Sunday, May 31, 2015

Bond Alums Robert Huke and Joe Robinson…Day 151 of Bond 365




Robert Huke
Born this day in 1920
Second Unit Cameraman in You Only Live Twice

Robert Huke, or Nigel C. Huke as he sometimes used, worked in the industry as a cinematographer, as part of the camera department, and a couple of times as an actor. I wasn’t familiar with much of Huke’s work except for Battle of Britain (1969) in which he was the DP of the second unit, Ryan’s Daughter (1970) in which he was a second unit camera operator, and Shanghai Surprise (1986) as a camera operator.

Robinson and Connery (007 Magazine)
Joe Robinson
Born this day in 1927
Peter Franks in Diamonds Are Forever

Joseph William Robinson Harle was born in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. His father and grandfather were world champion wrestlers and Joe Jr. followed the same path. Robinson won the European Heavyweight Championship in 1952. He also was interested in acting and studied at RADA. After sustaining a back injury while wrestling, Robinson turned his attention to acting.

In 1960, Robinson followed other muscular actors to Rome where he appeared in the sweeping Italian epics, often peplums. With his younger brother Doug, they worked as stuntmen on several films. They worked together with Honor Blackman, who put out a book on self-defence in 1965. Robinson eventually retired to Brighton.


© Copyright. Michele Brittany. 2011 - 2015. All rights reserved. All text, graphics, and photos are protected by US and International Copyright Laws, and may not be copied, reprinted, published, translated, hosted, or otherwise distributed by any means without written permission.


Saturday, May 30, 2015

Mellinger Makes Second Appearance, Part II….Day 150 of Bond 365




Bit of a quick entry today due to prepping for a podcast to discuss H.P. Lovecraft’s The Cats of Ulthar that took place late this morning, and I’m headed to Los Angeles for a neofolk/pop performance at one of the small intimate venues in North Hollywood this evening. Have a good Saturday!

Michael Mellinger
Born this day in 1929
Kisch in Goldfinger

Kisch (Michael Mellinger) is one of the last henchmen of Auric Goldfinger to meet his death in the third James Bond film, Goldfinger (1964). Early on Kisch tranquillizes Bond per Goldfinger’s request. Later on, Kisch gasses the members of the Mafia after Goldfinger reveals his grand plan, Operation Grandslam. During the climatic fight scenes inside of Fort Knox, Kisch finds himself locked in the vault with Bond, Oddjob and a bomb. He panics and while trying to defuse the bomb, Oddjob grabs him and throws him over the railing. Kisch falls to his death.

Mellinger featured back on March 17 – read more about the man behind Kisch here.

© Copyright. Michele Brittany. 2011 - 2015. All rights reserved. All text, graphics, and photos are protected by US and International Copyright Laws, and may not be copied, reprinted, published, translated, hosted, or otherwise distributed by any means without written permission.

Friday, May 29, 2015

The Sheriff and the Chauffeur: James and Jason…Day 149 of Bond 365




Clifton James
Born this day in 1921
JW Pepper in Live and Let Die, The Man with the Golden Gun

He may have mastered a southern drawl, but George Clifton James was born in Spokane, Washington and graduated from the University of Oregon as well as the Actors Studio. James served 3 ½ year in the South Pacific theatre of World War II and he is a decorated veteran, which includes the Purple Heart, Presidential Unit Citation, among others.

James may be able to point his repeated portrayals of law enforcement characters as having started with The Phil Silvers Show in which he appeared as a State Trooper and a Sergeant in two separate episodes in 1957. In fact, I counted almost twenty roles, including the two Bond films! He has 100 acting credits to his name and at the age of 93, he is still making periodic appearances.

Neville Jason
Born this day in 1934
Kerim’s Chauffeur in From Russia With Love

English actor Neville Jason made his acting debut as Paolo in the television series Sword of Freedom back in 1957. The same year, he played Publius in “Titus Andronicus” at the Stoll Theatre in London. Most of his appearances over the years has been on the small screen, however he was cast in a handful of feature films including From Russia With Love (1963). More recently, he has lent his voice to video games including Venetica (2009), a beautifully drawn fantasy role-playing game set in the 16th century. 

© Copyright. Michele Brittany. 2011 - 2015. All rights reserved. All text, graphics, and photos are protected by US and International Copyright Laws, and may not be copied, reprinted, published, translated, hosted, or otherwise distributed by any means without written permission.

