Remembering Richard Kiel One Year On…Day 253 of Bond 365

Richard Kiel

Passed away this day in 2014

Jaws in Moonraker and The Spy Who Loved Me

Richard Dawson Kiel was a difficult person to miss. Born in Detroit in 1939, Kiel got his start in acting as an Ugly Marine (uncredited) in the military drama The D.I. in 1957. At 7’ 2” tall, he often placed characters focused on his tall stature. He was cast in several televisions and movies that included The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Gilligan’s Island, The Monkees, and The Wild Wild West.

He got his break in 1977 as Jaws in The Spy Who Loved Me, opposite Sir Roger Moore and returned in 1979’s Moonraker to reprise his role. Although he was well recognize as that character, after the Bond films, Kiel went back to guest appearing on television and in films. Apparently, Kiel declined the role of Chewbacca because he felt he more opportunities in the Jaws role.

In 1991, Kiel wrote and produced The Giant of Thunder Mountain, a family film that garnered he quite a bit of viewer praise. However, the following year, Kiel was in an auto accident that affected his balance, so thereafter he needed assistance with walking.

Kiel’s attachment to the Bond franchise as Jaws was rejuvenated through a newer medium: the video game market. In 1997, his likeness was used in GoldenEye 007. In 2004, he lent his voice in James Bond 007: Everything or Northing. In all, he was involved in six games.

I met Kiel a couple of times at Bond reunions hosted by the Hollywood Collector’s Show in Burbank and Los Angeles. On both occasions, he was exceeding kind and friendly. It was very sad to hear the news last year when he passed.

© 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.

Saluting Agent XXX….Day 239 of Bond 365

Barbara Bach

Born this day in 1947

Major Anya Amasova / Agent XXX in The Spy Who Loved Me

The oldest of five children, Barbara Goldbach was born in Queens, New York. At the age of 19, Bach was working as a model in New York when she met Augusto Gregorini, who was visiting from Italy for business. She followed him back to Italy and they married within two years of meeting. They had two children.

Bach started acting in 1968 in Italy. Her first role was in the television mini-series Odissea where she played Nausicaa. She was cast in the various popular genre films in Italy at the time – comedy, crime, and gallo – before moving to Los Angeles in 1975.

Her move to Southern California signaled the beginning of the end of her marriage to Gregorini and they divorced in 1978. She starred in a number of American films, but it was in 1981 when she was cast as Lana in the comedy Caveman that she met her future husband and star of the movie, Beatle’s drummer Ringo Starr. Interestingly, a few short years later, she starred opposite another former Beatle, Paul McCartney in the 1984 Give My Regards to Broad Street. Her last role was in a little known comedy in which she starred opposite Starr in To the North of Katmandu (1986).

After her exit from show business, Bach and Starr went through a treatment program for alcoholism in 1988 and in 1993, she earned a master’s degree in Psychology from UCLA. She put it to use by starting S.H.A.R.P., Self Help Addiction Recovery Program that helps individuals with addictions. And, Bach and Starr established a charity organization The Lotus Foundation, which contains several sub-charities.

© 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.

Remembering Bond Villain, Curd Jurgens….Day 169 of Bond 365

Curd Jurgens

Passed away this day 1982

Karl Stromberg in The Spy Who Loved Me

With one of the longest birth names I have come across among the Bond alums thus far, Curd Gustav Andreas Gottlieb Jurgens, or Curd Jurgens, was born in Munich. The ravages of the First World War was two years on by the time Jurgens was born in the closing days of 1915. He began pursuing a career as a journalist, but his first wife encouraged him to pursue acting, which he did on the Vienna stage. However, his acting was derailed in 1944 when he found to be politically unreliable – he was critical of National Socialism – and sent to a Hungarian camp. After the war, he became an Austrian citizen.

