RIP, Diana Rigg.

Dame Enid Diana Elizabeth Rigg DBE
(July 20, 1938 – September 10, 2020)

Diana Rigg has passed away at 82. She was a great actress, doing fabulous work on stage, on TV and on film.

What always impressed me about her was that she went after good work — from Shakespeare to The Avengers to a James Bond movie to Theatre Of Blood (1973) — nothing seemed to be beneath her if she found it interesting. And she was always terrific.

Here she is with George Lazenby working on On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969). Note the banner for Corgi toys, the company that made those great die-cast James Bond toys.

Merry Christmas.

It’s easy to forget that the James Bond movie On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969) is a Christmas movie. But here’s James Bond (George Lazenby) hanging around the Christmas tree with Blofeld’s brainwashed “Angels Of Death.”

Here’s wishing you all the joys of the season — and that you get that 1969 Aston Martin DBS you asked for.

Blu-Ray News #268: Some Girls Do (1969).

Directed by Ralph Thomas
Starring Richard Johnson, Daliah Lavi, Beba Loncar, Robert Morley

Network Releasing in the UK has announced their upcoming (February) Blu-Ray release of Some Girls Do (1969). The second picture with Richard Johnson as a revamped Bulldog Drummond, coming after Deadlier Than The Male (1967), Some Girls Do is a fun, lively 60s spy movie.

Some of the film was shot at Pinewood Studios at the same time as On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969) — Joanna Lumley and Virginia North appear in both. And by the way, Terence Young wanted Richard Johnson to play James Bond when he directed Dr. No (1962).

Blu-Ray News #222: ffolkes (1980).

Directed by Andrew V. McLaglen
Starring Roger Moore, James Mason, Anthony Perkins, Michael Parks, David Hedison, Jack Watson, Lea Brodie, Brook Williams

Roger Moore made some really interesting films in the late 70s and early 80s — maybe out of guilt after appearing in Moonraker (1979). Andrew V. McLaglen’s ffolkes (1980, North Sea Highjack in the UK) is one of the better ones. (I’m also a big fan of 1978’s The Wild Geese.) Kino Lorber is bringing ffolkes to Blu-Ray, which I’m sure will make plenty of people very happy indeed.

With ffolkes, Moore gets to poke fun at the Bond thing — he’s an eccentric, bearded cat-loving terrorism expert instead of a suave playboy secret agent. He’s got a great cast along for the fun, too: James Mason, Anthony Perkins, Jack Watson, even Brooks Williams — who’s in a couple of my favorites, The Plague Of The Zombies (1966) and Where Eagles Dare (1969).

This is one of those movies where it looks like everyone was having a good time. It’s an under-seen gem. Highly recommended.

One final thing. The US poster for ffolkes is brilliant, with Bond artist Robert McGinnis spoofing his work for Diamonds Are Forever (1971).

Dialogue Of The Day: Goldfinger (1964).

Q (Desmond Llewelyn): Now this one I’m particularly keen about. You see the gear lever here? Now, if you take the top off, you will find a little red button. Whatever you do, don’t touch it.

James Bond (Sean Connery): Yeah, why not?

Q: Because you’ll release this section of the roof, and engage and then fire the passenger ejector seat. Whish!

James Bond: Ejector seat? You’re joking!

Q: I never joke about my work, 007.

RIP, Lewis Gilbert.

Lewis Gilbert (left) directs Sean Connery and Donald Pleasance in You Only Live Twice

Lewis Gilbert
(March 6, 1920 – February 23, 2018)

Lewis Gilbert, who directed the underrated James Bond film You Only Live Twice (1967), has passed away at 97. In a couple more weeks, we would’ve been 98. You Only Live Twice gets a lot of flack, but to me it’s a knockout — from the incredible sets by Ken Adam to one of John Barry’s best Bond scores to the fact that Sean Connery hits a guy with a sofa! It’s big, loud and a bit obnoxious, and I love it.

He also directed the hip and influential Michael Caine movie Alfie (1966). Then there’s the terrific Sink The Bismark! (1960), with Kenneth Moore, Dana Wynter, Michael Hordern and some outstanding model work — all in black and white CinemaScope. It’s just a great thing all-around.

RIP, Karin Dor.

Karin Dor
(February 22, 1938 – November 6, 2017)

I love You Only Live Twice (1967). And I hated to see that Karin Dor, seen above with Sean Connery, had passed away.

