Tagged: Rolex Submariner watch

James Bond’s Beach Suitcase – Sean Connery Edition

Sean Connery with Claudine Auger in the fourth James Bond film, Thunderball (1965), set in the Bahamas.

Sean Connery with Claudine Auger in the fourth James Bond film, Thunderball (1965), which was set in the Bahamas.

Vitals

Sean Connery as James Bond, British secret agent

Nassau, Summer 1965

Film: Thunderball
Release Date: December 29, 1965
Director: Terence Young

Background

Bond: Sir, I respectfully suggest that you assign me to Nassau.
M: Is there a reason besides your enthusiasm for water sports?

You really can’t blame James Bond for eagerly volunteering to take on MI6’s post in the Bahamas. Of all of Sean Connery’s early 007 adventures, Thunderball always struck me as the most aspirational, perfectly blending adventure, danger, style, and wit with the necessary Bond elements of exotic surroundings, clever gadgets, and a bevy of international beauties. Lurking threat of nuclear disaster aside, Thunderball presents the ideal summer holiday.

To celebrate the summer solstice, I’m somewhat departing from the usual BAMF Style format for a feature that highlights the best of Bond’s warm-weather duds… and where you can find them today to pack for your own beach vacation. Continue reading

Live and Let Die: Roger Moore Arrives in NYC

Roger Moore as James Bond in Live and Let Die (1973)

Roger Moore as James Bond in Live and Let Die (1973)

Vitals

Roger Moore as James Bond, debonair British secret agent

New York City, Spring 1973

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

Background

Happy 00-7th of May! This month’s focus is on Sir Roger Moore’s debut as James Bond in Live and Let Die.

After a brief sequence that finds Bond briefed at his flat by M and Miss Moneypenny, we are treated to the standard “airport arrival” sequence established in Dr. No and From Russia with Love, creating a sense of continuity with the character if intentionally breaking from the prior characterization.

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Lee Marvin’s Navy Suit in The Killers

Lee Marvin as Charlie Strom in The Killers (1964)

Lee Marvin as Charlie Strom in The Killers (1964)

Vitals

Lee Marvin as Charlie Strom, professional mob hitman

Los Angeles, Fall 1963

Film: The Killers
Release Date: July 7, 1964
Director: Don Siegel
Costume Designer: Helen Colvig

WARNING! Spoilers ahead!

Background

Happy first day of March! The observance of St. Patrick’s Day this month means plenty of focus on the “luck o’ the Irish”, so today’s post explores a suit sporting the “clover lapel”, a soft type of notch lapel named for its semblance to two leaves of a clover plant.

One character who took advantage of this unique but subtle type of lapel was Charlie Strom, the paid assassin who subverts “movie hitman” tropes by letting his curiosity get the better of him… why did Johnny North give up so easily? Bothered by this incongruity, Charlie and his partner Lee (Clu Gulager) set out to find the truth. Continue reading

Bond Style: Lazenby’s Black Tie and Aston Martin

George Lazenby as James Bond in On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969)

George Lazenby as James Bond in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969)

Vitals

George Lazenby as James Bond, smooth British secret agent

Estoril, Portugal, September 1969

Film: On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
Release Date: December 18, 1969
Director: Peter R. Hunt
Tailor: Dimi Major
Costume Designer: Marjory Cornelius

Background

On the 00-7th of December, this Car Week post is focused on James Bond’s sole Christmastime adventure, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service starring George Lazenby as the suave secret agent.

The film opens with a scene straight out of the source novel as a competitive Bond engages in a playful “race” against a beautiful young woman speeding toward the beach in her convertible. Continue reading

Steve McQueen in The Hunter

Steve McQueen as Ralph "Papa" Thorson in The Hunter (1980)

Steve McQueen as Ralph “Papa” Thorson in The Hunter (1980)

Vitals

Steve McQueen as Ralph “Papa” Thorson, real-life bounty hunter

Los Angeles (among other locales), Fall 1979

Film: The Hunter
Release Date: August 1, 1980
Director: Buzz Kulik
Costume Designer: Thomas Welsh

Background

On the anniversary of Steve McQueen’s passing, I’d like to explore his style in the final film he made before his untimely death at the age of 50 on November 7, 1980.

The Hunter starred McQueen as Ralph “Papa” Thorson, a colorful real-life bounty hunter who had reportedly logged more than 5,000 cases throughout his career including the capture of would-be presidential assassin and Manson family follower Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme.