In 1935, Jurgens was cast as Kaiser Franz Joseph von Osterreich in the UFA release of Konigswalzer (trans. The Royal Waltz). He went on to star in many war and spy genre films and televisions shows, such as The Enemy Below (1957) which had Jurgens starring opposite Robert Mitchum, The Longest Day (1962) starring John Wayne and Richard Burton, OSS 117 – Double Agent (1968), and Battle of Britain (1969) starring Michael Caine and Trevor Howard.  He was Carl Von Kesser in a two-part episode on called ‘The Five Daughters Affair’ on The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1967) and as The General in the tv mini series Smiley’s People (1982), which was Jurgens' last role. 

Jurgens was nominated for a number of acting awards, earning three: German Film Awards’ Honorary Award (like the Academy Awards’ Lifetime Award) in 1981, Golden Camera’s Best German Actor for Collin (1981), which he shared with Hans Christian Blech, and Venice Film Festival’s Best Actor Volpi Cup for Les heros sont fatigues and Des Teufels General, both from 1955 and the latter being considered his breakout role. Jurgens tied with Kenneth More from The Deep Blue Sea (1955).

Although Jurgens had a successful prolific career on television and film, he gave more weight and significance to his stage performances. Jurgens was married five times and had a daughter with his third wife, Eva Bartok, who later said the father was actually Frank Sinatra. Jurgens wrote his autobiography and showing a bit of humor that we didn’t see The Spy Who Loved Me, he titled it And Not a Bit Wise (1976). He died of a heart attack at the age of 66 and was interred in Vienna.

Bond Trivia: He was the only actor to have played a main Bond villain opposite Sir Roger Moore to have died until Louis Jordan passed way earlier this year, in February.

Let’s take a look at a scene from The Spy Who Loved Me spotlighting Jurgens in his role of main Bond villain Karl Stromberg:

© 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.

Stunts, Stars and a Director….Day 168 of Bond 365

Lee Tamahori

Born this day in 1950

Director of Die Another Day

Lee Tamahori is originally from Wellington, New Zealand and is the only Bond director to be of Maori ancestry. He got his start in show business as a boom operator for Skin Deep (1978), a New Zealand drama, which garnered a nomination for Best Feature at the Chicago International Film Festival.

Tamahori has worked on 23 films as either director or as a second unit/assistant director since 1983. He directed Pierce Brosnan in his last outing as James Bond in Die Another Day (2002), which also marked the 40^th anniversary of the franchise’s beginning with Dr. No in 1962.

He has two regal sounding projects in post-production: the adventure film Emperor starring Sophie Cookson, Adrien Brody and Rutger Hauer (yay!), and an action drama titled The Patriarch set in rural New Zealand.

George Leech

Passed away this day in 2012

Numerous Credits

George Leech wore two hats in the industry: actor and stunts, which he seemed to balance well in terms of the Bond films. His earliest credit was as a stand-in for James Mason (boy, that must have been awesome!) in the film noir Odd Man Out in 1947. However, it was in 1956 that Leech carried a role in the ITV Television Playhouse episode titled ‘Teddy Gang’ and completed stunts in the film Helen of Troy, which starred Stanley Baker and Brigitte Bardot and directed by Robert Wise.

Let’s take a look at Leech’s contribution to the Bond films with stretched from Dr. No to A View To a Kill!

Stunts/Stunt Double: Joseph Wiseman for Dr. No

Man in Bulletproof Vest at Q Branch in Goldfinger

Stunts/Stunt Driver/Stunt Double: Sean Connery for Goldfinger

Disco Volante Crewman in Thunderball

Stunts for Thunderball, Casino Royale (1967), You Only Live Twice

Strangled SPECTRE Skier in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service

