FRESNO, Calif. – Richard Kiel, the towering actor best known for portraying steel-toothed villain Jaws in a pair of James Bond films, has died. He was 74.

Kelley Sanchez, director of communications at St. Agnes Medical Center, confirmed Wednesday that Kiel was a patient at the hospital and died. She declined to provide further details.

The 7-foot-2-inch performer famously played the cable-chomping henchman who tussled with Roger Moore's Bond in "The Spy Who Loved Me" and "Moonraker." His massive height was attributed to a hormonal condition called acromegaly.

Kiel's other memorable film and TV appearances included roles as towering boss Mr. Larson in "Happy Gilmore," lethal assistant Voltaire in "The Wild, Wild West" and extraterrestrial Kanamit in "The Twilight Zone."

He published an autobiography in 2002 titled "Making It Big in the Movies."

[Edited 9/10/14 23:59pm]

Damn, I thought he died years ago.

I never liked his grill.

74 is too soon

RIP to a late '70s icon

same heah

uPtoWnNY said:

Damn, I thought he died years ago.

My favorite Twilight Zone episode

Yeah I had heard...sad I liked him as JAWS! I read that one of the NEW Bond villains was going to be just as iconic!

jon1967 said:

Talked with him in vegas last month at the star trek convention.Nice man,sad.

With Elvis In Movie Roustabout:

With Eden and Hagman