Thursday, May 28, 2015

Happy Birthday Ian Fleming!...Day 148 of Bond 365



Ian Lancaster Fleming
Born this day in 1908
Creator of James Bond

In honor of Mr. Fleming’s birthday, here’s a BBC documentary about The Real Casino Royale (2006), in which Andrew Graham-Dixon explores the origins and inspiration for Fleming’s first novel that introduced the world to Bond. James Bond.



© Copyright. Michele Brittany. 2011 - 2015. All rights reserved. All text, graphics, and photos are protected by US and International Copyright Laws, and may not be copied, reprinted, published, translated, hosted, or otherwise distributed by any means without written permission.

Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Happy Birthday to the Legendary Mr. Christopher Lee…Day 147 of Bond 365



Christopher Lee
Born this day in 1922
Scaramanga in The Man with the Golden Gun

Count Dracula. Saruman. Francisco Scaramanga. Count Dooku. Lord Summerisle. The list of memorable characters that leave an indelible mark on popular culture by Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee, CBE, CStJ cannot be overstated. At 93, Lee is an actor, singer, author, and truly a living legend.

His background is fascinating. Born in the Westminster district of London, his parents separated when he was four years old and divorced not long after. His mother moved him and his sister, Xandra, to Switzerland and then back to London, where she married Harcourt George St-Croix Rose, uncle of Ian Fleming and consequently, Lee’s step-cousin. He was a passable student and went to Wellington College. While he had engaged in acting prior to going to college, apparently, he did little to no acting during that time.

In 1939, his mother and stepfather separated so Lee was required to go to work to help support the family. Since the summer months were upon him and that’s when employers went on holiday, there were no immediate positions for Lee. He and his sister went to France that summer. He stayed with the Russian Mazirov family and rubbed elbows with exiled royal families for a time until he returned to London, prior to war breaking out.

Scars of Dracula (1970)
Lee volunteered for military service. First with the Finnish forces in 1939 then for the Royal Air Force, because he did not want to follow his father’s footsteps by serving in the Army. Training to pilot did not work out for Lee; he was diagnosed with optic nerve failure (he suffered headaches and blurred vision symptoms). Since he couldn’t fly but wanted to “do something constructive for my keep” he applied with the RAF Intelligence. He was almost killed in the line of duty several times. Being fluent in many languages (9 actually!), Lee was assigned to the Central Registry of War Criminals and Security Suspects. Lee has mentioned that he was attached to the Special Operations Executive and the Long Range Desert Patrol, precursor to the SAS, but he has declined to go into any details of that part of his service.

Dynamic duo - Peter Cushing and Lee
With the war over, Lee returned to London and to a job with more money, but he was restless and wanted to do something else. A relative suggested he become an actor. It seems absurd, but one person in the industry claimed Lee was too tall to be an actor (he’s 6’5”), but Rank Organisation signed him to a seven-year contract. And in 1947, Lee made his film debut in Corridor of Mirrors directed by Terence Young. Thus began a 10-year apprenticeship in which Lee learned the trade, worked with stellar talent – Laurence Olivier, Peter Cushing, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., John Huston, and Buster Keaton – and proved he could act, in spite of his height!

Trio of Horror: Lee, Cushing and Vincent Price
From the mid 1950s to the mid 1970s, Lee worked in the horror genre via the Hammer films. During that time, he re-teamed with Peter Cushing, but he also worked with horror greats Boris Karloff and Vincent Price, among others. Lee became synonymous with the character Dracula and eventually, Lee was ready to break from that character and pursue other roles.

To me, two films stand out from the others of that time when he was seeking to redefine his filmography away from horror. Lee as Scaramanaga in The Man with the Golden Gun was his second shot at starring in a James Bond film. The first was actually Dr. No. Fleming offered the villainous role to Lee, who accepted, however the producers had already chosen Joseph Wiseman. I think either role would have fit Lee. I’m glad he got a second opportunity. My favorite Lee film of this period however is his portrayal of Lord Summerisle from The Wicker Man (1973). Where else will you get to see a charming (and smiling) Lee singing and wearing a kilt? Joking aside, this is a fascinating film with an amazing soundtrack.