Stunt Arranger for On Her Majesty’s Secret Service

Stunts for Diamonds Are Forever

Cortina Gunman #2 in The Spy Who Loved Me

Stunts/Stunt Driver: Lotus Esprit for The Spy Who Loved Me

Henchman Shark Victim in For Your Eyes Only

Stunt Team for For Your Eyes Only

Stunt Driver/Explosion Stunt for Octopussy

Additional Stunts for Never Say Never Again

Stunt Double: Willoughby Gray for A View To a Kill

Jeffry Wickham

Passed away this day in 2014

Russian Control Room Officer in You Only Live Twice

English actor Jeffry (or Jeffrey) Wickham got his start on the television series An Age of Kings (1960) where he played a number of different roles. For much of his almost 100 acting credits, Wickham worked frequently on shows doing guest appearances. He was also one of a handful of actors that worked not only on a Bond project, but also on Doctor Who, where he was cast as Webster for the ‘Guests of Madame Guillotine’ episode in 1964. Wickham has the distinction of also working with another English institution: Hammer films. He was cast as Edgar in the ‘Carpathian Eagle’ episode of Hammer House of Horror, a television series in 1980.

In addition to all of the television appearances, Wickham was cast in a number of British films. Memorable roles would probably include The Remains of the Day (1993) in which he played Viscount Bigge and as Capt. Frank Barnes, joining Sean Connery in The Terrorists (1974).

© 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.

Birthdays Times Four: Young, Jenkins, Culver, and Cartlidge…Day 167 of Bond 365

Raymond Young

Born this day in 1918

Sierra in Goldfinger

I wasn’t able to find much on English actor Raymond Young when I was researching details about him. He started acting after World War II in a television movie titled She Stoops to Conquer (1949) in which he played ‘Young Marlow’ in the film. Young made a lot of guest appearances on television shows throughout his career of almost 80 credits. His last role as Porter was in the 1991 Jeeves and Wooster series. He passed away in 2011 at the age of 93.

Geoffrey Jenkins

Born this day in 1920

Author of Per Fine Ounce

Originally from South Africa, Geoffrey Jenkins was a journalist and novelist who wrote several stories about his country. He became a news correspondent during World War II and spent the war years in London working for Sunday Times. He met and became friends with Ian Fleming while at the newspaper.

 In 1959, Jenkins wrote A Twist of Sand, his first novel, which later was turned into a movie by the same name. Released in 1968, it starred Richard Johnson and Honor Blackman and was directed by Terence Young.

Jenkins did some research for Fleming for one of his Bond novels, but unfortunately Fleming died before writing the intended novel. After some back and forth negotiation, Gildrose Productions, which later became Ian Fleming Publications, offered Jenkins the job to write the first continuation novel. Jenkins submitted a manuscript titled Per Fine Ounce, but it was rejected. Sadly, only 18 pages of the story survives.

MI6-HQ has a nice biography on Jenkins here. 

Michael Culver

Born this day in 1938

Man in a Punt in From Russia With Love

Vulcan Bomber Crewman in Thunderball

Michael Culver first casting role was as Det. Con. Haywick in the tv series You Can’t Win (1961). While you may not remember him in his two guest appearances in From Russia With Love and Thunderball, if you are a Star Wars fan, then perhaps you remember him as Captain Needa in Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back. 

Culver has over 100 acting credits to his name, having appeared on the small screen and the silver screen in the intervening years of his career. In addition, he has been active in the theatre scene that rivals his broadcast projects. When he isn’t acting, he engages in activism to promote peace.

William P Cartlidge

Born this day in 1942

Producer for The Spy Who Loved Me, Moonraker

Assistant Director of You Only Live Twice

Englishman William “Bill” P. Cartlidge has been a writer, producer and director since he got his start in the business as a Third Assistant Director (uncredited) for Follow That Horse! in 1960. He has worked with two James Bond actors: Sean Connery and Roger Moore. In 2002, he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy for Dinotopia (2002) as an Outstanding Miniseries.

© 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.

Ladies of the Day: Izabella Scorupco & Marguerite Green…Day 155 of Bond 365

Izabella Scorupco

Born this day in 1970

Natalya Simonova in GoldenEye

Izabella Scorupco was born in Poland but relocated with her mother when she was a young child. At 17, she was discovered by a director who cast her as Annelie in the Swedish film Ingen kan alska som vi (1988), which resulted in her becoming a teen idol. Scorupco became a model in Sweden and Europe and then launched a career as a singer.

