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Your earliest Bond experiences and memories...

GeorgeLazenbyGeorgeLazenby
edited March 2011 in Bond Movies Posts: 295
The first time I ever encountered James Bond was when my parents got all excited about some Sean Connery fellow being in this movie called Never Say Never Again. I didn't get the significance at the time but their excitement was palpable enough to get me asking them questions about the James Bond movies. This was, of course, 1983 and I was 8 at the time. I remember my mom telling me that her and my dad used to love James Bond movies (before they had kids and had to stop going to movies regularly haha) and that Goldfinger was the best of them all. The next time I encountered Bond was 2 years later when A View to a Kill was released on VHS. This was my first proper Bond movie. I liked it and it made an impression on me, but it didn't effect me enough to make me run out and see all the movies. Fast forward another 2 years until 1987. As part of the preamble to the release of The Living Daylights a special called "Happy Anniversary 007" aired in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the release of Dr. No. It was hosted by Roger Moore and was basically a series of highlights of the whole series to that point. My mother had the foresight to tape the thing for me and show me the next day. Upon seeing that video, I was hooked-- I suddenly <i>had</i> to see all these movies and figure out where all the marvelous scenes came from. That, coupled with Raymond Benson's James Bond Bedside Companion, and I was hooked on Bond. Over the next few months I managed to see all the original movies, either on TV or through rental. My faves initially were From Russia With Love, On Her Majesty's Secret Service and The Spy Who Loved Me. The first soundtrack I purchased was OHMSS :D. What are some of your earliest Bond memories?
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Comments

  • Bond_EdBond_Ed
    Posts: 37
    Goldfinger.... seeing this at the Drive-In with my family in 1965. I was 9 years old, And yes, It DID make an impression ! !
  • Master_DaharkMaster_Dahark
    edited May 2012 Posts: 4,813
    I'm ashamed to admit this- since I'm old enough to have been a Bond fan for much longer... but I was first introduced to James Bond with the GoldenEye video game for the N64. I had heard of Bond, sure, but I had MANY misconceptions as to who he was. If you were to ask my younger self who OO7 was I probably would have said something along the lines of, 'Oh, James Bond- he's that stupid spy that flies around in a jetpack with a tuxedo on, with a gun in one hand and a martini in the other, right?' LOL
    I saw AUSTIN POWERS before I ever saw a Bond film.... terrible, I know
    But get this-- before I played the GoldenEye game, and subsequently saw all the older films, I knew Sean Connery ONLY as Indiana Jones' dad!! I had seen pictures before, but never knew who the actor was. Needless to say, I've seen all the films and read most of the books since then and am an enormous fan now!!
  • Samuel001Samuel001 Moderator
    edited March 2011 Posts: 13,356
    The GoldenEye 64 video game had a big impact on me as well as showings of the Bond films as a marathon in the mid 90's on ITV hooked me. Though I knew who Bond was before the release of the game from when I was about 6 or 7 I'd say.

    A new Bond film every week was such an exciting time of my life as a child. I saw The World Is Not Enough the weekend it was released on VHS and the same for Die Another Day on DVD, although I was old enough to see it in the cinema at the time of it's release, I chose not too. I knew it would be a bad film and not proper Bond.

    The next two films have of course been in the cinema. Between Die Another Day and Casino Royale I read all of Fleming's novels.
  • RogueThunderballRogueThunderball
    Posts: 306
    My first introduction to Bond was around the holidays. They always played Thanksgiving and/or Christmas "Bondathons" on T.V. I can't recall the first time I watched them but I was fairly young and the rest is all downhill from there!
  • lalala2004lalala2004
    Posts: 162
    It was 11 or 12 years ago and my parents had rented The World is Not Enough, and I saw parts of it while they were watching it. I was only 13 or 14, so it was a recent occurrence that I was even allowed to watch PG-13 movies (yeah, my parents were strict), and I was taking notice of what was out there, and I reckoned that as a huge Star Wars fan, it would only be natural that I watch more action movies.

    I didn't see a whole Bond movie until several months later, when one of my new high school friends (I was a freshman) invited me over to watch one, sure I would love it. He was right. It was The Living Daylights. Other than loving the movie, the thing I remember most is us stuffing our faces with candy and nachos and popcorn. That's my kind of movie watching experience.

