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He almost looks bored...
Early next year, I plan to put a unique set of behind-the-scenes LALD photographs up for auction on ebay. This posting is an opportunity for MI6-HQ members to see and enjoy these images beforehand. Here’s an example, the rest are at the bottom of this text (combined into montages ).
The auction will be for a set of thirty seven unique and genuine colour 35mm slides, taken on location during the filming of LALD. These slides offer a unique opportunity to own a little bit of James Bond movie history from 40 years ago.
Background:
The slides were all taken on my father’s camera in October 1972 around the Louisiana canals, during the speedboat chase and road crossing sequences. At the time, my father was shooting an advertisement for milk, which was shot behind the scenes of LALD and shows cast and crew members planning and shooting sequences (search for the advertisement on the web). Mr Saltzman was happy for this to occur, since it increased publicity for the movie. This part of LALD was nearly shot in Mexico instead.
These slides have been in a family drawer for the last 40 years and are 100% genuine and unique. Apart from seeking advice regarding one or two slides, they have not been previously published or released and none have been sold.
Condition:
The slides are still in the original slide mounts – either cardboard or plastic frames (these are protected by two glass layers). The date “Nov 72” is printed on the cardboard slides. Since all slides have been stored in a covered projector carousel, they have virtually no damage. As with any old film, there is some slight degradation and fading on some of the images (they are 40 years old).
The slides and film have been cleaned with the recommended Archival Cleaner PEC-12. They were then scanned on my Epson 2400 Perfection scanner at very high resolution. Apart from slight image saturation adjustments on one or two, no other software-editing or manipulation has occurred. To keep to the eBay image limit, I have had to create montages (showing groups of three or four slides each). These uploaded images are of much lower resolution than the original scans. Each scan is numbered and has my watermarked User ID as protection. The slides are mounted in Herma A4 sized wallets, 4 x 5 layout per wallet.
Ownership:
I would prefer these slides to go to a collector of James Bond memorabilia, so that they can be looked after and appreciated, as I have done so. I decided against selling them individually.
However, whoever buys them, will not only own the physical slides, but can (if they wish) make prints of them and do with them as they wish. I therefore hope that the potential value of these slides can be understood. I simply do not have the time to sell or make individual prints of these.
Description:
My father (now 82) recently provided me with interesting background information on the shots. The initial images show Roger Moore and the cinematographer Arthur Lavis planning a Glastron boat sequence. In slide 2, ‘Billy Bob’s’ black fast boat is visible. The next slides all show Roger Moore behind the wheel. There was a massive cat fish skeleton in slide 12 (out of shot), which my father said spooked him a bit. Slides 13 to 17 show some cast and the crew getting ready for the boat crossing and police car pile up. Lots going on these shots – Guy Hamilton (hand on hip) is directing and Mr Saltzman is in the foreground by the radio. The next slides show the boat crossing, police cars crashing and aftermath. Note a member of Joie Chitwood’s stunt crew with a fire extinguisher and the nurse at the back (dark mac) – Health and Safety! Slide 27 is cool, it shows the stunt drivers taking off their skin-coloured helmets! More shots of the crew and Director in slides 33 and 34, followed by Roger Moore with some milk. My father said he was really easy and co-operative to work with. The last image proves these slides are authentic – please note the development date ‘Nov 72’ top right.
It has taken me considerable time to clean, scan and create this listing. I’d be really interested to get any comments or questions from MI6-HQ members. You can always send me a PM.
Although my father is getting on a bit (!), there may be a plan for MI6-HQ to have a chat with him, possibly leading to an article for the magazine. Hopefully he can still remember interesting snippets of information from someone who was there all that time ago.
I hope you enjoy the photos and look out for the ebay auction early next year if you are interested. Here are the montages......
http://i49.tinypic.com/2irp0t2.jpg
http://i45.tinypic.com/15rjrlg.jpg
http://i47.tinypic.com/rclc7o.jpg
http://i49.tinypic.com/2mzgnll.jpg
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http://i48.tinypic.com/344v6dw.jpg
http://i50.tinypic.com/25sv953.jpg
http://i48.tinypic.com/vzj6ac.jpg
http://i46.tinypic.com/35hkaog.jpg
end of post
I wonder if Grace Jones was jealous that Roger had bigger boobs than her...is that his bra against the wall in the background? ;-)
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dvLi4cVv-6I/ULbDPcgnAeI/AAAAAAAAAzs/hiouoO0C35g/s1600/still-of-sean-connery-and-daniela-bianchi-in-from-russia-with-love.jpg
Anyway, @433MHZ, this is so great! Interesting pics from an interesting scene. :)
I'm jealous of every man that got to act opposite Marilyn Monroe, so I would say no. Hell, I envy anyone that even shared the same room with her or gave her passing words.