In 1994, she returned to acting and was cast in a number of films including GoldenEye (1995) opposite Pierce Brosnan. Interestingly, she passed on two roles: Lynn Bracken in L.A. Confidential (1997) and as Elena in The Mask of Zorro (1998). The former role went to another Bond alum, Kim Basinger, who starred opposite Sean Connery in the 1983 Never Say Never Again. 

I enjoyed her performance in GoldenEye and candidly, I liked the clothing choices made for her, especially in the early scenes of the film of her working at the base. It would be nice to see her in more roles. 

Marguerite Green

Passed away this day in 1983

Production Secretary for From Russia With Love, The Spy Who Loved Me, Moonraker

Marguerite Green was originally from Brentford, England and got her start in the crime drama The Clouded Yellow (1950) as a production secretary. She would have rubbed shoulders with stars Jean Simmons and Trevor Howard. In her 30+ years in the business, Green worked with several well-known stars: Alan Ladd, Stanley Baker, Jack Hawkins, Michael Caine and two James Bonds, as portrayed by Sean Connery and Roger Moore.

If you happen to have The Making of James Bond – 007 (1977) then you’ll get to hear from Ms Green herself of her work on the Bond films.

© 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.

‘This is the Master’ Haa Haa and The ABCs of Bond….Day 123 of Bond 365

Yesterday, I attended the sixth annual H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival and CthulhuCon held in San Pedro and it was a packed day and evening of all things horror. I got to listen to readings, watch several short films inspired by Lovecraft, and meet many friendly people. One of the highlights of the evening was meeting Richard Stanley who directed Dust Devil (1992) and Hardware (1990). I am particularly fond of Dust Devil and I think it is a fascinating film of exploring South African mysticism. I believe it is an underrated film. I need to re-watch Hardware as I haven’t watched it in a number of years. Anyway, the festival was fun and I look forward to next year’s festival.

Lamar Boren

Born this day in 1917

Underwater Cameraman for Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, The Spy Who Loved Me, Moonraker

Lamar Boren was featured back on January 15 when he passed away in 1986 in San Diego, California.

Bruce Cabot

Passed away this day in 1972

Saxby in Diamonds Are Forever

Bruce Cabot was featured a couple of weeks ago on April 20 to mark his birth in 1904.

Anthony Ainley

Passed away this day in 2004

Hong Kong Policeman #2 in You Only Live Twice

There are a handful of actors who had ties to James Bond and Doctor Who; Anthony Ainley is one of those actors. Ainley was unique though because he played the Master for nine year, which made him the “longest serving actor to appear as a regular character in the TV series’ history” according to his IMDB’s profile.

Ainley came from an acting family and took his first role at ten years old in The Foreman Went to France (1942), but he didn’t land another role in the television series It’s Dark Outside in 1965. He worked in theatre for many years while making guest appearances on a number of television series over the intervening years until 1981. At that point, Ainley became the Master on Doctor Who.

After Doctor Who, Ainley receded from public life and kept to himself. In 2004, he passed away at the age of 71. The cause of death was listed as cancer.

© 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.

Beddoes and Crampton Make Second Appearance….Day 118 of Bond 365

It’s a bit light today given that both individuals have been featured in Bond 365. Both were artists in their own way: Ivor Beddoes a sketch artist who worked on several popular films such as Star Wars and Stanley Kubrick’s Barry Lyndon. I admire his talent and vision – it’s a skill I wish I possessed.

The other artist, Gerry Crampton, was an artist of stunts. Yes, I sincerely believe there is artistry to stunts – from choreography to execution. Again, there is the need for vision, expertise and attention to detail, especially since one’s life is on the line. I don’t know if starting at 30 years old is late, but he managed to jam 83 stunt credits in a forty-year span. He was still working at the age of 77 as a stunt coordinator!

Ivor Beddoes, BFI photo

The Bond family and story would not be the same without Beddoes and Crampton and many other lesser-known individuals who worked on film or twenty. Thanks to all those people, in front of and behind the camera, for making Bond experience that much more exciting and memorable.