    My friendship with that particular guy is an interesting story in and of itself. I'll spare you all the long, teenage angsty, details.
  • dragonskydragonsky
    Posts: 2,491
    oooh i already posted somewhere full story so i wont write full story.
    first movie that introduced me with Bond was DAD
  • Agent005Agent005
    edited May 2012 Posts: 562
    My earliest memory of Bond is that of Timothy Dalton and Maryam D'Abo riding down the slopes in a cello case. I must have been only four or so years old at the time. I vividly remember sitting on my Grandfather's lap watching it on TV during one of the Holiday season Bond marathons. That was over twenty years ago and I've been a Bond fan ever since.
  • royale65royale65 Caustic misanthrope reporting for duty.
    Posts: 4,423
    Hmm, not sure when I first came aware of Bond, but I remember running around the back yard with my inhaler, pretending that was my gun. Good times. I must have been around 5 or 6ish…

    Of course I remember Goldfinger, and possibly Live and Let Die, when I was a young un’, watching them entranced. I was convinced that the earlier Bonds were the best, despite not see any of the newer ones. When my grandmother offered to take me to the latest Bond movie, The World Is Not Enough, I jumped at the chance. That point on I was obsessed. Seeing Bond, how much confidence and decisive he was, made a big impression on a 12 year old boy.

    For Christmas I got TWINE and A View To A Kill (buy Bond, get one free! Why AVTAK, you ask, not one of the most iconic films in the series; my mum was a massive Duran Duran fan) on VHS. That’s how my Bond collection got started, and it’s still growing.


    ;)
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    edited January 2012 Posts: 11,189
    I remember seeing a bit of some film where a half naked woman was lying on a bed covered in gold paint when I was about 8 or so. Can't think what that film was though ;)

    It wasn't until 1995 when I became a major fan after seeing a poster with the tagline "no limits, no fears, no substitutes" :D
  • 00130013
    Posts: 1,817
    When I was a kid I watched Goldfinger, Dr No and Octopussy with my grandfather. But the one I remember more vividly is GF... the golden girl, Oddjob's hat and my Grandpa in his couch. Thank you!
  • 00Beast00Beast
    Posts: 4,762
    007 Nightfire

    I will never forget this epic, amazing game, and how it introduced me into the vast, unique world of James Bond 007!

    Another shout-out to From Russia with Love, the first Bond movie I saw start to finish.
  • OHMSS69OHMSS69
    Posts: 2,341
    I was in grade school and we had always heard the name "James Bond" and that the movies were all that but never saw any. I recall a Beverly Hillbillies episode when Jethro had just seen a Bond film and he wanted to be a 00 agent. The movie referenced was GF and this was a very funny episode as the hillbilly hick Jethro tried to play at being Bond and he even fixed up the raggedy truck like a "spy car".

    A year later NBC aired a special "The Incredible world of James Bond". It was a promotional thing for the upcoming TB and showed clips from the previous three films. I was so impressed with these clips and the gunbarrell logo as well.

    It was not until a year later that I actually saw my first Bond films (DN on a double bill with GF) and I was blown away. Been a fan since. I had the misfortune of missing YOLT back in 1967 but I swore I would never miss another film. I managed to catch FRWL and TB on a double bill a year later.(1968) The first one I actually saw new in the theater was OHMSS in 1969. And all the films following that one. I finally did catch YOLT(the one film I had never seen) in 1974 when a local theater was running a "Bond week".

    This post dates me but it seems like we just don't get these "double features" anymore. Maybe with the anniversary some theaters will return to this age old tradition.
  • Lancaster007Lancaster007 Shrublands Health Clinic, England
    Posts: 1,874
    My first Bond was Goldfinger. It was shown at our local town hall, which every summer for seven weeks on two nights each week it was turned into a cinema. A company from Exeter would put on the shows, I remember the quad posters outside Cliff House (where the films were shown), there was usually and Bond and a Carry On shown each year. Goldfinger was shown in the year between the OHMSS and DAF, (although this would be about a year after the theatrical release). I was persuaded to go by a friend of mine who had seen it before and said there was a naked girl covered in gold paint! - I would have been 10/11 at the time. Of course there was so much more than just a naked girl, the car, Fort Knox, the fights and some cool guy who always got the girl.
    By the time LALD came around I realised these films were based on books, so being an avid reader sought them out. The rest, as they say, is history…
  • sirseanisbondsirseanisbond
    Posts: 2,189
    My introduction to James Bond was amazing! I was maybe 8 or 9 and my dad wad driving me home from school one day when I looked up in the sky and saw a small airplane doing sky writing. At first I though it had written "LOO" in the sky but that seemed odd so I asked my dad what he thought it was. He said that it wasn't "LOO" that the plane had written, but "007" for the new James Bond movie. I had never heard of James Bond before, and that night we rented Goldfinger. My life was never the same after that as I've been a huge Bond fan ever since.
  • thelivingroyalethelivingroyale
    edited May 2012 Posts: 12,837
    My foster dad took me to see TLD at the cinema when I was younger. I was blown away. I was very little (5 or 6) so I didn't understand alot of the plot but the action, the gadgets, the stunts and how cool Dalton was had me hooked.

