Film Extra and Company President – HF2…Day 247 of Bond 365

Henry Ford II

Henry Ford II

Born this day in 1917

Extra at the Nassau Casino in Thunderball

Henry Ford II was born in Detroit, Michigan and was the grandson of Henry Ford and son of Edsel Ford. He was surrounded by affluence and attended Yale University. He was often known as “HF2” or “ Hank the Deuce.”

HF2 served in the Navy during World War II and it was in 1943 that his father passed away. Ford could not take over the presidency of the automobile company; hence, his grandfather returned as head of the organization. The senior Ford no longer had the mental capacity to run the company, however he so anyway, until the end of the war. In fact, his inability to lead led to a loss of $10 million per month. I cannot even fathom that amount of money be lost ever, let alone in a month and over several consecutive months!

1949 Ford

After leaving the Navy, HF2 joined the management team at his family’s company and in two years, he became president of a company that was in decline. Without his father to groom him, Ford surrounded himself with seasoned executives and took on an aggressive management style. After four year at the helm, HF2 and a team of “Whiz Kids" he selected, developed the 1949 Ford, which brought the company back. 

HF2’s management of Ford was punctuated by several successes – Mustang and Fiesta – and just as many failures – can we say Edsel? He hired and fired Lee Iacocca. HF2 retired in 1982, but continued to have authority until his death in 1987.

HF2 is one of the few Bond alums to have only one acting credit their name, a James Bond film of course.

© 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.

Birthday Wishes to Sir Sean Connery…Day 237 of Bond 365

Sean Connery

Born this day in 1930

Bond. James Bond.

Connery as an infant

Thomas Sean Connery was born to blue-collar parents in Fountainbridge, Edinburgh and is of Irish and Scottish descent. He has a younger brother named Neil, who followed in his older brother’s footsteps by becoming an actor.

Connery as a child - such a cutie! 

Connery held a number labor jobs before going into acting. One of the most unusual jobs, and perhaps a bit macabre, was coffin polisher. For a time, he was a body builder and served in the Royal Navy. IMDB states that he received a medical discharge (stomach ulcers). At the age of 23, he decided to pursue acting.

In the Royal Navy

In 1954, IMDB has Connery’s first role (uncredited) in Let’s Make Up a romantic comedy starring Errol Flynn and Anna Neagle. However, 1957 was Connery’s first good year in acting in which he had his first major role in the film No Road Back and then in the television film Anna Christie the same year.

Connery when he was a bodybuilder

The biggest break came in 1962 of course when, in a smoke filled London club, audience-goers were introduced to Connery as he suavely stated “Bond. James Bond” in Dr. No. He would go on to star as Bond in seven films and voice Bond in the video game James Bond 007: From Russia with Love (2005).

A reflecting Connery

Cemented as a star with the James Bond franchise, Connery has had a successful acting career. I picked out stills from some of the films I have seen him in and enjoyed:

Michael Caine and Connery, The Man Who Would Be King (1975)

Connery, Highlander (1986)

Christian Slater and Connery, The Name of the Rose (1986)

Connery, The Hunt for the Red October (1990)

Connery, A League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003)

Connery has been married twice. His first marriage to Diane Cilento resulted in a son Jason Connery, who became an actor and married actress Mia Sara. They had a son, Dashiell Quinn Connery in 1997. During his career, Connery has been nominated and won many acting awards including multiple lifetime awards. He officially retired from acting in 2006.

Connery in Maclean hunting tartan kilt

On a personal note, I do get to say that I am related (distantly) to Connery as we are both from the clan Maclean.

Connery, in reflection

© 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.

Celebrating Cinematographer Edmund Gibson…Day 235 of Bond 365

Edmund and Joe Gibson from 1972 (eBay)

Edmund Gibson

Born this day in 1915

Underwater Photographer for Thunderball

Born in New York City as Hugh Edmund Gibson and whose father was Joe Gibson, had been a cinematographer in the early days of cinema. The family moved to Florida where the elder Gibson was a newsreel cameraman.

According to an obituary in the American Cinematographer, the young Gibson was working freelance as an assistant cameraman for many of the leading filmmakers that were making films in Florida. However, according to IMDB, his first listing was for Thunderball as an uncredited underwater photographer.

