Q Casino Royale
Ian Fleming's 1953 novel Casino Royale, the first Bond story, was an obvious choice for the source material. The book featured only a fleeting mention of Miss Moneypenny, while Q was completely absent. Dear avaritah Thank you for taking the time to submit your review. We regret to learn that we missed the mark in meeting your experiences. We have many of Sint Maarten's top-rated restaurants located inside our Casino and nearby including Alina Restaurant Sushi and Izakaya (inside our Casino Royale), 3 Amigos across the street, JAX Steakhouse across the street on upper level, Moulin Fou. The AEW Casino Battle Royale tournament first debuted in 2019 and involved 21 participants. A deck of cards was used when determining when each contestant would enter the event. Aside from enjoying the thrills of betting on AEW events, gamblers can also enjoy wrestling-themed games at leading casino sites like Cosmo Casino. Casino Royale - movie poster, film poster, minimalist movie poster, James Bond Poster, Daniel Craig, Casino Royale Poster, minimal print TheMoviePosterMan. From shop TheMoviePosterMan. 5 out of 5 stars (85) 85 reviews $ 12.84. Only 2 available and it's in 3 people's carts. Casino Royale was Daniel Craig’s first Bond film and it helped revive the franchise which had fallen upon some hard times with bad writing and production. The movie was important for not only doing that but introducing a plot that would run through all of the following flicks as all the foes Bond would face were connected together.
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- Q (which stands for 'Quartermaster') is the genius inventor behind James Bond's gadgets. He runs the MI6 research and development department and supplies 007 with whatever equipment he will need for his missions. As such, he has helped Bond out in the most crucial times. His gadgets have saved Bond's life more than once.
- The character was originally reffered to as 'Major Boothroyd'. That name is based off a real life person, Geoffrey Boothroyd, who was a gun expert and came up with the idea to switch Bond's Beretta to the Walther PPK. He stated to Ian Fleming: 'I love everything about James Bond... except that damn gun!'.
- Q did not appear in Live And Let Die, and, just like Moneypenny, he did not appear in the first two films of the Daniel Craig era, namely Casino Royaleand Quantum Of Solace. He was reintroduced in Skyfall.
- Briefcase containing : easily dismantable AR-7 .22 sniper rifle with infrared telescope, 50 Gold Sovereigns, tear gas cartridge disguised as talcum powder (set to discharge when the briefcase is opened incorrectly) and a knife - From Russia With Love
- Shoe homing device, car homing device - Goldfinger
- Breathing capsule - Thunderball
Q In Casino Royale
- Magnet-watch - Live And Let Die
- Wrist-gun with poisoned darts - Moonraker
- Teargas/explosive keychain - The Living Daylights
- Palmprint signature camera-gun - Licence To Kill
- Pen grenade - GoldenEye
- Multifunction cellphone - Tomorrow Never Dies
- Emergency airbag-jacket (in case of avalanches) - The World Is Not Enough
- Virtual reality training goggles - Die Another Day
- Ultra-high frequency ring - Die Another Day
- Palmprint signature PPK/S - Skyfall
Cars and their known gadgets:
- Aston Martin DB5 - Goldfinger, Thunderball, Goldeneye, Casino Royale, Skyfall: equipped with radar tracker, revolving license plate, rear bulletproof shield, forward machine guns, smoke and oil slick sprayers, spinner hubcaps that doubled as tire slashers, and the passenger seat is ejectable.
- Lotus Esprit S1 - The Spy Who Loved Me: cement sprayer (to blind the pursuers' windshield), submarine mode, underwater black dye slick, torpedoes, underwater mines, surface-to-air missiles.
- Lotus Turbo Esprit - For Your Eyes Only: self-destruction.
- Aston Martin V8 Vantage Volante - The Living Daylights: radio scanner (to spy on police and military radio frequencies), wheel spinner laser, bulletproof windshield and rear windscreen, Stinger missiles and HUD, tire spikes, snowmobile skis, rocket booster, self-destruction.
- BMW Z3 - GoldenEye: self-destruction, Stinger missiles located behind the headlights, and the 'usual refinements'.
- BMW 750iL - Tomorrow Never Dies: remote-controlled (from Bond's cellphone), reinforced chassis, bulletproof windshield and rear windscreen, concealed compartment (fingerprint-protected safe), security system (capable of delivering electric shocks if door handles are grasped by a intruders), tear gas, missiles, caltrops dispenser, re-inflating tires, cable cutter (concealed under the BMW hood emblem).
- BMW Z8 - The World Is Not Enough: remote-controlled (from Bond's keychain), surface-to-air missiles and targetting system.