    I remember watching the bit in the PTS when he runs along the road and jumps onto the truck, I thought he had the coolest job ever. Soon after that I watched afew more films on VHS, I think it was GF, TSWLM and YOLT. I liked them, but Dalton was still my favourite one.
  • 00Beast00Beast
    Posts: 4,762
    The first time I saw GoldenEye, oh man! The pre-title sequence alone had me hooked from the start. That moment when 007 and 006 storm into the chemical room and set the charges, and 006 opens fire on the Russians just coming in, I was completely astounded. It was the greatest thing I had ever witnessed on a movie screen in my entire life!
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    edited May 2012 Posts: 28,694
    I faintly remember as a little kid seeing Brosnan's films on TV but I was too young to comprehend anything but gunshots and explosions. So basically, I could have watched a Michael Bay film instead. :-L
  • TouchMyButtonsTouchMyButtons Banned
    Posts: 228
    My dad was a Bond fan, so it just got passed down to me naturally. My first bond memories are of me going through all of my dads Pan Publishing 007 paperbacks which are now mine , I also remember my dad taking me too the hobby shop when I was around 7 or 8 and him buying me the Corgi Made DB5 (Goldeneye Boxed Version) . I grew up with Brosnan and enjoyed him alot during my childhood years, but now I'm 21 and when I look back at the Brosnan Era I can see many of the flaws within GE,TND,TWINE and especially DAD. I don't blame Brosnan, I blame the directors and writers not utilizing him better. Brosnan is a sleek and slender man, not buff, but not too skinny either. He's more of a in the shadows type guy, a more sneaky type of physique. Brosnan should have been casted as a more conniving, deceptive, sneaky, rude and overall more gritty Bond. Instead they (writers & directors) tried making Brosnan more of a subpar action hero performing over the top stunts with foolish charm throughout poorly written scripts, but I will name my favorite Brosnan outings in preferable order.

    1. GE- It had many flaws, my biggest would be the decision to put Bond in a tank driving through Russia, dear god there were so many better ways to have Bond chase after Omourov and Natalia, but Goldeneye had many memorable moments as well and its #1 for fav Brosnan outing.

    2. TWINE - TWINE had a very strong script but didn't fullfill it to its strongest potential, my biggest complaint is the pipeline sequence, absolute nonsense, but its my 2nd favorite Brosnan outing.

    3-4 TND-DAD I can't stand either, There are so many flaws I'd be typing all night, perhaps another time. DAD seriously though was a disgrace, a big big disgrace.
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    I have never heard anyone talk bad about the GE St. Petersburg tank chase. It was awesome!
  • TouchMyButtonsTouchMyButtons Banned
    Posts: 228
    haha ! I hope I didn't offend you, ah maybe I was alittle harsh there. I guess I just enjoy more realistic cinematography . It is possible for a man to successfully steal a tank, but I would have preferred a more serious/subtly toned route, perhaps brosnan frantically running through an abandoned train tunnel with homeless lunatics in the vicinity while Chasing after omourov on foot ?
  • JWESTBROOKJWESTBROOK
    edited May 2012 Posts: 5,745
    I found that the tank chase fit perfectly in Bond's world. Its difficult to think of how to fit Bond into the 90's, and a tank chase through the Russian capitol, I feel, is perfect for Bond. Why? Because only Bond could pull it off. Its perfect for his world. Its still sort of realistic, but it could never happen in our reality.

    I can accept it, because it stills holds that fantasy element to Bond perfectly.
  • TouchMyButtonsTouchMyButtons Banned
    Posts: 228
    I agree, the tank chase does bring that fantasy / wow factor aspect to GE and it was cool in someways lol, but Im more of a Fleming Style Bond Fan and would have preferred something less dramatic and more down to Earth . I often wonder what the direction of Goldeneye would have been if played with Dalton? But im totally down with how goldeneye came along because the movie played a big role for the outcome of Goldeneye 64, the most memorable and funnest fps I've ever played, still kicks every other games ass. why? because it was simple and all about gameplay, none of this over the top graphics with lowsy gameplay stuff like every game out there these days. I hate call of duty, its seriously noob friendly garbage. it takes no skill. Casual Gaming has just completely taken over. Nothing these days requires patience or thinking. 2012 KIDS -"OH LETS PLAY COD AND RUN AROUND WITH PERKS ON WHILE TRYING TO EARN XP POINTS!".
    Gone are the days of strategical game planning like Splinter Cell Chaos Theory, perhaps the greatest online multiplayer mode I've ever played,"Spy Vs Mercs". Anyone else ever play Spy Vs Mercs? Damn what a memorable game mode.
  • GetafixGetafix
    edited May 2012 Posts: 11,425
    The first film I saw (although not all the way through) was The Spy Who Loved Me, on VHS but, I didn't really get hooked until I watched some of the Sean classics. Goldfinger still probably remains my number one. I've come to respect Roger's performances a lot more since then. I admire the way he took on the role and made it his own. The first film I saw at the cinema though was The Living Daylights. I remember the build-up to the release and it did not disappoint - it's still one of my top 5 films. TLD worked brilliantly because it was totally of its time (complete with cheesy but unforgetable A-ha theme song) and yet kept the Bond essence that ran through almost all the films from 1962 onwards - fantasy, a hint of danger and a great actor in the lead role.
  • DB5DB5
    Posts: 408
    Bond_Ed wrote:
    Goldfinger.... seeing this at the Drive-In with my family in 1965. I was 9 years old, And yes, It DID make an impression ! !