Gibson only had a dozen credits listed on IMDB and they were spread between the camera/electrical department and cinematography for about a total of 15 years. Other than working on the Bond franchise, Gibson worked in a few projects in which animals were featured: the television series Flipper (1967), Gentle Giant (1967), the precursor to the television show Gentle Ben, and Barracuda (1978). Of special note, Gibson ran into Bond alum Harold Sakata (Oddjob) in the 1974 film Impulse starring William Shatner.

Gibson was a member of the American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) and passed away in 1995 at the age of 79.

© 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.

Camera Innovator Richard Moore Remembered….Day 228 of Bond 365

Richard Moore

Passed away this day in 2009

Underwater Camera Operator in Thunderball

Richard Moore studied Cinema at the University of Southern California and got his start in the business as a co-producer for the American thriller Dangerous Charter (1962) that was directed by Robert Gottschalk. Moore had actually joined Gottschalk as co-founder and Executive V.P. of Panavision a decade earlier. Moore was responsible for designing and developing cameras. For instance, he developed a widescreen format camera lens (Cinemascope) as well as a hand held camera that recorded sound and image at the same time.

Moore left Panavision around the time that he co-produced Dangerous Charter. He worked as camera operator and director of photography in several films for two decades thereafter. I don’t think I have seen any of his work with the exception of Thunderball. Moore directed Circle of Iron (1978), which I am curious about because it attracted some big names at the time: David Carradine, Roddy McDowall, Eli Wallach, and Bond alum Christopher Lee. The film was co-written by Bruce Lee, who conceived the idea, along with James Coburn and Stirling Silliphant many years earlier. It was originally titled The Silent Flute and would have starred Bruce Lee, but he died prior to production.

During his career, Moore won a Scientific and Engineering Academy Award for developing Camera 65 in 1960, which was shared with Douglas Shearer (1960). In 2005, he was honored with the President’s Award from the American Society of Cinematographers.

Moore died at the age of 83, in his Palm Springs, California home.

© 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.

Commemorating Cinematographer Ted Moore….Day 219 of Bond 365

Ted Moore

Born this day in 1914

Director of Photography in Dr. No, From Russia with Love, Goldfinger, Thunderball, Diamonds Are Forever, Live and Let Die, The Man with the Golden Gun

Ted Moore was originally from Benoni, Western Cape, South Africa. He moved to the United Kingdom in 1930 and served in the RAF during World War II. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) as well as a French Croix De Geurre. For part of his service, Moore worked with the film unit since by wartime, Moore had already been working as a cameraman in the film industry.

Moore got his professional start as a camera operator for the war drama Sons of the Sea (1939) and get this, an actor by the name of Ian Fleming was cast as a Naval Intelligence Officer – if that isn’t foreshadowing, I don’t know what is?! Some years later, Moore met up with what would become part of the core crew for the Bond franchise in the film Paratrooper (1953). For that film, Terence Young directed, Richard Maibaum was the screenwriter and it co-produced by Albert Broccoli. Further down into the credits, I found stuntman Bob Simmons as well. And, in 1956, Moore, Young and Broccoli joined forces again for Safari. This time, Moore led the Director of Photography for the second unit.

Moore did incredible work on seven Bond films as the cinematographer, creating numerous memorable scenes. Some of the other films that stand out in his filmography that I have seen: The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1973), Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger (1977), the disturbing Orca (1977), television mini-series The Martian Chronicles (1980), and the epic Clash of the Titans (1981), which was one of his very last projects.

Throughout Moore’s career, that spanned over four decades, he earned four accolades: for A Man for All Seasons (1966) he won an Academy Award and a BAFTA and for From Russia with Love (1963) he won a BAFTA and recognition from the British Society of Cinematographers.

In 1987, Moore passed away at the age of 72 in Surrey, England.

Interesting fact: Moore and actress Charlize Theron were both from Benoni and each earned the first Oscar for their respective fields (cinematography and acting) as representatives from South Africa. Moore was actually the very first South African to receive an Oscar.

© 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 Director/Producer David C Anderson….Day 216 of Bond 365

David C. Anderson

Passed away this day in 2013

Second Assistant Director for Dr. No

Assistant Director for From Russia with Love

David C Anderson passed away at the age of 72 after a brief illness two years ago. He came from a family of directors and actors. His father is film director Michael Anderson who is probably best known for work on Around the World in 80 Days (1956), The Dam Busters (1955), The Quiller Memorandum (1966), and the television miniseries The Martian Chronicles (1980). His brother is actor Michael Anderson Jr. (Logan’s Run, The Sundowners), and step-brother to The Walking Dead actress Laurie Holden and actor/director Christopher Holden (Silent Hill, Felicity).