- Aston Martin V12 Vanquish - Die Another Day: remote-controlled (from Bond's keychain), adaptive camoflage (invisibility), reinforced chassis, bulletproof windshield and rear windscreen, target-seeking shotguns,missiles, tire spikes, passenger ejectable seat, radial thermal imaging.
- Aston Martin DB10 - Spectre: fully bulletproof chassis, rear flamethrower, rear machine guns, and the pilot seat is ejectable.
Notable other vehicles:
- Jet-pack (Thunderball)
- Underwater propulsion unit (Thunderball)
- 'Little Nellie' autogyro (You only Live Twice)
- Hydrofoil
- Carlson Power Boat
- Amphibious Gondola
- Acrostar Jet
- Alligator Boat
- Hot Air Balloon with cameras
- 'Fishing' Boat
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The Curious Legacy of Casino Royale
22nd October 2004
Q Dans Casino Royale
Fifty years ago this month, the first screen adaptation ofan Ian Fleming James Bond novel was presented to audiences. LeePfeiffer, co-author of the best-selling book “The EssentialJames Bond” and Editor-in-Chief of the newfilm magazine “Cinema Retro” commemorates 007’sscreen debut and shares some of actor Barry Nelson’s memoriesof being the first actor cast as James Bond.
When most movie fans are asked to name thefirst actor to portray James Bond, the answer is inevitably“Sean Connery”. However, eight years prior to Connery donning Mr. Bond’s shoulder holster for thefirst time in “Dr. No”, American actor BarryNelson brought James Bond to life in a one hour live televisionproduction of “Casino Royale”. The year was1954 and Bond’s literary father Ian Fleming had nervouslyoverseen the release of his first novel “CasinoRoyale” in England. Although Fleming was wellregarded as a journalist, he had no prior experience asa novelist. In the upper-crust world of the Park Lane crowdwith whom Fleming associated, there was an air of tawdrinessregarding writers who penned “potboiler” thrillers.The novel, published by Jonathan Cape, caused a bit of astir because of its generous doses of sex and violence.The controversy helped the book gain publicity and the resultingsales made for a modest success. Fleming was always convinced that the Bond novels wouldmake a viable franchise for the screen. He recognized thatthe post WWII period in England was one of hardship anddespair. The British may have been on the winning side,but the economy was dismal, good jobs were lacking and shortagesof everyday goods were a common occurrence. He intuitivelyfelt that the general public would respond to a hero whoacted as though the British empire was still in fine form. | Above: 1st edition Jonathan Cape hardback(UK) |
Q In Casino Royale
James Bond was the ultimate anti-hero: a man who had only agrudging respect for authority, an obsession with high stakesgambling and exotic travel, and an even more fervent passion forthe seemingly endless array of sexually aggressive women who surroundedhim. These qualities may have endeared the character to the Britishpublic, but prospective film producers were intimidated by them.Fleming found a conspicuous lack of interest in Hollywood in termsof seeing potential for a James Bond film. The novel’s emphasison sex and violence alienated investors during a period in whichprudish studio executives felt compelled to water down even JamesJones’ steamy bestseller “From Here to Eternity”before bringing it to the screen.
Fleming ultimately conceded to an unrewarding deal wherebyhe would sell the screen rights to the novel for a paltry$1,000 on the proviso that the American t.v. network CBSwould broadcast a one -hour production of “CasinoRoyale”. Making the best of a bad hand, Fleming rationalizedthat any exposure for the character was better than none. During the mid-1950’s, there were a number of showsthat presented one hour live t.v. dramas. Among the morepopular was “Climax!”, a program hosted by actorWilliam Lundigan. Each week a new cast was employed to bringa different story to life. CBS adapted “Casino Royale”to the one-hour slot, and in doing so, quite obviously leftmost of the nuances and rich characterizations from thesource novel out of the teleplay. In the CBS version, telecastin October, 1954, Bond was reduced to a Bogart-like gumshoewith only the slightest connections to national intelligenceoperations. The character was presented with the implicationthat he was a free-lance adventurer who, in the style ofSimon Templar, uses his considerable courage and self-defenceskills to thwart the forces of evil. Even Fleming must havecringed when, at one point, another character refers tohis literary creation as “Card Sense Jimmy Bond”.Since the character of Bond was virtually unknown, the producersalso felt free to Americanize him. Barry Nelson, a populart.v. and screen star, was cast in the role. Nelson, a stolid all-American who sported a crew cut, wasa far cry from the actors Ian Fleming had envisioned forthe role of Bond. In fact, Fleming had hoped that both NoelCoward and David Niven could be tempted to portray Bondonscreen. Nelson was unaware of the fact that the characterof Bond was an Englishman. In an exclusive interview withCinema Retro, he said “At that time, no one had everheard of James Bond….I was scratching my head wonderinghow to play it. I hadn’t read the book or anythinglike that because it wasn’t well known. The worstpart of it was that I learned it was to be done live. Ithought I was finished with live t.v. I was trying to getout of it, actually.” Left: Original T.V Guide advertisementpromoting the screen debut of James Bond on 'Climax!'(Photo: Lee Pfeiffer/ Cinema Retro archive). |