    Are you sure the two of us aren't twins? My experience exactly!

  • actonsteveactonsteve
    Posts: 1,492
    1977.

    The summer of punk and Jubilee.

    I was 8 and got taken to see Sinbad and The Eye of the Tiger. I behaved myself with that so got taken to see The Spy Who Loved Me. I loved it though remember being disturbed by the sailors scrabbling to get on the submarine as everything is destroyed around them.

    Saw a doube bill of LALD and TMWTGG in 1978 and saw everyone at the cinema straight after but the sixties Bonds were slowly being released on TV but I picked up the Fleming books. So as the sixties classics appeared I could compare them with the books. I had pretty much read all the books by the time I was 12.

    The books, to me, are still the DNA of the series. I cant relate to computer games.

  • BAIN123BAIN123
    edited May 2012 Posts: 11,189
    actonsteve wrote:
    1977.

    The summer of punk and Jubilee.

    I was 8 and got taken to see Sinbad and The Eye of the Tiger. I behaved myself with that so got taken to see The Spy Who Loved Me. I loved it though remember being disturbed by the sailors scrabbling to get on the submarine as everything is destroyed around them.

    Saw a doube bill of LALD and TMWTGG in 1978 and saw everyone at the cinema straight after but the sixties Bonds were slowly being released on TV but I picked up the Fleming books. So as the sixties classics appeared I could compare them with the books. I had pretty much read all the books by the time I was 12.

    The books, to me, are still the DNA of the series. I cant relate to computer games.

    :O You can't have done that? They're fairytales for ADULTS :p
  • darren_blacksmithdarren_blacksmith
    edited May 2012 Posts: 678
    I remember the night my Dad went to see FYEO at the cinema and I was annoyed that I was "too young" to be allowed to see it. I would have been 5 years old. And I remember when he arrived back home he had bought me a FYEO badge to make up for it (in those days the cinemas used to sell various merchandise (posters, books etc) for each major film release), and I remember finding the title intriguing and full of forbidden mystery lol.

    Thats my first specific memory, although to have wanted to have seen it so badly I must have been a fan before then. I had probably seen one or more of the films on TV at Christmas.
  • thelordflasheartthelordflasheart
    Posts: 1,370
    Double feature of GF and DAF on TV one Sunday afternoon when I was 11 or 12. They were the most amazing films I had ever seen and I had never seen films like them before - and Connery was instantly the man that I wanted to be like when I grew up.

    The funny thing is what happened at school the next day - all the guys my age ran up to each other on the playground yelling "DID YOU SEE THOSE MOVIES YESTERDAY?!" So I wasn't the only one that they made an impression on!
  • forgotmyusernameforgotmyusername
    edited May 2012 Posts: 2,782
    My dad taking me to watch LALD - he snuck me in as I was way too young. Loved the gators, the watch, the boat chase, the double decker bus and Moore's big gun.

    I was hooked ever since.
  • SandySandy Somewhere in Europe
    Posts: 4,012
    I told this in other threads but here it goes. My mother and my maternal grandfather are HUGE Bond-fans. So I always new James Bond! My parents never thought it was unapropriate for a small child for some reason! And I don't think it has done me any wrong :) My earliest TV memory is not watching cartoons or any children's program! It is TSWLM title sequence, more precisely the girl doing gymnastic bars moves on the gun barrel. That image was imprinted in my memory forever. It's still one of my favourite TS! I would scream and shout if I saw somethings on TV, my parents say they had to turn off the tv the first time ET was on TV (I was about 3 or 4), Batman trailers caused me terror! But as soon as Mr. Bond showed up on tv I was in heaven :\">

    I had seen all Bond flicks on tv and I was 12 when Goldeye was released! My first Bond in the big screen! When I was 14 or 15 I started reading every Bond book I could get my hands on in the local library. Unfortunatly they didn't have all the titles and most of them was in quite a bad shape, some didn't have a cover and a lot were not even complete. I'm re-reading them now :)
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