Lee moved to America to continue his shift away from being typecast in the horror genre. He did several American films from the late 1970s and on. And, now into the 21st century, Lee has continued to work in some of the biggest franchises – Star Wars and The Lord of the Rings – and on a number of Tim Burton films.  He has lent his voice to video games and in the music industry, he has contributed from opera to folk to metal to musicals. His single from Charlemagne: The Omens on Death makes him the oldest performer in the history of heavy metal! Rock on and happy birthday Mr. Lee!

Lee as Lord Summerisle in The Wicker Man

As Count Dooku

As Saruman


Note: All images found via Google. 

© Copyright. Michele Brittany. 2011 - 2015. All rights reserved. All text, graphics, and photos are protected by US and International Copyright Laws, and may not be copied, reprinted, published, translated, hosted, or otherwise distributed by any means without written permission.

Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Celebrating 200! …..Day 146 of Bond 365



It’s kind of a special day – Spyfi & Superspies has hit 200 posts today! I don’t mean to sound cliché, but it does seem like yesterday when I celebrated 100 posts and now sitting with 200 posts, it does seem a bit surreal. I wish I could say that it has been an easy 100, but being candid, the commitment to post a blog a day has been tough some evenings when I just had no motivation. Happily, there have been several days where it has been hard to stop writing, especially when a person had an interesting past or worked on a project I admired. So, now on to 250!

Today in 2011, Hodder & Stoughton released Jeffery Deaver’s novel Carte Blanche, the 37th James Bond adventure, this time set in contemporary times, 2011. It was the first reboot of the Bond literary series with Bond being born in 1979; hence, Bond becomes an Afghanistan veteran rather than World War II/Cold War as created by Ian Fleming. I think reading a modern interpretation of James Bond in comparison to Fleming’s creation may reveal diverse and perhaps opposing character elements. I recently picked up a copy, so hopefully I can sit down soon and read through it.

Richard Maibaum
Born this day in 1909
Screenwriter for multiple Bond films

Celebrating 106th birthday of screenwriter Richard Maibaum, I wrote a lengthy entry back on January 4. Here’s a link.






McCallum (right) accepting his BAFTA
Gordon K McCallum
Born this day in 1919
Sound Recordist for Goldfinger, You Only Live Twice, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, For Your Eyes Only
Dubbing Mixer for Diamonds Are Forever, The Spy Who Loved Me
Chief Re-recording Mixer for Moonraker, Octopussy

I was blown away when I took a look at Gordon McCallum’s IMDB filmography. He had a whopping 324 sound department credits, which could have been a mini look at British cinema! He got his start as an uncredited boom operator (interiors) for the classic story A Canterbury Tale (1944) directed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. His last credit as a dubbing editor was for The Jigsaw Man (1984). He worked on several amazing films over the intervening decades. I think one of my favorites was Zulu (1963) starring Stanley Baker, Jack Hawkins and newcomer Michael Caine. If you haven’t seen it, I highly recommend it. Others include A Night to Remember (1958), Fahrenheit 451 (1966), The Man Who Would Be King (1975), and Greystoke:  The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes (1984).

McCallum won an Academy Award for Best Sound on Fiddler on the Roof (1971) shared with David Hildyard and a BAFTA for Best Sound Track for Jesus Christ Superstar (1973) shared with Les Wiggins and Keith Grant. Interesting, he was also nominated for Diamonds Are Forever the same year he won for Fiddler on the Roof.

© Copyright. Michele Brittany. 2011 - 2015. All rights reserved. All text, graphics, and photos are protected by US and International Copyright Laws, and may not be copied, reprinted, published, translated, hosted, or otherwise distributed by any means without written permission.

Monday, May 25, 2015

Music to My Ears: Hal David and John Leach….Day 145 of Bond 365



Hal David
Born this day in 1921
Lyricist for Casino Royale (1967), On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, Moonraker

American lyricist Hal David is best known for his collaboration with Burt Bacharach. As a lyricist, David’s lyrics are immediately recognizable even though his name is not.

During the 1970s, Bacharach and David worked with The Carpenters, Dusty Springfield, B.J. Thomas, Tom Jones, and Dionne Warwick resulting in such hits as “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head”, “Do You Know the Way to San Jose”, “Walk On By”, and “What the World Needs Now Is Love”.

