Month: May 2017

2017.05.27

Roger Moore and the Crimefighters 1: “The Siege” (Danish first edition 1978)

Roger Moore og Krimipatruljen 1: Gidseldrama i London (1978)

David Fleming (= Malcolm Hulke)

Danish first edition
Original: Roger Moore and the Crimefighters – The Siege (Everest Books 1977)
Publisher: Grafisk Forlag
Release date: 1978
Translator: Vivi Berendt
Cover artist: Ernst Køhler
Layout: Birgit Lerstrup
Format: 128 pages, hardcover
Also published as an eight-part serial in the weekly comic magazine Tempo no. 46/1978 to 1/1979 (Gutenberghus)

At the peak of Roger Moore's succes as James Bond 007 around the time of "The Spy Who Loved Me" in 1977, the actor lent his name and visage to a literary spin-off which has since been all but forgotten.

”Roger Moore and the Crimefighters" (Danish: "Roger Moore og Krimipatruljen”) was a series of young adult crime novels originally published in the United Kingdom by Alpine/Everest Books in 1977. Five of the six installments were released in Danish translations by publishing house Grafisk Forlag from 1978 to 1980. Although each book had a different author, all the Danish editions are credited to "David Fleming":

● 1. Gidseldrama i London [Hostage Crisis in London] (The Siege, 1978)
● 2. Spioner til søs [Spies at Sea] (Crook Ahoy, 1978)
● 3. Jagten på narkohajerne [The Hunt for the Drug Lords] (The Anchor Trick, 1979)
● 4. A/S Butikstyveri [Shoplifting Inc.] (One Thousand and One Shoplifters, 1980)
● 5. Døden går i cowboybukser [Death wears Denims] (Death in Denims, 1980)

Stickers producered by Grafisk Forlag, Denmark 1978

The obvious precedent was "The Three Investigators" (1964-83, Danish title: ”Alfred Hitchcock og de tre detektiver”), a popular series of American crime novels for children. In each book the iconic British thriller director Alfred Hitchcock made a short cameo appearence as a sort of mentor to the young leading characters.

This same gimmick was re-used in ”Roger Moore and the Crimefighters" which does not actually star Sir Roger but follows three nosy London kids who invariably end up thwarting some sort of crime. Roger Moore appears fleetingly in the first book, "The Siege" (Danish: "Gidseldrama i London”), on page 107 (out of 128) and again in the epilogue.

BBC has invited the meddling kids – Bonnie, Bill, and Darren – into the studio after they have involuntarily helped the police unravel a hostage situation on an African embassy in London. As luck would have it, the famous Roger Moore (described as a tall and "very handsome" man) is working at the BBC that day and takes the time to express his admiration for the children's crimefighting achievement:

"So I've got an idea to form a club called the Crimefighters for kids like you. Do you mind if I pull up a chair and tell you about it?"
- Roger Moore as Roger Moore in "The Siege"

2017.05.23

Sir Roger Moore (1927-2017): Rest in peace.

Sir Roger Moore (1927-2017). Publicity photo

James Bond 007 can never die.

And that makes Sir Roger Moore's passing feel all the more unreal. The iconic English actor died peacefully in his home in Switzerland, as reported by Variety on May 23, 2017.

I had the good fortune of catching Sir Roger Moore On Tour at London's Royal Festival Hall on November 27, 2016. This would turn out to be the legendary Sir Roger's very last public performance. His knees wobbled, and his voice cracked, but Moore's recall and the ironic twinkle were undiminished, as was his taste for telling bawdy jokes which cheerfully contrasted with his noble appearance. The highlight of the show: The classic line "My name is Bond, James Bond" spoken by James Bond himself.

Fun fact: During the show Roger Moore spoke of his wife, Kristina "Kiki" Tholstrup, as being Swedish – and not Danish, as the Danish gossip rags would have it.

A million thanks for 007, "The Saint", "The Persuaders!" and for being the very best Roger Moore in the world. Rest in peace, Sir Rog.

