"One of you guys called Felix Leiter...? Telephone call for you, guy named Strutter..." - Fillet of Soul waiter, New Orleans
Daniel Jackson was born on the 2nd of December, 1925, in Georgetown, Guyana.
He was a Guyanese-born British actor, best known for his numerous supporting roles in British films and television.
Jackson travelled to Britain in the late 1940’s, presumably for a better life, although prior to his acting career, his life has remained undocumented. What is known is that some of his earliest film roles were as extra and minor parts, at a time when black actors in the industry were mostly uncredited for their work. One of his earliest known roles was in the production “The House in the Square” in 1951, followed by an appearance in the American crime thriller “My Six Convicts” (1952) and the British film “Paul Temple Returns” (1952). While achieving roles on the big screen, Jackson also starred in several theatre productions, notably portraying the role of Spike Munch in the play ‘The Man with Expensive Tastes’ which toured between July and October of 1953.
His first significant credit was in “Odongo” (1956), where he was cast as the character Walla. The film was produced by Warwick Films and starred a number of future James Bond names including Earl Cameron, Francis de Wolff and Leonard Sachs. In the same year, he also starred in another Africa themed production called “Beyond Mombasa”, where he can be seen as the local guide Ketimi. After further credits in “The Heart Within” (1957) and “The Roots of Heaven” (1958), Jackson focused his attention on television roles and found significant success during the 1960’s. He was cast in a number of popular shows including “Dixon of Dock Green” (1960), “Boyd Q.C.” (1960-61), “No Hiding Place” (1960-63), “Ghost Squad” (1963), “Danger Man” (1965) and “Z Cars” (1962-67). Another significant role came in the British sci-fi adventure “Mysterious Island”, where he portrayed Corporal Neb Nugent.
During the 1970’s, he appeared in three sketches on “The Benny Hill Show”, firstly in the ‘British Arms’, then in ‘World of Change’ and ‘Underworld Water of Jacques Custard’. He was then cast by Eon Productions in the 1973 James Bond adventure “Live & Let Die”, portraying a waiter at one of the Fillet of Soul restaurants alongside the lead actors Roger Moore and David Hedison. A handful of other credits followed in the shows “Son of the Bride” (1973) and “Born Free” (1974), and the films “Love Thy Neighbour” (1973) and “The Treasure Seekers” (1979), after which it seems Dan retired from acting.
Later in life, Dan moved to Miami, Florida, where he passed away on the 18th of November, 2004, aged 78.
The Bond Archives will continue to research about his career.
In "Live & Let Die", Guyanese-born British actor Dan Jackson was cast as one of the waiters in the Fillet of Soul restaurant.
The character appears when James Bond and Felix Leiter visit the Fillet of Soul in New Orleans.
As the pair walk into the restaurant, they are greeted by a tall waiter wearing the customary red blazer. After confirming that there are only two of them, he shows them a booth by the wall but 007 rejects it and asks for something closer to the stage.
After being seated, the waiter takes their order and returns shortly to ask if one of the two is called Felix Leiter, as he has an apparent telephone call from a guy called Strutter.
While Felix is away, the table disappears into Mr. Big's hidden back room and when Leiter returns, the waiter is there to throw off 007's disappearance.
The album page displayed above was signed by Dan Jackson on the 19th of January, 1956.
To-date, this is one of the only examples of his autograph that has been seen.
He is exceptionally rare and highly sought after by fans, due to his extensive credits.
Despite having an extensive list of credits to his name, very little is known about Dan Jackson's life.
He reportedly performed the song 'Can't Buy Me Love' on the episode 'Emergency-Ward 9' of "Thirty-Minute Theatre" in 1966.
Dan was friends with Charles Edghill ("Dr. No") when he lived in London. Many years later, the pair bumped into each other in Miami!
He was nicknamed 'Pressure' by his friends.
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