” figure with his right hand replaced with a hook made of florist’s wire, and his head swapped with that of Mattel’s “Frank Sinatra: the Recording Years” painted blond. By the time I took the picture of Felix flashing his ID in Washington DC, I’d replaced the florist’s wire with a prosthetic hook from a 1970′s-era “Jay J. Armes” figure. His shoes are from a Civil War “Ultimate Soldier. The pants are from the 12″ “Blues Brothers 2000 ‘Mack’” with the shirt from the Sunny Smile “Strike Force Assassin” and a jacket hand-made by my wife. His Colt .45 is an “Ultimate Soldier” prop.