Then you'll love this story...
An old acting professor (sadly, no longer with us) who directed me in a play used to work as a steward (?) on the trains that ran out to Banff when he was a teen. Having some background in acting, but also being very young, nice, small, and "safe" (he was gay) he was selected to sit with Marilyn Monroe when she took the train there to film...was it Niagara? They were sitting in the baggage car so no one would know she was there or disturb her, Craig staying with her the whole time unless he had to get her some food or drink. The two of them had a gay old time (his pun) with them telling jokes, bonding like life-long best friends, and singing songs together. At one point he was even sitting in her lap as they sang!
He had led a very interesting life, and this was just one of many experiences!
If that hurted me, I can't even imagine how it will hurt him.
Sounds like she was going to film Niagara, given the Canadian locale. I am extremely jealous, but glad that your professor got to sit with a real life angel. I am also happy to see that he treated her gentlemanly (and as a human being and not Hollywood royalty) instead of using her for his own gains.
The sad thing about Marilyn (besides her mother spending most of her life in mental asylums, Marilyn herself worrying all the time whether she would end up like her mother, dealing with the voices she heard in her own head, all the medications she took and the public persona she always had to keep on) is that nobody truly loved her for her. She had many men in her life, from Johnny Hyde and Frank Sinatra to Joe Dimaggio and Arthur Miller, but no one man had the exact qualities she desired and needed. Johnny Hyde (her early talent agent that got her many jobs at Fox) had left his wife for her, so everything they had was founded upon infidelity, not helping her image in the slightest. And to be truthful, she never truly loved him in the romantic sense to even consider dying old with him, no matter how much he wished it. Anyone that knows Frank is aware of his promiscuity, and though he truly cared for Marilyn how could you trust him with other women? Answer: You couldn't. The lack of trust there made it certain that any relationship they could have had would end with only heart break. Dimaggio was raised in the Italian way, where the woman of the household stayed home and raised the kids while the man worked outside the home. He struggled with Marilyn's fame, wanting her to stop acting to raise a family with him. Little did he know that Marilyn wasn't stopping for anyone. He never got over that, and all her fame ultimately brought on his violent side, adding to their tumultuous love affair and eventually leading to a nasty divorce. And of course, there is Arthur Miller. Sadly, though I am sure he loved her in some capacity (and her him), things never quite meshed. Any Marilyn aficionado knows of the situation that came about when she had a run in with Arthur's journal. Laying out there in the open space of their home were all his thoughts, written down for only him to hold and protect. Marilyn, curious as she was, gave the journal a look, discovering that Arthur found Marilyn to be not quite what he expected. He had no idea of her personal baggage. He never knew of her constant worry for Gladys (her mother), her own concern over her own mental health and heavy medication use to combat them and calm her, or any of the crippling disadvantages years in the spotlight had given her. He only saw Marilyn, the public image. The Golden angel, forever flawless on screen, and the one everyone loved and adored. He didn't see Norma Jean, the unconfident, worrisome girl who never truly got to be herself when so much of her life demanded her to wear a facade. But what a woman she was. I instantly fell in love with her the moment I laid my eyes on her. That gentle air she had. The smile that not only made her face light up, but every room she was in and every person that was lucky enough to be surrounded by her. No matter who she was or what she did off screen, nobody can take that away from her. Her sheer brilliance and wit. Her steamy sexiness that she made look so effortless. How she took all the hits Hollywood dished out to her, yet was still secretly smarter than all those who persecuted against her. The way she would switch off Marilyn instantly after a scene, and as she was gazing at a script trying to figure out a scene or reading a book for her own enlightenment, you saw something. Something more. Something telling you that there was a great mind of insuperable strength and magnificence behind that beautiful face. Luckily, she is forever on film for the rest of us to gush over her every mannerism, her every word spoken with unmatched eloquence and charm. My only sadness is that I wasn't alive to see her at her best. To be that man who gave her everything and asked for nothing in return. The man she deserved, but never got.
One of the other actors from the film was in there with them, but I can't remember who it was. But he said it was mostly him and Monroe joking around like they were old friends.