With Lex Barker in The Torture Chamber Of Dr. Sadism (1967).

Like so many of the Bond girls from the 60s, Ms. Dor appeared in a lot of other cool things. You’ll also find her in The Face Of Fu Manchu (1965) with Christopher Lee, Hitchcock’s Topaz (1969), and a number of German films co-starring Lex Barker — such as The Invisible Dr. Mabuse and The Treasure Of The Silver Lake (both 1962). From time to time, she even turns up in American TV shows like Ironside and The FBI.

Making Movies: Diamonds Are Forever (1971).

It had been a while since I’d seen Diamonds Are Forever (1971), Sean Connery’s last entry in the “official” Bond series, and the followup to my favorite 007 movie, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969), which starred the one-Bond-only George Lazenby.

Much of the picture was shot in and around Las Vegas, so for us in the States, it doesn’t have the exotic, globe-hopping angle the series tends to have. However, it offers a terrific Panavision and Technicolor look at Sin City in the early 70s. Many of the casinos you see in it are now gone.

Another slight disappointment is the absence of Bond’s Aston Martin (either the DB5 from Goldfinger or the DBS seen in OHMSS). He drives a red 1971 Ford Mustang Mach 1 instead.

Another vehicle is the prototype moon buggy Bond swipes from Willard Whyte’s place.

Connery practiced his golf swing on the moon simulation set. (Actually, judging from behind-the-scenes photos, it looks like he practiced everywhere.)

Connery’s co-star was the lovely Jill St. John. Here they are with an ice cream bar.

And between takes on the offshore oil rig.

Here are Bruce Glover (as Mr. Wint) and Putter Smith (as Mr. Kidd) on location in Amsterdam.

Lastly, dig this preliminary poster design from the great Robert McGinnis.

Diamonds Are Forever, in a way, hints at the tone of the Roger Moore Bonds that were to follow. Guy Hamilton, who directed this and Goldfiinger (1964), would do the first two Moore pictures, Live And Let Die (1973) and The Man With The Golden Gun (1974).

Blu-Ray News #143: Orgy Of The Dead (1965).

Directed by Stephen C. Apostolof (as A. C. Stephen)
Written by Edward D. Wood, Jr.
Starring Criswell, Pat Barrington, Fawn Silver, William Bates

A couple (Pat Barrington and William Bates) crash their car and wander through a graveyard on their way to help. They end up being tied to stakes by a mummy and a werewolf — the evil minions of the Emperor Of The Night (Criswell) and the Black Ghoul (Fawn Silver). They’re then forced to watch some strippers in the titular Orgy Of The Dead (1965) — one of which is Pat Barrington again, painted gold like Shirley Eaton in Goldfinger (1964).

Exactly what you’d expect from a script by Ed Wood — who also wrote the novel!

Edward D. Wood, Jr. holds Criswell’s cue cards.

Emperor Of The Night (Criswell): “This is a story of those in the twilight time. Once human, now monsters, in a void between the living and the dead. Monsters to be pitied, monsters to be despised. A night with the ghouls, the ghouls reborn from the innermost depths of the world.”

While the sets are pitiful — not even the fog can’t conceal the lameness of the cemetery — the camerawork by Robert Caramico features gorgeously saturated color. He shot a bunch of low-budget movies, including Tobe Hooper’s amazing Eaten Alive (1976), before landing in TV with stuff like The Waltons and Dallas.

This whole crazy mess is coming to Blu-Ray from Vinegar Syndrome on September 26. You can bet they’ll have Caramico’s color looking better than ever — it’ll restore the original 1.85 cropping — and the extras will be extra-extraordinary.

Note that the novel (up top) features a “special introduction” by Forrest J. Ackerman of Famous Monsters!

Roger Moore, RIP.

Sir Roger Moore
October 14, 1927 – May 23, 2017

Sir Roger Moore, who played James Bond throughout the 70s and 80s — and who did a lot of great work for UNICEF, has passed away at 89.

He took over the role of 007 after Sean Connery got sick of it, adding his own tongue-in-cheek flavor to the series. Live And Let Die (1973) was his first Bond movie. Mine, too. And his passing feels like the end of an era.

Of course, Moore’d been on Maverick and The Saint and many other things. He came across as so likable, no matter what he was doing. I really enjoyed Shout At The Devil (1976) and The Wild Geese (1978).