25 Facts About Felix Leiter

Felix Leiter is a fictional character created by Ian Fleming in the James Bond books, films and other media.

Felix Leiter appeared in novels by continuation authors, as well as ten films and one television episode, "Casino Royale", where the character became a British agent, Clarence Felix Leiter, played by Michael Pate.

Felix Leiter is Bond's saviour in Casino Royale, providing him with 32 million francs when Bond has been cleaned out by SMERSH paymaster Le Chiffre, calling it "Marshall Aid".

Media historian James Chapman notes that Bond's relationship with Felix Leiter represented the Special Relationship between Britain and America, although the American Felix Leiter is in the subordinate position to the British Bond.

Fleming's second novel, Live and Let Die, reveals that in his early twenties, Felix Leiter wrote a few pieces on Dixieland jazz for the New York Amsterdam News.

Felix Leiter is kidnapped by the novel's villain, Mr Big, who feeds him to a great white shark.

Espionage scholar Rupert Allason, writing as Nigel West, noted that Felix Leiter's involvement in a domestic US matter was a breach of the CIA's charter, as laid out in the National Security Act of 1947.

The first screen interpretation of the Felix Leiter character was in the 1954 CBS one-hour television adventure Casino Royale, broadcast as part of the dramatic anthology series Climax Mystery Theater, which ran between October 1954 and June 1958.

Jack Lord was the first Felix Leiter, appointed into the role for the first Bond film, Dr No Eon Productions started filming the series out of the order written by Fleming.

Felix Leiter was not present in the Fleming novel, but the writers added the character to the film.

Bond scholars Smith and Lavington consider Felix Leiter to offer negligible help to Bond, largely because there is no role for him in the novel, a point with which continuation Bond author Raymond Benson agrees, noting that he is "extraneous to the dramatic action".

Jeremy Black agrees, although points out that the inclusion of Felix Leiter was a sign of American influence in the Caribbean.

Burton's Felix Leiter was more amusing and more exasperated than the previous incarnations of the role.

Raymond Benson again considers that the Felix Leiter role was miscast and considered Burton to be "overweight and too old for the role".

Felix Leiter, now working with the DEA, is central to the plot of Licence to Kill.

Bond finds Felix Leiter maimed but alive, and seeks revenge on Sanchez, paving the way for the rest of the film's plot.

At the film's end, Felix Leiter is shown recovering in the hospital.

Smith and Lavington consider that, although the scene between Bond and Felix Leiter sees warmth in the relationship between them, "it is too fleeting to have any impact".

Casino Royale rebooted the series, which allowed Felix Leiter to re-appear; he and Bond meet for the first time in the film.

Felix Leiter appeared again in Quantum of Solace, in which he reluctantly helps his corrupt superior Gregg Beam pursue Bond at the behest of Quantum leader Dominic Greene; he redeems himself by helping Bond locate Greene and foil his plan to steal Bolivia's water rights.

Bond agrees, but he and Felix Leiter are betrayed by Felix Leiter's CIA colleague Logan Ash, a double agent working for Safin.

Later on in the film, Bond avenges Felix Leiter by killing Ash.

The film marked the return of Sean Connery to the Bond role; he spoke with Bernie Casey, saying that as the Felix Leiter role was never remembered by audiences, casting a Black actor as Felix Leiter might make the character more memorable.

Felix Leiter has made several appearances in multiple comic strips as well as comic books as a supporting character aiding Bond on joint assignments, some of them being adaptations of the novels and the films, while others maintaining original storylines.

Felix Leiter briefly makes an appearance in Permission to Die, later returning in A Silent Armageddon, playing a rather large role in The Quasimodo Gambit, a brief comeback in Eidolon, and at the latest, in Black Box.