Count yourself lucky. The old "rescue fantasy" is a powerful fantasy for men to have, as powerful as the "I can love him enough to reform this bad-boy" fantasy is for women. But having gone through it myself, it isn't worth it. It seems great at first - I'll be the ONE GUY who will love her more/be better than everyone/is more chivalrous than anyone else - it makes you feel special, and better than every guy out there. That's incredibly appealing - the idea that you're a better man than everyone else. But you can only be responsible for your 50% of a relationship. When you're with someone who is emotionally damaged it becomes all about them, and you don't deserve that. You get far less than you give, and the other person doesn't have the tools to be part of a healthy relationship no matter how giving you are. A friend of mine used to go out with "damaged women" all the time because, as he put it, he could be with a much more beautiful woman than if he dated "normal" women (who could have any guy they wanted). But as I said to him after one particularly soul-crushing episode, why not build yourself up to be the man that ANY woman would want to date, instead of looking for, forgive my language, girls with low self-esteem (this friend also went through a phase where he dated only women who were 15 years younger than him because his age "did 90% of the work" for him, i.e. a girl would be shocked and impressed that he had his own apartment instead of living with his parents, he could afford to take them out to a fancy restaurant, etc).
Everyone deserves a partner who gives as much as they get. Sadly, it took me a long time to realize that. I'm not saying that you shouldn't make an effort with someone - you should, and always and every day - but it shouldn't be too lopsided, or at least not consistently (everyone goes through phases when they need support). Sometimes fantasies are best when they stay fantasies - many don't translate well to the real world.
I wonder when that pic of Rog was taken - his hairline suggests it was some time in the sixties, well prior to LALD. That's a swimmer's chest Sir Rog has (he was always a very strong swimmer), somewhat similar to Johnny Weismuller's manly pecs in the early Tarzan movies..
Okay @youonlylivethrice then here's one for you...
Many, many years ago I did a show with an absolutely lovely Scottish actress named Lily. She was older but not old, but would never reveal her age - she was always very coy about her private life. Although we guessed her to be around 60, she was still very attractive and more importantly had that "spark" that made you realize that when she was younger she would have had men chasing her down the street.
One day my leading lady had to pick her up at her house to drive her to rehearsal. She had to wait in her living room as Lily wasn't ready, and saw some photo albums in a bookshelf. She picked one out and they were photos of Lily back in Scotland when she was younger - she looked like she was in her late teens. The first album looked like family photos, the second one she looked through had pictures of Lily doing plays and with friends. She was amazed at these theatre pictures and how beautiful Lily looked; several of the pictures were with different boys who were obviously all smitten with her. Then she turned the page and she almost dropped the book. There was a picture of Lily in a car with a rough hewn but incredibly handsome young man. She was leaning up against him and they were both looking out of the driver's side window at the camera. The body language was different than with the other boys - Lily was leaning up against this guy instead of keeping a distance and he had a slight, though satisfied looking smile on his face instead of looking stricken like the other guys. And this was the only man that was in more than one photo- he was in several.
Lily came into the living room and saw her looking at the photo album. Just for an instant there was a look of shock and then almost panic on her face - but her composure was back in a flash. She walked over, took the album, and put it back on the shelf saying "These are private". My leading lady blurted out "Oh my God! You dated SEAN CONNERY?!" Lily had a small smile and said "That was just a boy I used to know..." When my leading lady said "But wasn't that Sean Connery?" Lily just looked like she was enjoying a private joke and looking at the floor (which was very unusual for her, she was always very direct) said "Oh my dear, ALL the boys in Scotland look like Sean".
Everyone in the show tried to get Lily to talk about it but she always demurred. My leading lady (sadly, I can't remember her name) told me that she was sure that it was Sean Connery. She had seen pictures of Connery when he was younger so she knew how he looked different when he was younger, and didn't look like the "Sean Connery" everyone knew from when he was older and an established actor.
Because Lily always refused to discuss it we'll never know...
I wonder exactly what Babs is thinking about ;))
So much money, can't even afford a simple bra..... :-\" I'll go away now
http://www.phaidon.com/resource/156-sean-connery-1965.jpg
I read this in the morning and I've been thinking about it ever since. I just love hearing about these lost stories and it's so unfortunate that Lily never opened her past to any of you. But somehow I understand her. Maybe she's trying to keep the little she still has of Sean for herself. He's now a living legend but that Sean is not the man she knew. And honestly, if I was Lily, I'd do the same.