Gerry Crampton, 1956

Ivor Beddoes

Born this day in 1909

Sketch Artist for Diamonds Are Forever

Back on March 14, I did a lengthy entry on Ivor Beddoes to mark his passing in 1981.

Gerry Crampton

Born this day in 1930

Stunts for Dr. No, From Russia With Love, Goldfinger, You Only Live Twice, Diamonds Are Forever, The Spy Who Loved Me, A View to a Kill

And, back on Day 24, I spotlighted Gerry Crampton’s passing in 2009.

© 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.

‘..the experiment has obviously gone very much awry..’…Day 106 of Bond 365

Cover by Richard Chopping

Ian Fleming took a leap with his ninth novel The Spy Who Loved Me (1962) by telling the story in first person, not by James Bond, but by Vivienne Michel a young Canadian woman touring America. It was shortest novel Fleming wrote that apparently was highly sexually explicit; the book tells the story of Viv’s love affairs, including her encounter with Bond in the latter part of the book.

The book received the most negative reviews from critics and fans of any of his books. As a result, Fleming did everything he could to suppress the novel. For example, he blocked the release of a paperback version and only gave the rights to the title for a film version to Saltzman and Broccoli. However after his death, a paperback edition was released and Jaws (Richard Kiel) is loosely based on the character named Horror, one of the two mobsters who visits the motel.

Fleming stated that his motivation for writing The Spy Who Loved Me was inspired by his discovery that his books were being read by youth who were making out Bond to be a hero. Out of concern for his part in shaping young minds, he wrote this novel as a tale of caution. Coming from the perspective of having just read Matthew Parker’s biography and given the timeframe of when the novel would have been written – 1961 – I wonder if there wasn’t some deeper introspection on the part of Fleming regarding the deterioration of his relationship with his wife. Both parties ‘openly’ engaged in affairs, but Fleming was unhappy and unhealthy in his later years.

Although Fleming was very much of the opinion that the novel was a failure, there were some positive responses. Both Raymond Benson and Jeremy Black agreed that Michel was Fleming’s most developed female character and that she finds strength in spite of her past experiences. And one reviewer appreciated the more romantic tone that set this novel apart. I look forward to reading it and making my own comparisons with the other novels and short stories that are part of Bond’s cannon.

Syd Cain

Born this day 1918

Art Direction in Dr. No, From Russia with Love and Live and Let Die

Storyboard Artist in GoldenEye

Production Designer in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service

Alongside Ken Adam, the name Syd Cain is synonymous with Eon Productions and James Bond. Cain began working as a draughtsman at Denham Studios in the 1940s. Eventually, he would work with Saltzman and Broccoli on five Bond films spanning across four decades. He created several sets, such as for the chess match, and memorable gadgets, such as Colonel Rosa Klebbs’ shoe spike and Bond’s briefcase of lethal weapons and gold coins, all featured in From Russia with Love.

 In 2002, Cain wrote his autobiography Not Forgetting James Bond in which he relates stories of his 57 years working in the industry. It’s illustrated with archival photographs, many of them rare and from Cain’s personal collection. MI6 Confidential has them for sale (includes Cain’s autograph) if your collection doesn’t include this tome.

© 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.

‘James, take me around the world one more time’…..Day 105 of Bond 365

Lois Chiles

Born this day in 1947

Dr. Holly Goodhead in Moonraker

Lois Chiles hails from Texas and attended the University of Texas at Austin and Finch College (NYC). She became a top model during the 1970s, which is around the time she started acting. Her first acting credit was in 1972 as Shelley in Together for Days, but her big break came the following year when she starred as Robert Redford’s on-screen love interest in The Way We Were. 

Interestingly, Lewis Gilbert originally chose Chiles for the role of Agent Triple X or Anya Amasova in The Spy Who Loved Me, however Barbara Bach ultimately filled the role, which I think was the much better choice. Gilbert once again tapped Chiles to be Bond Girl Dr. Holly Goodhead in Moonraker and this time, she accepted.