Anderson got his start with Dr. No (1962) as an uncredited second assistant director. I wonder how exciting that must have been to work alongside Terence Young, Sean Connery and Ursula Andress and perhaps a chat or two with Mr. Ian Fleming at afternoon tea? Anderson returned to the franchise for a second time as an assistant director in From Russia with Love (1963), which paired him with Young and Connery again.

From that start with the Bond films, Anderson continued to direct, but he branched out into producing. He also dabbled directing and producing shows for television. In fact, he worked with Sir Roger Moore on the television series The Saint for five episodes in 1964. Some other memorable work Anderson was associated with include: The Man Who Would Be King (1975) starring Sean Connery and Michael Caine; The Deer Hunter (1978); and The Eagle Has Landed (1976) which included Donald Pleasence. He also had a few surprises: Tales from the Crypt (1996), Invasion U.S.A. (1985) and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986).

Note: The obituary written by Kimberly Nordyke for The Hollywood Reporter (dated August 16, 2013) mentioned that Anderson had worked on Thunderball (1965), but I did not find a credit for Anderson in his IMDB profile.

© 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.

Two Writers: Higson and Whittingham…Day 184 of Bond 365

Charles Higson

Born this day in 1958

Author, Young Bond series

Charles ‘Charlie’ Higson was born in Frome, England. He has written, starred, produced, directed and sang at some point for television. In 2004, Higson was tapped to write about a young James Bond while attending Eton. He penned five: SilverFin (2005), Blood Fever (2006), Double or Die (2007), Hurricane Gold (2007), and By Royal Command (2008). Also in 2008, along with Kev Walker, the graphic novel of SilverFin was released (pretty good too!). And in 2009, Higson wrote a short story that was included in Danger Society: The Young Bond Dossier.

Learn more about Higson at his website. 

Jack Whittingham

Passed away this day in 1972

Original story/screenplay for Thunderball

Jack Whittingham was born in Scarborough, a village in North Yorkshire, England on August 2, 1910. He was educated at Lincoln College, Oxford and worked as an editor/writer for the Morning Post. Whittingham wrote plays prior to serving for England.

After the war, he wrote or co-wrote stories and screenplays for war and period films. By 1950, he was working with Ealing Studios. Most of his screenplays were for films, however he did work on a few television series that included: Danger Man, Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color and Gideon C.I.D.

Whittingham’s life takes a turn when he became acquainted with and collaborated with Kevin McClory and Ian Fleming to write a screenplay for a James Bond film. The project did not come to fruition, and Fleming used the screenplay for the basis of his novel Thunderball. McClory and Whittingham sued, but during the case, Whittingham shifted from co-plaintiff to a lead witness for the suit. Whittingham probably executed this maneuver because he had signed away his rights after he believed the screenplay was completed. The suit was settled in 1963 with the stipulation that credit for the story/screenplay would included credit to all three men. Thunderball was made the first time in 1965 by Eon Productions and then again in Never Say Never Again in 1983. The story credits did not follow the settlement order. In both versions, Sean Connery played James Bond.

Whittingham died of a heart attack at the age of 61 while in Valletta, Malta.

Here is an in depth timeline and insight into Whittingham’s life.

© 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.

Jay and Jack….Day 183 of Bond 365

I’m getting ready to head to Los Angeles, but I didn’t want to leave you without at least a quick peek into Bond history…

Jay Sarno, center (See more about Sarno here)

Jay Sarno

Born this day in 1922

Sideshow Barker in Diamonds Are Forever

I had to double check that I had the right person since the Jay Sarno I found was a business entrepreneur who founded Caesars Palace and Circus Circus in Las Vegas. It makes sense that he would have one film credit – in Diamonds Are Forever, which had some scenes in Sin City.

Sarno lived through the Great Depression as a child of a very poor family. That experience stayed with him and he was determined to make a better life for himself. Thanks to his eldest brother, Sarno was able to attend University of Missouri and earn a degree in business.

Through hardwork and meeting the right people, eventually Sarno opened Caesars Palace in 1966 and three years later, turned a healthy profit. Circus Circus was one of the first family oriented themed venues in Las Vegas. Unfortunately, the gas crisis of the early 70s impacted tourism.