David’s lyrics accompanied three James Bond films: with Bacharach, “The Look of Love” from the 1967 film Casino Royale; with John Barry, “Moonraker” sung by Shirley Bassey; and my personal favorite, “We Have All the Time in the World” with Barry again and sung by amazing Louis Armstrong for the 1969 film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. 

Another song that I have always enjoyed was from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, sung by B.J. Thomas:



Leach playing the cimbalom
John Leach
Passed away this day in 2014
Musician: Koto for You Only Live Twice

Composer and musician John Leach passed away one year ago today. He composed for film and television – sometimes the most unexpected shows. He was probably known for his expertise on the cimbalom, an instrument rarely used in classical music, yet seemed right a home in the spy films of the 1960s. Its sound resonated the Cold War – haunting, lonely and cold.

In a Telegraph obituary, composer John Barry described Leach’s passion for collecting musical instruments from around the world that he would learn to play. “…he played this big cimbalom and I knew it was right for what I needed…After I’d written the theme I went back to John Leach and he played it, letting all the tones ring out…so it got that very distinctive sound which I wanted for the movie.” The movie Barry was referring to was The Ipcress File (1965) starring Michael Caine. Then, Barry and Leach collaborated again in You Only Live Twice (1967). To accompany Bond’s adventure in Japan, Leach played on the koto, a 13-stringed instrument.

Let’s have a listen to Leach playing the cimbalom for The Ipcress File:



© Copyright. Michele Brittany. 2011 - 2015. All rights reserved. All text, graphics, and photos are protected by US and International Copyright Laws, and may not be copied, reprinted, published, translated, hosted, or otherwise distributed by any means without written permission.

Sunday, May 24, 2015

Editor, Actor, and Cinematographer Celebrate Their Birthdays…Day 144 of Bond 365



Jim Clark at work
Jim Clark
Born this day in 1931
Editor for The World Is Not Enough

Englishman Jim Clark has done a bit of everything in front of and behind the camera. He’s been an actor, writer, editor, director, producer, and sound. He got his start at Ealing Studios. He worked as an Assistant Sound Editor for The Cruel Sea (1953) and the following year, was the Second Assistant Editor on The Love Lottery (1954), a position that he stayed in for much of his 50+ year career.

Clark received an Academy Award and a BAFTA for editing The Killing Fields (1984) and a BAFTA for The Mission (1986). And in 2005, Clark was honored with the American Cinema Editors Career Achievement Award. In 2011, he wrote his autobiography, Dream Repairman: Adventures in Film Editing.

Lonsdale as Sir Hugo Drax

Michael Lonsdale
Born this day in 1931
Hugo Drax in Moonraker

Parisian Michael Lonsdale has had a long and successful career as an actor. With a French mother and an English father, they moved from Paris to Guernsey then London and eventually Casablanca. After the war, he returned to Paris where he studied painting before taking an interest in acting. He started with stage acting and then in 1956, he moved to the big screen with It Happened in Aden in which he was cast as Sinclair.

Most of his acting credits are in French film and television, but he has done some English projects. For example, as Lebel in The Day of the Jackel (1973); as the Abbot in The Name of the Rose (1986) in which he starred opposite Bond alum Sean Connery; as Dupont D’Ivry in The Remains of the Day (1993); as Jean-Pierre in Ronin (1998) opposite Bond alums Sean Bean and Jonathan Pryce; and as Papa in Munich (2005) opposite yet another couple of Bond alums, Daniel Craig and Mathieu Amalric. In all, Lonsdale has over 230 acting credits! 

Bond Trivia: Because Lonsdale is bilingual, for the French version of Moonraker, he dubbed himself.

Deakins on set
Roger Deakins
Born this day in 1949
Camera Operator: “A” Camera for Skyfall
Director of Photography on Skyfall

Roger Deakins is an accomplished English cinematographer who has worked a who’s who of directors: Michael Apted, Roger Spottiswoode, David Mamet, Martin Scorsese, Ron Howard, M. Night Shyamalan, and Angelina Jolie. He has worked with the Coen brothers for the past 25 years, Sam Mendes for three films, and currently with Denis Villeneuve on the new Blade Runner project.

