Tagged: Caribbean

Never Say Never Again: Bond’s Cream Tropical Suit

Sean Connery as James Bond in Never Say Never Again (1983)

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Sean Connery as James Bond, sophisticated secret agent

Nassau, Bahamas, Spring 1983

Film: Never Say Never Again
Release Date: October 7, 1983
Director: Irvin Kershner
Costume Designer: Charles Knode
Tailor: Douglas Hayward

Background

The “Battle of the Bonds” commenced 40 years ago today when Never Say Never Again premiered on the 00-7th of October 1983. Produced by Jack Schwartzman’s Taliafilm, the movie was essentially a reimagining of Thunderball (1965), in which a weathered but game Sean Connery reprised his iconic role of James Bond… but without the official oversight of Eon Productions.

As I’ll be jetting off to a tropical environment this weekend, it feels appropriate to look at one of Bond’s sartorial highlights from this “unofficial” adventure, worn as Connery’s 007 makes some initial contacts upon landing in the Bahamas for his mission to investigate a missing nuclear warhead. (His lodgings are the historic British Colonial Hotel, which had to close during the COVID-19 pandemic but has been extensively renovated and is planned to reopen by the end of the year!) Continue reading

Live and Let Die: Bond’s Beige Tropical Suit

Roger Moore as James Bond in Live and Let Die (1973). Promotional photo by Ian Vaughan.

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Roger Moore as James Bond, British secret agent

“San Monique” (actually Jamaica), Spring 1973

Film: Live and Let Die
Release Date: June 27, 1973
Director: Guy Hamilton
Costume Designer: Julie Harris
Tailor: Cyril Castle

Background

Released 50 years ago today, Live and Let Die officially began Roger Moore’s 12-year, seven-film tenure as James Bond. Eon Productions’ first attempt recast Sean Connery in the iconic role resulted in the excellent On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969), though some audiences—as well as George Lazenby himself—had trouble accepting the inexperienced Aussie as agent 007.

With credits like MaverickThe Saint, and The Persuaders! to his name, Roger Moore brought considerably more experience to the role when he was recruited after Connery’s brief return in Diamonds are Forever (1971). Continue reading

After the Sunset: Pierce Brosnan’s White Linen Beach Shirt

Pierce Brosnan as Max Burdett in After the Sunset (2004)

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Pierce Brosnan as Max Burdett, retired(?) jewel thief

The Bahamas, Summer 2004

Film: After the Sunset
Release Date: November 12, 2004
Director: Brett Ratner
Costume Designer: Rita Ryack
Pierce Brosnan’s Costumer: Edward T. Hanley

Background

Happy 70th birthday to Pierce Brosnan!

Perhaps in response to playing well-tailored protagonists like Remington Steele, Thomas Crown, and—of course—James Bond, Brosnan seemed to delight in defining his post-007 screen persona as an opportunistic and oft-oversexed beach bum, as seen in varying degrees in the excellent The Tailor of Panama, the entertaining The Matador, and the escapist heist flick After the Sunset. Continue reading

No Time to Die: Retired Bond’s T-Shirt and Shorts in Jamaica

Daniel Craig as James Bond in No Time to Die (2021). Photo credit: Nicola Dove.

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Daniel Craig as James Bond, retired British secret agent

Jamaica to Cuba, Spring 2020

Film: No Time to Die
Release Date: September 30, 2021
Director: Cary Joji Fukunaga
Costume Designer: Suttirat Anne Larlarb

Background

Happy birthday, Daniel Craig! Born March 2, 1968, the English actor celebrates his 55th birthday today. I had been debating how to sartorially celebrate Craig, especially considering his stylish reprisal of detective Benoit Blanc in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, but my upcoming Jamaican honeymoon encouraged a return to his style in No Time to Die as a now-retired James Bond, living a life of comfortable solitude in Jamaica.

Bond fans are well-aware of the significance of Jamaica to the 007 series: it was at his Goldeneye estate on Oracabessa Bay where Ian Fleming wrote the first novel (Casino Royale) in 1952, most of the first movie (Dr. No) was set and filmed in Jamaica, and Roger Moore’s first Bond film (Live and Let Die) was also filmed extensively in Jamaica. There’s very much a “where it all began” association between Bond and this scenic Caribbean nation, making it all the more appropriate that No Time to Die establishes it the setting for Bond’s retirement, specifically a secluded home on Jamaica’s northeastern coast near Port Antonio. Continue reading

Dr. No: Bond’s Gray Mohair Suit and Walther in Jamaica

Sean Connery as James Bond in Dr. No

Sean Connery as James Bond in Dr. No (1962)

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Sean Connery as James Bond, sophisticated and resourceful British government agent

Morgan’s Harbour, Jamaica, Spring 1962

Film: Dr. No
Release Date: October 5, 1962
Director: Terence Young
Wardrobe Master: John Brady
Tailor: Anthony Sinclair

WARNING! Spoilers ahead!

Background

With the release of Dr. No sixty years ago today, October 5 has since been immortalized as Global James Bond Day in commemoration of when Sean Connery first uttered that now-iconic character introduction:

Bond. James Bond.

Dr. No had actually been Ian Fleming’s sixth novel featuring the worldly secret agent, set primarily in Jamaica as he penned the novel from his Jamaican estate Goldeneye. The author had tired of the character and left Bond’s fate somewhat ambiguous at the end of his previous novel From Russia With Love, though ultimately choosing that the agent would live to die another day and beginning Dr. No with 007’s recovery from the poison inflicted by the sharp-shoed Rosa Klebb.