In later life, Sarno became a business teacher to individuals who wanted to become hotel owners. And, on July 21, 1984, Sarno suffered a fatal heart attack at Caesars Palace, his former hotel. He was only 62.

Jack Gwillim

Passed away this day in 2001

Senior RAF Staff Officer in Thunderball

Jack William Frederick Gwillim was born in Canterbury, England back in 1909. He had that kind of face – a character’s face just waiting to fill the shoes of some Greek god or bellow Shakespearean dialogue from the London stage. Well, he did that and more. Gwillim served in the Royal Navy and became a boxer and rugby player.

After his discharge from service, Gwillim turned to acting, working on stage as well as the small and silver screens. His first role was as ‘Father’ on the tv series Life with Father (1953). Since I recognized his face, I’ll call out a few roles I remember: ‘Club Secretary’ in Lawrence of Arabia (1962), ‘King Aeetes’ in Jason and the Argonauts (1963), ‘British Ambassador’ in Kiss the Girls and Make Them Die (1966), and ‘Poseidon’ in Clash of the Titans (1981).

Gwillim passed away in Los Angeles at the age of 91.

© 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 Living Daylights Premiere and Henchman Janni…Day 180 of Bond 365

The Living Daylights premiere

This day in 1987, the fifteenth Eon Productions’ James Bond film The Living Daylights had its London premiere with a new actor filling the tuxedo. Welsh stage actor Timothy Dalton became the fourth actor to portray the British spy, taking over for Roger Moore. The opening follows Ian Fleming’s “The Living Daylights” story with Bond on a stake out waiting to snipe a beautiful woman assigned to kill a KGB defector. Bond disobeys orders and shoots the assassin’s rifle from her hands instead.

The film starred Maryam d’Abo as the assassin with a cello; Jeroen Krabbe as the defecting officer and Joe Don Baker, the villains; as well as John Rhys-Davis, Art Malik and Virginia Hey. Desmond Llewelyn was back as Q and Robert Brown as M. Caroline Bliss took over as Miss Moneypenny, replacing Lois Maxwell. The film’s budget was $40 Million and box office receipts reached $191.2 Million.  

It has been too long since I watched this Bond film because I do not remember much of it. I definitely need to rectify that. 

Michael Brennan (Aveleyman.com)

Michael Brennan

Passed away this day in 1982

Janni in Thunderball

Michael Brennan was born in London with the birth name of Bernard O’Leary in 1912. According to IMDB, he began acting with a part as ‘John Kidd, Survivor’ in a television movie titled The Fame of Grace Darling (1939). In 1965, he was Janni, a henchman for Largo in the James Bond film Thunderball. Janni is one of the bad guys that presumably gets away after witnessing Volpe receiving a fatal guy shot wound in the back, which was intended for Bond. 

Brennan had a prolific acting career on television and film, which spanned 40 years and over 160 credits. His last role was in the tv series Cowboys (1980) as ‘Picket leader’ in the episode “C.L.O.D.” He passed away at the age of 69 in Chichester, West Sussex. 

© 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 Real Q’ and a Thunderball Actor…Day 179 of Bond 365

John Stears with his land speeder from Star Wars (Wiki)

John Stears

Passed away this day in 1999

Special Effects in From Russia with Love, Goldfinger, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, The Man with the Golden Gun

Englishman John Stears was nicknamed ‘The Dean of F/X’ or ‘The Real Q’ because of his extensive special effects and innovations portfolio. According to his IMDB profile, Stears created the gadgets on the Aston Martin DB 5 that included the bullet-proof windows, rotating license plates and the machine-guns installed in the front bummers. His contributions do not stop there. He was also involved in the Star Wars franchise and his creativity spawned the lightsaber, the land speeder, the Death Star and robots C3PO and R2-D2.

Stears was nominated for four awards and won three: a Saturn Award for Best Special Effects for Star Wars (1977) shared with John Dykstra, an Oscar for Best Effects, Special Visual Effects for Thunderball (1965) and an Oscar for Best Effects, Visual Effects for Star Wars (1977) shared with John Dykstra, Richard Edlund, Grant McCune, and Robert Blalack.

Paul Stassino

Passed away this day in 2012

Angelo Palazzi and Major Francois Derval in Thunderball

Paul Stassino was born Phaedros Stassinos on the isle of Cyprus. At 17, he traveled to the UK and studied at the RADA in London. He was cast as Chalik in the British tv series Aggie in 1956 and his first filmic appearance was in the Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger Night Ambush the following year. Stassino did quite a few guest appearances on the small screen including working with Roger Moore on The Saint in three different roles in five episodes spanning 1962 through 1969.