Deakins’ approach of utilizing limited lighting brings out the beauty of his scenes and actors in all of his films. His cinematic eye has led to several accolades over the years. Below are just a few examples:

No Country for Old Men (2007)
O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)
The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
True Grit (2010)
Skyfall (2012)

© Copyright. Michele Brittany. 2011 - 2015. All rights reserved. All text, graphics, and photos are protected by US and International Copyright Laws, and may not be copied, reprinted, published, translated, hosted, or otherwise distributed by any means without written permission.

Saturday, May 23, 2015

Location and Effects: Watts and Field…Day 143 of Bond 365



Robert Watts
Born this day in 1938
Location Manager for You Only Live Twice

Robert Watts has worn many hats in the film industry however his foray into film was with You Only Live Twice in which he was the Location Manager. He worked twice more in that capacity for Billion Dollar Brain (1967) and The Adventurers (1970) before moving to Production Manager and later as Producer. He has worked with Stanley Kubrick on 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) as well as a couple of rather well known franchises: Star Wars (Episode IV, V, VI) and Indiana Jones.

Roy Field
Passed away this day in 2002
Visual Effects for Dr. No, From Russia With Love, Goldfinger, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
Optical Cinematographer for Diamonds Are Forever, The Man with the Golden Gun

Roy Field got an excellent start in visual and special effects work with his association with the 1955 film The Quatermass Xperiment before moving onto Eon Productions, where he worked on eight James Bond films! Field worked on the Superman films where he won two awards for his effects, as well as the television films about Horatio Hornblower. He also worked with Jim Henson on a handful of his films, including one of my favorites, Labyrinth (1986). However, he also completed the effects for The Omen (1976), Clash of the Titans (1981) and The Keep (1983), an underrated film and soundtrack in my opinion.

Effects for The Man with the Golden Gun

© Copyright. Michele Brittany. 2011 - 2015. All rights reserved. All text, graphics, and photos are protected by US and International Copyright Laws, and may not be copied, reprinted, published, translated, hosted, or otherwise distributed by any means without written permission.

Friday, May 22, 2015

Movie Premiere and An Assistant Director….Day 142 of Bond 365



This day in Bond history A View to a Kill premiered at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco, California in 1985, marking the first time a Bond film premiered outside of the UK according to Wiki. It was the fourteenth Eon Productions’ produced James Bond film and was Sir Roger Moore’s last outing as the British secret agent, who matches wits with arch villain Max Zorin (Christopher Walken) who is targeting Silicon Valley for destruction. John Glen was back at the helm for a third time, and the theme song was by Duran Duran, which kept true with their musical style at the time. One of my favorite characters was Patrick Macnee as Sir Godfrey Tibbett. The exchange between him and Roger Moore was memorable and humorous. And, there was the young, fresh face of Dolph Lundgren as Venz.

Gus Agosti
Passed away this day in 1998
Assistant Director for Thunderball

Gus Agosti is a bit of a mystery since I didn’t have much success online other than IMDB. He started out as a Second Assistant Director in My Brother Jonathan in 1948 and from there, seemed to have a steady stream of films that he worked on up to 1979. During his career, he worked with David Lean on The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957); Ben-Hur (1959) starring Charlton Heston and Jack Hawkins; Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968) starring Dick Van Dyke; with John Huston on The Kremlin Letter (1970); and Le Mans (1971) starring Steve McQueen.

Agosti passed away in 1998 in Italy. His age was not known.

© Copyright. Michele Brittany. 2011 - 2015. All rights reserved. All text, graphics, and photos are protected by US and International Copyright Laws, and may not be copied, reprinted, published, translated, hosted, or otherwise distributed by any means without written permission.

Thursday, May 21, 2015

'No Deals Mr. Bond'…Day 141 of Bond 365





I apologize for the incredibly short entry this evening. It’s been a full day of the 9 to 5, then home to clean and tidy up for an inspection tomorrow of the abode. I’m ready to call it a night, but not before giving you your daily dose of Bond 365.

Today, Spyfi & Superspies honors the 1987 release of John Gardner’s No Deals Mr. Bond. Jonathan Cape, who published Ian Fleming’s novels, concluded that tradition with this book’s release. This was Gardner’s sixth novel and has the distinction of including James Bond’s name in the title (at least thus far!).

I have not read this novel, but it has got to be one of the very best titles to date for a Bond story. Unfortunately, Gardner called the title “dreadful” and had originally suggested Tomorrow Always Comes.