2017.05.20

James Bond Agent 007 no. 23: “The Golden Ghost” (1972)

2017.05.17

“Thunderball”: Politiken’s film review (1965)

The stolen nuclear bombs

World premiere of the latest James Bond film

"James Bond needs no introduction; after all, he's the hero of our times for better or worse. But as we're now treated to a world premiere of his new film, ”Thunderball”, it must be said that his latest adventure is very much of a technological bent. Sure, there are lovely girls aplenty, and this particular year, the beautiful coupling of technology and erotica is something that we should know everything about, but the girls are of a rather synthetic quality; they hardly arouse any interest among Bond or the audience, and this year, we can't be ignorant of the fact that technology and irony ought to be merged, but in a showdown between technology, wit, and romance, technology (in this film) takes the lead.

This makes sense in our cold, technological spy era. Yes, it's inhuman, and therefore not really thrilling, but seeing this much technology – that actually works! – is amusing nonetheless. In his previous film, Bond had a car that could do just about everything; now he's equipped with advanced frogman gear that would make any mermaid smack her tail with envy.

This time, he battles the international crime syndicate Spectre, who has kidnapped two nuclear bombs and is demanding a ransom of several millions. Bond is not only given a car that any one of us would find useful while driving under the influence; he also gets a radioactive pill which, when swallowed, states your position; a wristwatch of wonders, clever weaponry, and a good deal of equipment for going under water. The latter turns out to be a good idea, inasmuch as the gangsters have hidden the bombs at the bottom of the sea, and the majority of the film places us among sharks and other minnows. The engineers behind this endeavor might have become so pleased and impressed with their undersea prowess that they've overdone it a bit; the film feels longish and somewhat monotonous in spite of all its ingenuity, but even so, seeing all this technology in action beneath the waves, where frogmen shoot each other down with arrows during the climax, is diverting. Could this be the first undersea fight in history?

The plot as such should be experienced rather than retold. It has a few charming implausibilities of its own and a steadily increasing tension. Once more, Sean Connery plays James Bond with a relaxed, off-hand charm, indifferent as well as efficient; villains, women, and sharks make up the supporting cast. The film is not top-drawer Bond, but otherwise it's self-recommendatory. Its success is guaranteed and bound to be huge."

Review written by Bent Mohn
Translation by James Bond•O•Rama.dk

2017.05.14

Maryam d’Abo: Exclusive interview (2016)

On September 2, 2016, James Bond•O•Rama.dk had the pleasure of talking to Maryam d'Abo during the "James Bond in Oslo" event.

The British-French actress starred as Kara Milovy opposite Timothy Dalton's James Bond 007 in "The Living Daylights" (EON Productions 1987).

In 2002, Maryam d'Abo co-wrote, produced and hosted the TV documentary "Bond Girls are Forever" in which she interviewed a string of actresses from EON Productions' James Bond film series. The interviews were edited into a tie-in book also titled "Bond Girls are Forever". The book was co-written by John Cork and published by Boxtree in 2003. Maryam d'Abo has since revisited and re-edited the documentary twice, in 2006 and again in 2012.

The following is a transcript of our chat in Oslo. Our time was sadly limited to 15 minutes, as Maryam d'Abo had to rush to the airport.

*Maryam D'Abo (with David Fellowes) as Queen Rosalind of Denmark in "The Prince and Me 2" (2006) - framegrab*

James Bond•O•Rama.dk: Didn't you play the Queen of Denmark in a film – or rather, a queen of Denmark?
Maryam d'Abo: Yes, I did.

I believe she was called Queen Rosalind?
Maryam d'Abo: Can't remember the name, but I did play a Danish queen in "The Prince and Me 2: The Royal Wedding" (2006) with this American actress [Kam Heskin, ed.]. We shot outside of Prague. I went back to Prague after "Doctor Zhivago" (2002), the TV series, yeah.

So you didn't go anywhere near Denmark.
Maryam d'Abo: No. But I've been to Copenhagen. I did something there ... Gosh. I went there a couple of years ago to do something. It might have been a commercial. I was flown in to Copenhagen and stayed in a really nice boutique hotel. Actually, this [Oslo] was reminding me a little of Copenhagen with the docks and all. But it's not as nice as Copenhagen. It was not a movie, more like a commercial or something like that, because I was only there very briefly for three days. But it was definitely a job.

Did you do a junket for "The Living Daylights" in Copenhagen?
Maryam d'Abo: No. Never. I did Vienna, a big junket, and we premiered in Amsterdam.

2017.05.07

“Devil May Care”: Danish first edition (2008)

2017.05.04

“On Her Majesty’s Secret Service”: Danish souvenir programme (1969)