Remembering Rik Van Nutter

Rik Van Nutter was born Friedrich Allen Von Nutter on May 1, 1929 in Amsterdam, Holland. He is best remembered for his role as CIA operative Felix Leiter in the 1965 James Bond film, "Thunderball", which also starred Sean Connery. He has the distinction of being the third actor to play the role of Leiter. His other film credits include, "Hard Times For Dracula" (1959), "Joyful Laughter" (1960), "We Like It Cold" (1960), "Romanoff And Juliet" (1961), "The Revenge Of Ivanhoe" (1965), "Seven Hours Of Gunfire" (1965), "The Suez Intrigue" (1966), "Operation Foxbat" (1977), and "Pacific Inferno" (1979). Rik appeared in two Euro-westerns: “7 Hours of Gunfire” (1964), and “Dynamite Joe” (1966). He was also a screenwriter for the film, "Casting Call" (1971). Van Nutter, who was married to actress Anita Ekberg from 1963 to 1975, retired from acting in 1979. He died from a heart attack in West Palm Beach, Florida, on October 15, 2005.

 
Today we remember Rik Van Nutter on what would have been his 85^th birthday.