Back to relatively full health, Bond finds his punishment in the form of a simple assignment meant to ease him back into duty (and possibly penalize him for letting his guard down), investigating the disappearance of a station chief and his secretary in Jamaica. There, Bond learns that the late chief had been investigating an eccentric recluse with the equally eccentric name of Doctor Julius No (Joseph Wiseman). With the help of his CIA buddy Felix Leiter (Jack Lord) and local contact Quarrel (John Kitzmiller), Bond ultimately determines that he and his newly issued Walther owe the good bad doctor a long-overdue visit. Continue reading

The Deep: Robert Shaw’s Striped Shirt and Cargo Pants

Robert Shaw as Romer Treece in The Deep

Robert Shaw as Romer Treece in The Deep (1977)

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Robert Shaw as Romer Treece, adventurous treasure hunter and lighthouse-keeper

Off the Bermuda coast, Summer 1976

Film: The Deep
Release Date: June 17, 1977
Director: Peter Yates
Costume Designer: Ron Talsky

Background

Following the record-setting blockbuster success of Jaws, adapted from Peter Benchley’s debut novel of the same name, Columbia Pictures quickly purchased the rights to Benchley’s next novel before it was even published. The Deep proved to be another box-office hit, if not as critically acclaimed as its predecessor, with much of its success attributed to an effective marketing campaign centered around Jacqueline Bisset’s white T-shirt.

Another casting decision that worked in The Deep‘s favor was Robert Shaw, born 95 years ago today on August 9, 1927. Continue reading

Felix Leiter in No Time to Die

Jeffrey Wright as Felix Leiter in No Time to Die

Promotional poster for No Time to Die (2021) featuring Jeffrey Wright as Felix Leiter

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Jeffrey Wright as Felix Leiter, cynical CIA agent

Jamaica, Spring 2020

Film: No Time to Die
Release Date: September 30, 2021
Director: Cary Joji Fukunaga
Costume Designer: Suttirat Anne Larlarb

WARNING! Spoilers ahead!

Background

On the 00-7th of August, let’s celebrate the return of Jeffrey Wright’s Felix Leiter to the 007 franchise in No Time to Die. Years after the events of Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace, Felix and his politically appointed State Department crony Logan Ash (Billy Magnussen) track down the now-retired James Bond (Daniel Craig) to his secluded life in Jamaica, hoping to recruit him into assisting them in locating a missing MI6 scientist.

“It’ll be like old times,” Leiter pitches to Bond over beers, adding that “I wanna get back to my family, tell ’em I saved the world again!” Continue reading

Licence to Kill: Bond’s Tropical Navy Casual Jacket

Timothy Dalton as James Bond in Licence to Kill

Timothy Dalton as James Bond in Licence to Kill (1989). Photo sourced from thunderballs007.org archive.

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Timothy Dalton as James Bond, rogue British government agent

From Key West, Florida to Bimini, Bahamas, Summer 1989

Film: Licence to Kill
Release Date: July 14, 1989
Director: John Glen
Costume Designer: Jodie Lynn Tillen

WARNING! Spoilers ahead!

Background

Timothy Dalton’s second James Bond movie, Licence to Kill, was released today in 1989, exactly a week before I was born. Dalton was still comfortably settling into the role, establishing a more serious characterization that echoed Ian Fleming’s literary creation more than Roger Moore’s witty romantic, but a series of legal disputes and cultural shifts resulted in Licence to Kill unexpectedly becoming Dalton’s swan song as 007. Continue reading

No Time to Die: Retired Bond’s Caribbean Casual Style

Daniel Craig as James Bond in No Time to Die

Daniel Craig as James Bond in No Time to Die (2021)

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Daniel Craig as James Bond, retired British secret agent

Jamaica to Cuba, Spring 2020

Film: No Time to Die
Release Date: September 30, 2021
Director: Cary Joji Fukunaga
Costume Designer: Suttirat Anne Larlarb

WARNING! Spoilers ahead!

Background

Happy 00-7th of June! The weather continues warming up as we approach summer in the Northern Hemisphere, and I’m sure I won’t be alone in turning to James Bond for inspiration as I begin rotating summer style staples back to the front of my closet.

To dissect the phrasing of his literary creator, you could say James Bond had lived enough for two lifetimes by the time we find the globetrotting secret agent now retired toward the start of No Time to Die. Continue reading

James Mason’s White Colonial Casual-wear in Island in the Sun

James Mason as Maxwell Fleury in Island in the Sun

James Mason as Maxwell Fleury in Island in the Sun (1957)

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James Mason as Maxwell Fleury, short-tempered plantation owner

On the fictional Caribbean island of Santa Marta, Spring 1955

Film: Island in the Sun
Release Date: June 12, 1957
Director: Robert Rossen
Costume Design: Phyllis Dalton & David Ffolkes

Background

Today’s post celebrates the great James Mason, who was born 113 years ago today on May 15, 1909. Whether playing a hero or villain or navigating a moral gray area in between, the velvet-voiced Mason brought a dignified presence to his performances.

Opposing the shining talents of Harry Belafonte and Dorothy Dandridge, Mason stars in this vividly photographed but dark-hearted drama as Maxwell Fleury, a privileged aristocrat dwelling on one of his family’s estates on the eponymous island.

Upon returning home in his sleek new Jaguar roadster one afternoon, he finds Egyptian cigarettes in his ashtray that fuel his baseless paranoia regarding his wife’s marital fidelity, a suspicion that dangerously spirals as the summery Santa Marta heat intensifies. Continue reading