Tuesday, May 23, 2017

Roger Moore Was My Favorite Bond

As you probably know by now Sir Roger Moore has died following a short battle with cancer at the age of 89.


Of course, Moore is best known for his portrayal of James Bond in seven 007 films beginning with Live and Let Die in 1973 and ending with A View to a Kill in 1985. Personally, he was my favorite Bond. Nothing against Sean Connery, but I found Moore's portrayal to be smoother and more engaging.


No doubt his years as Simon Templar on the 1960's British TV series The Saint (which also aired on NBC) made his transition into Bond seamless. Moore was not unfamiliar to American TV viewers with his roles in Ivanhoe, The Alaskans and replacing James Garner in Maverick.


Once Moore became Bond his work outside of that role was fairly undistinguished with the notable exceptions of his appearance in Cannonball Run playing a character obsessed with Roger Moore and his turn as Inspector Closseau in the otherwise horrid The Curse of the Pink Panther which was the antithesis of his Bond portrayals.


During the last three decades of his life, Moore was extensively involved with UNICEF as a Goodwill Ambassador and was knighted for his work in 2003.


I leave you with Roger Moore & Johnny Carson having way too much fun with helium. The YouTube clip indicates this is from 1986, but Moore did not appear on the show that year. It is more likely from May 1985 when A View to a Kill was released. Whenever it was aired it was damn funny. R.I.P.









No comments:

Post a Comment