Bond Trivia: Gardner gives a nod to Kingsley Amis as the author of some of the books the officers in the story have an interest in. As Bond aficionados know, Amis wrote the first continuation novel after Ian Fleming’s death titled Colonel Sun. Amis used the pseudonym, Robert Markham.

 © Copyright. Michele Brittany. 2011 - 2015. All rights reserved. All text, graphics, and photos are protected by US and International Copyright Laws, and may not be copied, reprinted, published, translated, hosted, or otherwise distributed by any means without written permission.

Wednesday, May 20, 2015

Birthdays: Overton, Hedison and Zerbe…Day 140 of Bond 365



Al Overton
Born this day in 1912
Sound Recordist for Diamonds Are Forever

Al Overton was an American sound recordist originally from Connecticut. He got his start in the film Port of Hell in 1954 and had almost 100 sound credits to his name before his death in 1985. Overton was nominated for Best Sound in Diamonds Are Forever, along with Gordon K. McCallum and John W. Mitchell at the Academy Awards in 1972.

Looking over his filmography, a couple of credits stand out: It Conquered the World (1956) starring Peter Graves and Lee Van Cleef; The Russians Are Coming the Russians Are Coming (1966) starring Alan Arkin, Carl Reiner and John Phillip Law (swoon!); and The Shootist (1976) starring John Wayne and Lauren Bacall.

David Hedison
Born this day in 1927
Felix Leiter in Live and Let Die, Licence to Kill

I met David Hedison at a Hollywood Collector’s Shows about four years ago. Still the tall, handsome man at 80-something at the time, it was easy to see how he had made it through the industry door into acting. His IMDB profile notes that he was turned onto acting after seeing Blood and Sand (1941) starring several inspiring actors of the time: Tyrone Power, Anthony Quinn, John Carradine, and George Reeves. The leading lady was the lovely Rita Hayworth.

I believe I first saw Hedison in the syndicated Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, which originally aired from 1964 through 1968. He went onto guest star in several popular television shows during the 1970s and 1980s. Hedison was the first actor to portray Felix Leiter twice and he was the only actor that played Felix opposite two different James Bond actors, Roger Moore and Timothy Dalton. Jeffrey Wright was the second actor to have a recurring role as Felix in two Bond films, Casino Royale (2006) and Quantum of Solace (2008) with Daniel Craig playing Bond in both.

Anthony Zerbe
Born this day in 1938
Milton Krest in Licence to Kill

Nicknamed ‘Bug’, Anthony Zerbe is a SoCal man originally from Long Beach, California. I did not recognize his name on my list, but as soon as I saw his face, I did. He’s had over 100 acting credits across several genres, but he is probably best known for his westerns. 

He’s definitely one of those solid character actors does very well in making the main characters do great. I guess is no surprise that he would pull off a good villain as he did in Licence to Kill where he met a grisly end.

© Copyright. Michele Brittany. 2011 - 2015. All rights reserved. All text, graphics, and photos are protected by US and International Copyright Laws, and may not be copied, reprinted, published, translated, hosted, or otherwise distributed by any means without written permission.

Tuesday, May 19, 2015

Three Birthday Ladies: Mallet, Jones and Marlohe…Day 139 of Bond 365



Tania Mallet, 1963
Tania Mallet
Born this day in 1941
Tilly Masterson in Goldfinger

English girl Tania Mallet was born in Blackpool as the country was plunged head long into the Second World War. Mallet attended the Lucy Clayton’s School of Modelling and began working as a model when she was just 16 years old.

At the age of 22, she was considered for the role of Tatiana in From Russia With Love that ultimately went to Daniela Bianchi. The following year, she was cast as Tilly Masterson in Goldfinger. Apparently, the role was an experiment for her. However, she earned a fraction of what she was earning as a model. IMDB states that she played in a couple of small roles in other films (they are not listed), but she stayed working as a model where she could make more money. She quoted as having said, “If you’re only going to make one movie in life, then why not Goldfinger? Why not indeed?

I met Ms. Mallet at one of the Hollywood Collector’s Shows when they hosted a Bond Reunion and it was lovely to meet her. She was still just as beautiful, a little bit reserved, but in a completely charming way, and quite the proper English lady.

