George Leech (6 December 1921 – 17 June 2012) was a British film actor and stunt performer who was notable for his work on eleven James Bond films.
Biography
editLeech was born in London and left school at 14. He was a boxer who won the ABA National Championships when he was 15 as a welterweight and he joined the Royal Navy in 1943.
Film career
editHis first job in movies was performing a stunt involving falling down steps doubling for James Mason in Odd Man Out (1947). He was notable for his contributions to James Bond films from 1962 to 1985 as a stunt performer and in small acting roles (usually as a henchman) including: Dr. No (1962), Goldfinger (1964), Thunderball (1965), On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969), where he was promoted to stunt arranger when Bob Simmons was working on another film, For Your Eyes Only (1981), and A View to a Kill (1985). He also worked on The Guns of Navarone, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Kelly's Heroes, The Eagle Has Landed and Revenge of the Pink Panther.
Personal life
editLeech married in 1952. One of his two daughters Wendy Leech became one of the first female stunt performers and married the stuntman Vic Armstrong. Leech died in Cardiff in 2012 at the age of 90.[1][2]
Filmography
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1956 | Port Afrique | Second Arab | |
| 1959 | The Treasure of San Teresa | Man In Fight | Uncredited |
| 1960 | And the Same to You | Jake | |
| 1962 | Billy Budd | Marine | Uncredited |
| 1964 | Carry On Spying | Waiter | Uncredited |
| 1964 | Goldfinger | Man in Bulletproof Vest at Q Branch | Uncredited |
| 1964 | The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb | Ship Attacker | Uncredited |
| 1964 | Mozambique | Carl | |
| 1965 | Coast of Skeletons | Carlo Seton | |
| 1965 | The Face of Fu Manchu | Manchu Minion | Uncredited |
| 1965 | Thunderball | Disco Volante Crewman | Uncredited |
| 1966 | Se tutte le donne del mondo... | ||
| 1968 | Chitty Chitty Bang Bang | Chitty's original driver | Uncredited |
| 1969 | On Her Majesty's Secret Service | Strangled SPECTRE Skier | Uncredited |
| 1971 | Diamonds Are Forever | Mr. Kidd | Uncredited |
| 1971 | When Eight Bells Toll | Thug | Uncredited |
| 1971 | Puppet on a Chain | Thug | Uncredited |
| 1975 | Brannigan | Man in Bar | Uncredited |
| 1976 | The Pink Panther Strikes Again | Mr. Stutterstutt | |
| 1976 | The Eagle Has Landed | Sturmbannführer Straub | Uncredited |
| 1977 | The Spy Who Loved Me | Cortina Gunman #2 | Uncredited |
| 1978 | The Wild Geese | Stone | Uncredited |
| 1978 | Revenge of the Pink Panther | Asylum Policeman | Uncredited |
| 1978 | Superman | Man in Office | Uncredited |
| 1979 | Moonraker | Drax's henchman | Uncredited |
| 1980 | North Sea Hijack | Magnussen | |
| 1981 | For Your Eyes Only | Henchman Shark Victim | Uncredited |
| 1985 | A View to a Kill | Miner Gunned Down by Zorin | Uncredited, (final film role) |
References
edit- ^ George Leech Stuntman and actor obituary in The Independent. Retrieved 1 January 2014
- ^ George Leech Obituary at Herald Scotland. Retrieved 1 January 2014
External links
edit- George Leech at IMDb