The concept of a bounty hunter conjures the image of a deadly serious and dangerous enforcer. The real Ralph Thorson certainly looked the part at 310 pounds and 6’2″ though Christopher Keane’s 1976 biography counters this image by describing Thorson’s many roles and talents as “a church bishop, Master bridge champion, renowed astrology, criminology alumnus of the University of California Berkeley, child nutritionist, [and] aficionado of classical music.” Continue reading

Justified – Raylan’s Pilot Episode Tan Suit Jacket and Jeans

Timothy Olyphant as U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens in the pilot episode ("Fire in the Hole") of Justified.

Timothy Olyphant as U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens in the pilot episode (“Fire in the Hole”) of Justified.
(Photo by: Prashant Gupta, FX)

Vitals

Timothy Olyphant as Raylan Givens, proudly old-fashioned Deputy U.S. Marshal

Harlan County, Kentucky, March 2010

Series: Justified
Episode: “Fire in the Hole” (Episode 1.01)
Air Date: March 16, 2010
Director: Michael Dinner
Creator: Graham Yost
Costume Designer: Ane Crabtree

Background

BAMF Style concludes this weeklong focus on first episodes with an outfit from the pilot of Justified, one of my favorite modern crime shows.

Justified‘s pilot has a special place in my heart for being filmed in southwestern Pennsylvania, just outside my hometown of Pittsburgh. According to a June 2009 article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the region was chosen for both aesthetic and practical reasons as a viable double for the South but with a tax rebate for film and TV productions that Kentucky doesn’t offer (or at least didn’t offer at the time.) Continue reading

George Lazenby’s Navy Office Suit as 007

George Lazenby as James Bond in On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969)

George Lazenby as James Bond in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969)

Vitals

George Lazenby as James Bond, British secret agent

London, September 1969

Film: On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
Release Date: December 18, 1969
Director: Peter R. Hunt
Tailor: Dimi Major
Costume Designer: Marjory Cornelius

Background

George Lazenby celebrated his 78th birthday two days ago, so BAMF Style is featuring his arguably most famous role of James Bond in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service for the 00-7th of his birth month of September.

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George Lazenby’s Glen Plaid Suit as 007

George Lazenby as James Bond in On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969)

George Lazenby as James Bond in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969)

Vitals

George Lazenby as James Bond, British secret agent

Bern, Switzerland, Fall 1969

Film: On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
Release Date: December 18, 1969
Director: Peter R. Hunt
Tailor: Dimi Major
Costume Designer: Marjory Cornelius

Background

Heading back into the office on a Monday, BAMF Style is also following James Bond into the office for the 00-7th of August… albeit another person’s office rather than his own. Continue reading

All the President’s Men: Woodward’s Beige Cotton Sportcoat

Robert Redford as Bob Woodward in All the President's Men (1976)

Robert Redford as Bob Woodward in All the President’s Men (1976)

Vitals

Robert Redford as Bob Woodward, investigative journalist for The Washington Post

Washington, D.C., late summer 1972

Film: All the President’s Men
Release Date: April 9, 1976
Director: Alan J. Pakula
Costume Supervisor: Bernie Pollack

Background

Bob Woodward had only been at The Washington Post for nine months when he received an assignment in June 1972 to look into the arrests of five men who had been caught breaking into the DNC office at the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C. As the story continued to build over the following months, Woodward and Carl Bernstein relentlessly investigated for a series of Post articles that would expose an unprecedented level of government corruption that led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon. Continue reading

From Russia With Love – Bond’s Istanbul Suits, Pt. 5: Gray Pick

Sean Connery as James Bond in From Russia With Love (1963).

Sean Connery as James Bond in From Russia With Love (1963).

Vitals

Sean Connery as James Bond, British government agent and legendary super spy

The Orient Express, Spring 1963

Film: From Russia With Love
Release Date: October 10, 1963
Director: Terence Young
Costume Designer: Jocelyn Rickards
Tailor: Anthony Sinclair

Background

For the 00-7th of October, I want to focus on a nice fall suit while also marking a milestone for this blog; this post marks the first 007 film where each of James Bond’s on screen outfits has been exhaustively analyzed by BAMF Style! Very appropriate too, given that From Russia With Love is my favorite Bond flick and – perhaps coincidence, perhaps not – also features some of my favorite movie suits. (I’m in good company; Sean Connery has also stated that From Russia With Love is his personal favorite 007 adventure.) Continue reading