I have seen a few of the movies listed on Chiles’ filmography, but I don’t remember her performances. So, based on that admission, I thought Chiles was miscast as Goodhead. Revisiting a latter scene in Moonraker in which she and James Bond (Roger Moore) are chasing/destroying the probes, she is deadpan to the point of being monotone with her line delivery. In the earlier scenes at her lab, the deadpan delivery works for the location (sterile lab environment) and distance (she had just met Bond, so he was a stranger to her), but by the end of the film, one would think that the life/death situation would have spurred her emotions a bit. I think maybe it was not a role she was comfortable with at the end of the day.

Chiles had several more acting credits after her Bond film. She did quite a few guest appearances on popular television shows over the intervening years. In 2005, she fought breast cancer and it looks as though her last acting role was in the 2006 Kettle of Fish.

© 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.

Title Sequence Genus Binder and Lewis’ Second Appearance…Day 100 of Bond 365

Wow! Bond 365 has hit 100 days! I didn’t know if I could do it for the long haul and while I still have over two-thirds of the year to go, I am well and truly on my way. I’m hoping to add a bit more in the way of reviews and in depth analysis, but some days just getting the entry out and on the page with the other tasks I have is the best I can do. So, thank you for coming back repeatedly, which means a lot to me. Have a wonderful evening and see you tomorrow! 

Aileen Lewis

Born this day in 1914

Chess Tournament Spectator in From Russia With Love

This is Aileen Lewis’ second appearance in Bond 365, having been spotlighted on February 12 for her passing at the age of 99. Her career started in 1959 and concluded in 1977 for a total of 21 acting credits. In addition to working on From Russia With Love, she did do a guest appearance in Roger Moore’s The Saint for two separate roles in 1962 and 1965. She also completed an uncredited appearance in Doctor Who in 1970 during Jon Pertwee’s stint as the time traveler.

Maurice Binder

Passed away this day in 1991

Main Titles for Dr. No, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, Diamonds Are Forever, Live and Let Die, The Man with the Golden Gun, The Spy Who Loved Me, Moonraker, For Your Eyes Only, Octopussy, A View to a Kill, The Living Daylights, Licence to Kill

Maurice Binder was a visual designer who worked on many opening title sequences over several decades. He designed advertisements for Macy’s in New York City and eventually moved west to work at Universal Studios. The opening sequence below from The Grass Is Greener (1960) apparently brought Binder to the attention of Broccoli and Saltzman and he was hired to do the opening credits of Dr. No. He came up with the gunbarrel sequence that became a standard of every James Bond film opening. He completed 14 title sequences for Bond and a total of 81 during his career.

© 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.

Remembering Stuntman Bill Weston….Day 84 of Bond 365

Bill Weston as Blayden Butler in The Living Daylights

Bill Weston

Passed away this day in 2012

Stunts for You Only Live Twice, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, The Spy Who Loved Me, For Your Eyes Only, Octopussy, Never Say Never Again, and The World Is Not Enough

Stunt Double: Christopher Walken/Stunt Team on A View to a Kill

Blayden Butler in The Living Daylights

Bill Weston’s career as a stunt performer spanned approximately 40 years in almost one hundred projects that ranged from television to film. Interestingly, he worked on several Eon Productions (and one non-Eon) Bond films, yet his Wikipedia entry spotlights his work in Saving Private Ryan, Titanic and Raiders of the Lost Ark. All three are stunt heavy, but so are the Bond films!

Special note, Weston even worked on the Alex Rider: Operation Stormbreaker (2006) movie that starred a young Alex Pettyfer as Alex Rider, based on the novel by Anthony Horowitz. I read the book and found it to a fun, young James Bond oriented book.

© 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.

Remembering the Novel: You Only Live Twice…..Day 75 of Bond 365

Welcome to Day 75 and today in Bond history, the UK version of You Only Live Twice was released in 1964 by publisher Jonathan Cape. Ian Fleming wrote the 170-page novel January and February 1963, which would have been after Dr. No was released on the big screen. There is speculation that Fleming’s book Bond took on filmic Bond qualities with this book. The story was serialized, adapted to a comic strip (check Titan’s James Bond omnibus series) and was the fifth film from Eon Productions starring Sean Connery.

