Martin Solo, played by Martin Benson in the film Goldfinger, is one of a trio of American mob bosses who join up with Auric Goldfinger for Operation Grand Slam. He has a laser shipped from Switzerland to aid in Goldfinger’s break-in of Fort Knox. He later decides to simply receive his payment of one million dollars in gold bullion now, obtaining a large amount of gold from Goldfinger and having Oddjob drive him to the airport.

Martin Benson as Martin Solo in ‘Goldfinger’.

Bond slips a piece of paper with details of Operation Grand Slam into Solo’s pocket, along with a tracking device for Felix Leiter to find him. Instead, Oddjob shoots Solo dead and puts the car in a scrap metal compactor, causing Leiter to lose the signal. Oddjob returns to the stud farm with the cube and Goldfinger begins the process of removing his gold; Bond recalls what Goldfinger said about Solo “having a pressing engagement”.

The name of “Solo” for a character was also used by Ian Fleming for a proposed television show called “Solo” or “Ian Fleming’s Solo” until Eon Productions brought suit against the producers who renamed the show “The Man from UNCLE”.

See also:

• Bond henchmen