Maybe I'm overthinking, I don't know, but I really appreciate that you took a little of your time to tell me about that. :)
I was going to post the first one right now but... You got here first.
Ok, here it is, The Man with Ursula.
<img src="http://img38.imageshack.us/img38/8991/tumblrlfn1tnme9o1qefgdk.jpg"/>;
*Sighs*
http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_md4vkpBIY51qefgdko1_1280.jpg
Maybe it was Bond behind the Chair in FRWL and TB.... O_o
And the question remaining is... is that Connery´s hair?? :-/
No problem, it's always interesting when a celebrity - or, in Connery's case, a legend - intersects with "real life".
Having met a few celebrities, and knowing people who went on to achieve a degree of celebrity, the funny thing is how they are just normal people like you or I. But because the "media machine" puts out this image of them being special or something more than human and mortal it's easy to forget that. No matter how handsome and charming Connery was he was still a slightly awkward teenager like all of us, hoping to make his way in the world, gain confidence, and hoped that he'd impress whatever girl he was with. Of course, a lot of people confuse the human being with the larger-than-life characters that they play.
A lot of people have a hard time wrapping their head around that, and given the deification of celebrities in our culture I can understand that. I'm reminded of a situation that happened a few years back. It may seem somewhat amusing, but I found it profoundly depressing.
I walked into the lunchroom where I used to work and one of the admin assistants was reading People magazine. She held it up so I could see it and said "Look at this - she's so lucky. Must be nice..." The cover had a picture of a celebrity - I'm thinking that it was Reese Witherspoon - and it said "Young, beautiful - and IN LOVE!". I laughed and pointed out to this girl that that also described her (she was breath-takingly beautiful, and her common-law husband was a god among men and treated her like gold). But she refused to believe it - as we talked she revealed how she thought that her happiness in love could never equal Witherspoon's because...well, just because. Because she was a celebrity EVERYTHING must somehow be better than it would be for anyone else. No amount of talking to her could convince her otherwise, and when three other admin assistants came in they all took her side and looked at me as if I was the stupidest person on the planet.
A celebrity's youth is the same as a "regular" person's youth, and love is love. It's not like celebrities have access to a *better* kind of love that other people don't. But they just wouldn't believe me because all the magazines and entertainment programs they consumed kept drilling into their heads how awesome and better than mortal people that celebrities are...
When I said Lily wants to keep that piece of Sean for herself, it's not like she had a better love than regular people. Maybe she doesn't want to be "the woman that dated Sean Connery". She has good memories about him and still keeps those photographs, just like we do sometimes. The "legend Sean Connery" doesn't even exist! Just like you said, I think he's still a boy hoping to make his way in the world. He might have inspired millions of people (like me), but he will never feel like he ever did that.
About the girl from your work... I don't get when people put their lives so down! My life is more important than anyone else's because it's mine. Also, I'd hate so much being famous. Besides the lack of privacy, I'd hate being dehumanized in magazines like People. And the fact that the magazine is called "People" is so ironic...
Too true. I remember being shocked when I found out that a supporting actor from a 70s sitcom was living in my city (in Western Canada). Turns out that he met a woman that he fell head over heels in love with and being with her (she was Canadian) was more important than trying to "upgrade" his career to getting his own show or transitioning to movies (he was still getting work when he walked away from the business). And the funniest thing is no one seemed to know that he lived there until 20 years after he mysteriously "disappeared" from the business!
As for Lily I agree completely. In addition to keeping her own identity - Lily may be "the woman who dated Sean Connery" but Sean Connery was also "the man who dated Lily" but telling anyone about it wouldn't have made the experiences that they shared any better. When I was young I dated an actress who all the guys in the theatre community wanted to go out with, and the rehearsal the day after we got together found her acting very strange. Finally, when it was over, she came up to me and asked "Did you not tell anyone about last night?" When I told her no she was shocked - every guy who she had tried dating always bragged about getting together with her (actors can be very ego-driven and also very competitive with other actors). The idea that a guy was more interested in actually being with her than being able to tell everyone that he was dating her...she had never experienced that. As I said to her, it's not like as soon as other people know that we're dating it's going to magically, retroactively make last night any better.
I feel bad for public figures, never knowing who is really interested in them as a person and who is interested in them as a story or "bragging rights"...
http://topwalls.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/omega-seamaster-pierce-brosnan-600x426.jpg
Not seeing it, just takes me to a website saying WALLPAPERS.COM or something. :-??
http://pbfiles.cixx6.com/gallery/omega-2003-ad.jpg