Michael Gillette Cover

You Only Live Twice was the eleventh novel and was the last novel Fleming wrote that was published prior to his death. The novel was the concluding book of the Blofeld Trilogy and included Fleming’s trips to Japan. He visited Japan in 1959 as part of his “Thrilling Cities” trip and eventually novel by the same name. He returned to Japan in 1962. Journalist friends that accompanied him on his second trip became characters Dikko Henderson and Tiger Tanaka.

Richard Chopping cover, 1st edition

The cover of the book was drawn by Richard Chopping who had been the cover artist for The Spy Who Loved Me. Chopping has quite an interesting story regarding the toad on the cover. Fleming suggested Chopping purchase a toad (definitely not a frog), but Chopping was determined to find one from the wild. Eventually he did and he completed several drawings of the toad. Fleming wanted Japanese elements that included the flower, the dragonfly and a piece of pottery. The finished cover had bamboo rather than the pottery. I really like Chopping’s covers and think they are quite well done. However, I was unaware that the artist felt swindled on royalties and then later, not getting the originals. Read the full story from 2010 in the Daily Mail.

I haven’t read You Only Live Twice, mostly because I have not decided what book cover version I want to collect. My collection so far is a mixed bag of editions because I have picked up the most interesting covers that I have come across at my local bookstore. Since first editions are a bit dear, I know that I will select one of the more contemporary sets out there. I just haven’t done so yet. And, one cannot blame me for wanting my novels to match and look great on my bookshelf!

© 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.

Artist Ivor Beddoes…..Day 73 of Bond 365

Ivor Beddoes, Wikipedia

Ivor Beddoes

Passed away this day in 1981

Art Direction for Casino Royale (1967)

Sketch Artist for Diamonds Are Forever and The Spy Who Loved Me

Ivor William Gilmour Beddoes was born in a suburb of London. He was creatively minded in several arenas. He painted, danced, composed music, was a poet, and sketch artist. With his younger sister, they often sang and danced at family gatherings and later at local parties. While college, Beddoes earned money performing around London in order to pay for his art supplies and continue his studies.

El Daba Egypt, 1942

By the late 1920s, the financial crisis of the times severely limited Beddoes ability to find work in commercial art. He went back to school to learn dance techniques. He was invited to join one of the ballet troops, but declined because he would not have been able to live on the wages they would have paid. He was also looking to get married, which he would not have been able to do. Instead, he joined the Windmill Theatre, where he danced, sang, and became a character actor. He also began composing his own orchestral music for ballets. With war eminent, Beddoes was conscripted into the British Army.

The Tales of Hoffman (1951)

He served in the Middle East as a draughtsman for the Royal Signals Corps. He became part of the Field Entertainment Unit in Cairo. He studied all aspects of Egyptian life including learning Arabic. Beddoes sketched and painted during that time and his drawings and paintings are now owned at the Imperial War Museum in London (great museum, by the way, and a must see!).

Long Ships (1964)

After the war, he tried to return to Egypt, but his brother-in-law was able to secure Beddoes with important introductions to art directors at Shepperton Studios. The association led Beddoes to a career as sketch artist and art direction, including his own department, in a number of high profile films that included Black Narcissus (1947), The Tales of Hoffman (1951), The Haunting (1963), Superman (1978), Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980), and Superman II (1980).

Beddoes’ art department at Technicolor closed in 1959 when Eastmancolor was introduced, so he left to go work with famed set designer, Ken Adam. Besides working on Diamonds Are Forever, he worked on Goodbye Mr. Chips and Stanley Kubrick’s Barry Lyndon (a cinematic masterpiece of art) among others.

If you want to look a more complete list of his filmography, look up Beddoes on Wikipedia because IMDB appears to be woefully incomplete.

Images of Beddoes mattes are from Matte Shot, a Tribute to Golden Era Special fx.

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