 Grace Jones
Born this day in 1948
May Day in A View to a Kill

She was born Beverly Grace Jones in Spanish Town, St. Catherine, Jamaica, but she and her family moved to New York in 1961. Jones got her start as a model working with leading designers, appearing on a number of fashion magazine covers as well as posing for well-known photographers, such as Helmut Newton.

At the beginning of the 1980s, Jones’ musical career took off. She had hits occupying the Top 40 charts. In addition, she juggled a foray into acting with Conan the Destroyer (1984) starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and the following year, with Roger Moore in A View to a Kill. Thanks to her unique style of dress, she has influenced Annie Lennox, Lady Gaga, Rihanna, and others.

Jones was instrumental in getting her then boyfriend Dolph Lundgren a part in A View to a Kill where she played May Day, the main henchwoman to Christopher Walken’s Max Zorin. For her performance in the film, she was nominated for the Best Supporting Actress category for Saturn Awards.

Berenice Lim Marlohe
Born this day in 1979
Severin in Skyfall

Berenice Lim Marlohe was born in Paris to her Parisian mother who is a teacher and her father, a doctor, of Chinese and Cambodian ancestry. She originally wanted to become a pianist and artist. She studied at the Conservatoire de Paris for ten years, but her path led her towards acting at some point.

Miss Marlohe got her start in French cinema in 2007, and made guest appearances on French television. Her break out role was in Skyfall (2012) when she played the mysterious Severin, which she received a Best Supporting Actress nomination in 2013 from the National Film Society Awards.

Fortunately, if you enjoyed seeing Miss Marlohe, albeit briefly in Skyfall, she stars in 5 to 7 (2014) alongside Anton Yelchin, Glen Close, and Frank Langella. And, she is set to star in Weightless (Terrence Malick) with a who’s who cast that includes Ryan Gosling, Christian Bale, Natalie Portman, Rooney Mara, Cate Blanchett, Val Kilmer, Michael Fassbender, Benicio del Toro (a Bond alum), and Clifton Collins Jr.

© Copyright. Michele Brittany. 2011 - 2015. All rights reserved. All text, graphics, and photos are protected by US and International Copyright Laws, and may not be copied, reprinted, published, translated, hosted, or otherwise distributed by any means without written permission.


Monday, May 18, 2015

Playing Six Degrees of Matthew Broderick, Starting with John Abineri…Day 138 of Bond 365


John Abineri
Born this day in 1928
Airline Representative in Diamonds Are Forever

John Frederick Abineri was born in London to an Austrian father. He apparently had an affinity for languages because he was fluent German, Russian and French. His linguistic flexibility led Abineri to be cast in a variety of nationalities throughout his career in television and film. Adding to his acting abilities, Abineri attended the Old Vic drama school and according to IMDB, he began acting in the theatre in 1951 with such plays as Shakespeare’s “The Comedy of Errors” and Christopher Marlowe’s “Tamburlaine the Great.”

John Abineri, center
Abineri’s first on-screen role was in the 1955 BBC TV series The Children of the New Forest in which he played Oswald for all five episodes. His first film was Independent Artists Studios’ House of Mystery (1961) in which he played the supporting role of the Milkman. However, the first film I recognize, but I don’t know if it would have been Abineri’s breakout role, was in Guy Hamilton’s Funeral in Berlin (1966) starring Michael Caine. And, Abineri shared a common thread with a few other Bond alums: he guest starred in the TV series Doctor Who, spanning from 1968 through 1979.

A couple of interesting projects listed in Abineri’s filmography: he played Rimmer’s Dad in the cult TV series Red Dwarf (1988) and Father Gruber in the mini-series Around the World in 80 Days (1989), which starred Pierce Brosnan. Also, Abineri starred as Herne the Hunter in the series Robin of Sherwood (1984-1986), which also starred Sean Connery’s son Jason Connery (who was married to Mia Sara – who played Sloane in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off) and guess who had a writing credit in the show? Anthony Horowitz who is writing the next James Bond novel! I love playing ‘Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon’!

Bond Trivia: Interestingly, Abineri was dubbed for his role in Diamonds Are Forever.

© Copyright. Michele Brittany. 2011 - 2015. All rights reserved. All text, graphics, and photos are protected by US and International Copyright Laws, and may not be copied, reprinted, published, translated, hosted, or otherwise distributed by any means without written permission.