RIP ILLYA KURYAKIN

                                      SAD NEWS FROM THE WORLD OF ENTERTAINMENT - 

David McCallum, who starred as Illya Kuryakin alongside Robert Vaughn’s Napoleon Solo in the 1960s hit spy drama “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.” and had a supporting role as pathologist Dr. Donald “Ducky” Mallard on the top-rated series “NCIS” decades later, died Monday of natural causes in New York City. He was 90.

                                                  As Ashley-Pitt in THE GREAT ESCAPE

                                                                       Ducky Mallard in NCIS

As Illya Kuryakin with Robert Vaughn as Napoleon Solo in

                                                         THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.

He was in THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD as Judas Iscariot, THE GREAT ESCAPE, SOL MADRID, AROUND THE WORLD UNDER THE SEA, TV's The Invisible Man, Sapphire & Steel TV series, NCIS as Ducky Mallard and many other distinguished roles, but he will always be Illya Kuryakin to me!  - RIP David McCallum -

                          Listen to Hugo Montenegro's recording of the song ILLYA, from the

                                 1965 LP Original Music From The Man From U.N.C.L.E.

                     

The Last Time We Saw Every 007...

Best Bond farewell? Sean Connery, without a doubt!

THE JAMES BOND FILMS: My Personal Ranking.

 

I went to see my first Jame Bond movie on the big screen around 1964. It was GOLDFINGER, and later I had the chance to see the first other two on a double feature at a local second run theater. I saw THUNDERBALL early in 1966 at the height of the spy craze. The movies and TV shows at the time, were full of secret agents and cloak-and-dagger themes. I loved the Bond films and all its imitations, including OUR MAN FLINT, MATT HELM, THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E., I SPY, GET SMART, MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE, and all the rest of the lesser known spin-offs. 

The spy craze faded as the 70s began but 007 held its ground and became one of the movies' longest running and most successful franchises.  James Bond himself went into several transformations, as different actors succeeded Sean Connery in the role.  When Roger Moore bid farewell to the role, back in 1985, James Bond entered into a very different path, as actors like Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan struggled to make Bond up to date and more palatable to modern audiences.  Daniel Craig entered the scene when the world was changing radically as the 21st century began to see a major turn in morals, attitudes and popular culture. 

The Bond of old suddenly seemed out of place in the era of #MeToo and PC bylaws. Craig and the producers of the James Bond franchise made the necessary adjustments to place 007 in a contemporary setting without disturbing the prevailing status quo. Bond became an angry man, often going rogue and ditching his job with Her Majesty's Secret Service.  His personal life and background began to take precedence in the stories and he stopped being the dashing, womanizing, elegant debonair spy with a license to kill.  He was now made more human, more sentimental, more caring, more down to earth and less elegant. He became a mixture of Jason Bourne, Ethan Hunt and Peter Parker. 

Frankly, that's not the Bond I knew nor the Bond I want to see on the screen. My Bond is an entirely larger than life, fictitious character,  mysterious, enigmatic, easy-going, hard-hitting but classy and elegant with knowledge of the better things in life and somehow, kind of a superhuman. His past is sketchy and not too clear. That is the James Bond we all wanted to be back in the 60s. However, we now live in  a different era. The Bond of old has vanished and the franchise producers are taking a different path to accommodate this day and age's tastes.  So now, sadly, it's farewell to the old James Bond we knew back in 1962, when it all started...

This is my personal ranking of the James Bond films. I love them all but I do play favorites. Not an official list but as far as I know none of them are, as this is purely a matter of taste and done just for fun, which means that no other criteria applies. You may certainly disagree with the ranking positions but again, this is just a very personal choice.

My James Bond rankings on IMDb:

https://www.imdb.com/list/ls011236085/   

NO TIME TO DIE...

 Just came back from watching NO TIME TO DIE. What a huge disappointment!!!! The theme song, unremarkable, dull and forgettable.  Brings you completely down.  The villain is pathetic. Blofeld has no weight whatsoever in the plot. Ana De Armas is easily the best thing in the entire movie. It’s obvious the producers are taking 007 into a very different direction, one that I am not interested in following. Good bye 007, and good riddance!  I’ll keep watching Sean Connery and Roger Moore over and over till I die!!

About the JAMES BOND film franchise.

 I'm a big fan of all the James Bond films but after 1971, I always regret it's not Sean Connery who's playing 007.

Somehow, the image set in my mind of how should James Bond look and act, is of Sean Connery which is understandable, since my first encounter with Ian Fleming's super spy was in the film DR. NO, in 1962. As I read Fleming's novels, I always pictured Sean Connery as Bond and whenever I heard the James Bond theme, it was the image of Connery that popped into my mind.  When he retired from the role, it became apparent that no one would ever replace him.  And to this day, James Bond still looks like Sean Connery to me!

Goodbye, Pussy Galore...

Today we lost one of my favorite James Bond leading ladies.
Honor Blackman passed away at age 94. I still remember the first time I saw her, back in 1965, when GOLDFINGER opened in my hometown. Her first scene with Sean Connery featured this by now classic exchange:
-Bond: Who are you?
-Pussy: My name is Pussy Galore.
-Bond: [looks away and smiles] I must be dreaming.

Honor Blackman was also the star on THE AVENGERS TV show, playing Cathy Gale with Patrick Macnee (1922-2015) as John Steed. She was replaced by Diana Rigg when she signed to play Pussy Galore in GOLDFINGER.

After GOLDFINGER, she starred in many other features, including another one with Sean Connery : SHALAKO (1968).

Other credits include:

JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS

LIFE AT THE TOP

BRIDGET JONES'S DIARY and many TV series.

Full list here:

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000303/

But in spite of her many credits, I guess she'll be forever remembered as Pussy Galore, which is pretty good, actually!

 

JAMES BOND'S NEW TRAILER!

The new James Bond movie will be released on April 8th, 2020 but the first trailer is already out!
I used to enjoy the Connery and Moore James Bond films because those guys were always super cool, no matter the circumstances.  On the other hand, Daniel Craig is anything but cool. He's super intense. He's angry. He's dark. He's troubled. He has issues.
                                        And I'm glad after this one, he'll be gone!

Here's the first official 007 trailer:

And here are my two favorite Bonds:

 Sean Connery

and Roger Moore.

So far, the best Bonds ever!