James Bond and "Jungle Goddess"

Above, Hoagy Carmichael.

A little bit ago, I stumbled on some trivia that I found interesting.

Ian Fleming, who created British Secret Service agent James Bond 007, described Bond's looks as resembling a certain composer, singer and actor.

According to Wikipedia:

Facially, Bond resembles the composer, singer and actor Hoagy Carmichael. In Casino Royale Vesper Lynd remarks, "Bond reminds me rather of Hoagy Carmichael, but there is something cold and ruthless." Likewise, in Moonraker, Special Branch Officer Gala Brand thinks that Bond is "certainly good-looking ... Rather like Hoagy Carmichael in a way. 

There's more!

Today, I watched the Lippert Pictures B-movie Jungle Goddess (1948) starring George Reeves, Ralph Byrd and Wanda McKay. A little while ago, I Googled Wanda McKay and found that she died in 1996. But...she was married to Hoagy Carmichael from 1977 until his death in 1981.

It sure is an interesting and small world!

Sir Roger Moore Dies At 89

Above, Caroline Munro and Roger More in The Spy Who Loved Me.

For some reason, I was in the mood to watch Roger Moore's 1979 James Bond movie, Moonraker yesterday. Although Moore was not my favorite James Bond actor, as many times he portrayed Agent 007 as a bit of a fop, but his movies were entertaining. For Your Eyes Only (1981) is my favorite of Moore's Bonds.

Today, it has been reported that Sir Roger Moore has passed away at 89.

From Variety:

Roger Moore, the handsome English actor who appeared in seven films as James Bond — the most of any Bond actor — and as Simon Templar on “The Saint” TV series, has died in Switzerland after a short battle with cancer. He was 89. 

His family issued an announcement on Twitter: “It is with the heaviest of hearts, we must share the awful news that our father, Sir Roger Moore, passed away today. We are all devastated.”

From actress Tanya Roberts on Facebook:

So sorry to hear about Roger's passing today. We had a lot of fun working on A View to a Kill together. He always had a joke to tell, and was a pleasure to work with, he was a terrific guy.

To read more, go here.

Dave Bautista Lands James Bond Henchman Role

Above, Dave Bautista.

It looks like the producers of the James Bond movie franchise have found their henchman for James Bond 24 (scheduled to begin filming December 6). The actual movie title will be announced later.

According to Latino-Review, the call went out for a man over 6'2" tall, with a sports background and the age range of 30-45 to play a character in the same mold as Oddjob (Goldfinger) and Jaws (The Spy Who Loved Me and Moonraker) by the name of Hinx.

Latino-Review wrote:

Seems like the found their guy because according to sources, Dave Bautista, mega hot off his career making role as Drax The Destroyer in Marvel's Guardians Of The Galaxy, has bagged the role of HINX in the upcoming Bond 24!

They also report that locations for Bond 24 include Austria, Rome and possibly Morocco. Daniel Craig returns as James Bond and the movie will be directed by Skyfall director Sam Mendes.

According to Screen Rant, the movie aims to complete the Skyfall story. 

Richard Kiel Dies At 74

Above, Roger Moore and Richard Kiel in The Spy Who Loved Me.

Sad news in the world of James Bond.

The BBC website reported:

Actor Richard Kiel - who played steel-toothed villain Jaws in two James Bond films - has died in California aged 74. 

The towering American star, who appeared in The Spy Who Loved Me in 1977 and Moonraker in 1979, died in hospital in Fresno on Wednesday. 

A spokeswoman for Saint Agnes Medical Center confirmed Kiel's death, but did not reveal the cause.

Richard Kiel played Jaws in one of the best Roger Moore Bonds (The Spy Who Loved Me) and one of Moore's worst (Moonraker). Kiel's portrayals of Jaws in both movies had very menacing and comedic qualities to them. He was a fan favorite on the convention circuit during the past several years.

To read more, go here.

Who Did James Bond Look Like According To Ian Fleming?

Above, Ian Fleming.

Ever since Sean Connery became super-secret agent James Bond 007 of Her Majesty's Secret Service in 1962, and through the ensuing years of Roger Moore to Daniel Craig, people have wondered how author Ian Fleming envisioned what Bond looked like.

According to Wikipedia, Fleming envisioned that Bond should resemble American singer/songwriter Hoagy Carmichael and...himself.

Their source?

One source was the novel, Casino Royale in which Vesper Lynd is quoted, "Bond reminds me rather of Hoagy Carmichael, but there is something cold and ruthless."

The second source was in the novel, Moonraker where Special Branch officer Gala Brand thought that Bond was "certainly good-looking ... Rather like Hoagy Carmichael in a way. That black hair falling down over the right eyebrow.  Much the same bones.  But there was something a bit cruel in the mouth, and the eyes were cold."

Baby-boomers and later generations probably have no idea what Hoagy Carmichael looked like. So, not to keep anyone in suspense, here is what Carmichael looked like:

Above, Hoagy Carmichael.

Some present-day fans feel that actor Daniel Day Lewis (Lincoln) resembles Carmichael and would be an ideal James Bond.

Can you picture James Bond looking somewhat like Hoagy Carmichael? Yes, when a facial scar is added (in the Fleming books, Bond has a facial scar down his right cheek).

"Skyfall" Blu-ray & DVD Coming February 12

Just when I get a copy of Skyfall on an awards screener DVD, the Blu-ray and DVD editions are coming out.  (At least the price was right: free.)

The latest James Bond 007 adventure will be hitting stores on February 12 in English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround).

The movie stars Daniel Craig, Judi Dench, Javier Bardem, Ralph Fienne and Naomie Harris.

Skyfall has to be one of the best in the 50-year-old franchise.  Seeing it (and Casino Royale) makes me think that the producers wasted so many years putting out junk like Moonraker, A View To A Kill, Die Another Day and others of that quality (or lack thereof).

My only quibble is that the familiar gun barrel sequence that opened the pre-Daniel Craig Bonds has been relegated to the end of the movie.

I'll be getting the Blu-ray edition.

Diamonds Are Forever

I finished reading Ian Fleming's James Bond novel, "Moonraker" last week.

It is a much better story than the movie of the same name with Roger Moore. There were no space shuttles, no Holly Goodhead, no South American locales or space stations.

The story was a simple story of the Moonraker rocket that Hugo Drax mounted an armed nuclear warhead to bomb England.

As I am reading Fleming's novels in publishing order, I am now reading the next novel, "Diamonds Are Forever." I have already finished about two chapters and there are, so far, a Tiffany Case and Peter Franks in the novel.

In "Diamonds," James Bond is investigating a diamond smuggling ring.

I'll let you know how I like "Diamonds Are Forever."