Eventually Stassino moved to Greece, then back to Limassol on Cyprus where he was born. He passed away at the age of 82.

© 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.

Commemorating 100th Year of Young’s Birth…Day 171 of Bond 365

Today was spent at the Richard Nixon Library. It’s not located far from home, but it took having a German friend visit as the impetus for finally going. It was definitely worth the trip and the several hours going through the various wings of the library as well as Nixon’s birth house. I took a lot of photos and notes so I can do a write up very soon that I’ll post here.

On Set (Google Images)

Shaun Terrence Young

Born this day in 1915

Director for Dr. No, From Russia With Love, Thunderball

Writer (Uncredited) for Dr. No

Body Double: Pedro Armendariz in From Russia With Love

Director: Pre-Production for Goldfinger

Shaun Terrence Young was born in Shanghai, China where his father was a Police Commissioner. He attended public school and at some point, moved to England to attend St. Catharine’s College at the University of Cambridge. Young got his start as a writer for The Fugitive (1939), a London Film Studios project about a man who becomes embroiled in blackmail and murder. War interrupted Young’s career as he was commissioned into the Irish Guards.

During the war, he was a paratrooper and was in the battle of Arnhem. He was wounded and convalesced in a Dutch hospital where he met a 16 year-old future starlet, who he directed in Wait Until Dark (1967). That young girl matured into Audrey Hepburn.

Dr. No Set (Google Images)

After the war, Young completed his first directorial debut was on Corridor of Mirrors (1948), a mystery starring Eric Portman, as well as a couple of Bond alums: Christopher Lee (it was his film debut as well) and Lois Maxwell. He also ran into Sean Connery when he directed Action of the Tiger (1957) and that association would become forever immortalized within the franchise. Maxwell recalled “Terrence took Sean under his wing. He took him to dinner, showed him how to walk, how to talk, even how to eat” (Wiki, ‘Terrence Young’). Taking Connery under his wing was not an isolated instance. When I met Luciana Paluzzi at one of the Hollywood Collector’s Show, she talked fondly of Young’s interest in and fatherly guidance he provided her.

Young worked on handful of Warwick films, which were produced by Albert Broccoli and led to Young being hired to direct the first Bond film, Dr. No. It was successful and well received, that Young was brought back for From Russia With Love and again for Thunderball. Although he filled other roles as well on the early films of the franchise, he did move on to direct several more films – 41 credits in all. His last film was Run For Your Life (1988). He suffered a fatal heart attack in 1994 in Cannes at the age of 79.

Bond Trivia: Young’s favorite Bond film is From Russia With Love and he liked to cast Desmond Llewelyn and Anthony Dawson.

© 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.

Strike Like Thunderball – Sachs & Stone….Day 166 of Bond 365

Leonard Sachs

Passed away this day in 1990

Group Captain in Thunderball

Leonard Sachs has been associated with the big franchises of the UK. He acted in the Eon Productions’ film Thunderball as well as the Hammer films of The Men of Sherwood Forest (1954) and Scream of Fear (1961), and in the Doctor Who television series as Lord President Borusa in 1966 and then as Admiral Gaspard de Coligny in 1983. Additionally, he had a role in the television version of Sherlock Holmes (1965) as well having recurring guest appearances in the BBC Sunday-Night Theatre during the 1950s.

Sachs’ first acting credit was for his role of Arif in Secret of Stamboul (1936). Like Stone below, Sachs worked often on the small screen doing guest appearances on a number of series as well as being cast in roles for television movies. IMDB recorded 122 acting credits for Sachs before his death. He died in Westminster at the age of 80.

Philip Stone

Passed away this day in 2003

Spectre Number 5 in Thunderball

Originally from Leeds, Philip Stone got a second start in acting in 1960 after having to give it up when he contracted tuberculosis and had to have treatments. He made guest appearances in several shows on television. His role in Thunderball was his second appearance on the big screen.

Stanley Kubrick saw Stone at the Royal Court Theatre in a production of “The Contractor” and that led to Stone being cast in three consecutive Kubrick films: A Clockwork Orange (1971) as Dad; Barry Lyndon (1975) as Graham; and The Shining (1980) as Delbert Grady. Stone had 115 acting credits to his name by the time of his death in Ealing, at the age of 79. 

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