Nelson’s reluctance to do the showwas due to the fact that he had already been a veteran ofseveral series that had been broadcast live. Although theseincreased his popularity with audiences, the pressure ofperforming live left no safety net. He recalled of “CasinoRoyale”, “They were making changes up to thelast minute. There was nothing you could do if anythingwent wrong.” The casting of Linda Christian, withwhom he worked at MGM, as the femme fatale of the teleplay,Vesper Lind, buoyed Nelson’s spirits. Additionally, legendary screen bad guy Peter Lorre hadbeen cast as the villain Le Chiffre. Nelson enjoyed actingopposite these two talented individuals, but was frustratedby the fact that time constraints had eliminated any backgroundinformation about the character of Bond. Nelson recalled“I was very conscious of the fact that there wasn’tmuch to go on. It was too superficial.” | Above: Barry Nelson |
Despite a virtually non-existent budget, the show did succeedin capturing some of the tension of the “do or die”gambling bout between Bond and Le Chiffre. Additionally, PeterLorre was a fairly inspired choice for the role of the first Bondvillain. The production was directed William H. Brown, whose resumewas uniquely undistinguished. More impressive were the credentialsof the screenwriter Charles Bennett, who had collaborated withAlfred Hitchcock on several of the Master’s early films,as well as having written the screenplays for such high profilefilms as “Reap the Wild Wind”. He would go on to writeepisodes of such popular 1960’s series as “Land ofthe Giants” and “The Wild, Wild West”.
“Casino Royale” made little impact on audiences orcritics and was largely dismissed as just another “run ofthe mill” edition of “Climax!”. Over the nextfew years, however, Fleming’s Bond novels began to growin popularity and by the early 1960’s they had establishedan enthusiastic following throughout the world. He would laterregret having sold the screen rights to “Casino Royale”for such a paltry sum. Fleming eventually contracted with producersAlbert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman to adapt his Bond novelsfor the big screen, though Fleming himself would not be providingthe screenplays. His attempts to write scripts were notable onlyin his failure to convey the type of action and drama that hehad mastered in his novels. A brief flirtation with bringing Bondto the screen in the late 1950’s via a collaboration withKevin McClory and Jack Whittingham had yielded only frustrationand eventual legal troubles. Fleming wrote outlines for severalprospective Bond screenplays, but in contrast to his novels, thesewere stodgy and bland attempts that did little to elicit excitement.Under Broccoli and Saltzman, professional screenwriters succeededin creating a persona for Bond that eventually eclipsed that ofthe literary 007 in terms of public recognition.
Above: A bizarre Italian poster promotingWoody Allen in the equally bizarre 1967 film version of 'CasinoRoyale' (Photo: Lee Pfeiffer/ Cinema Retro archive) | The first Broccoli/Saltzman Bond film, “Dr.No” premiered to record breaking grosses in 1962 anda cultural phenomenon was born. By the mid-1960s’,the screen rights to “Casino Royale”, whichhad at one point been controlled by the producer GregoryRatoff, were now being handled by another producer, theflamboyant Charles K. Feldman. With Bondmania sweeping theglobe, Feldman knew he had a hot property, as “CasinoRoyale” was the only Bond novel that Broccoli andSaltzman did not own the screen rights to. Feldman initiallyproposed producing a film version starring Sean Connery,in partnership with Broccoli and Saltzman. When his offer was rejected, Feldman took an unorthodoxroute. Inspired by the recent success of his zany comedy“What’s New Pussycat?”, he decided toturn “Casino Royale” into a big budget slapstickcomedy. He signed an eclectic and talented cast that includedPeter Sellers, Ursula Andress, Woody Allen and William Holden.Ian Fleming’s wish to have David Niven play JamesBond was also fulfilled, though the author probably spunin his grave if he saw the manner in which his literarycreation was interpreted. |
The big screen version of “Casino Royale” quicklybecame a debacle, with an out-of-control budget skyrocketing asmultiple directors shot the film simultaneously at several Britishstudios. The ensuing mess was released in the summer of 1967 oppositethe “official” Bond film “You Only Live Twice”.Although Feldman succeeded in garnering decent reviews for his“hip” comedy, the sizable box-office grosses werecompromised by the film’s extravagant production costs.
The bizarre legacy of “Casino Royale” took anotherturn in the 1980’s when film fan Jim Schoenberger visiteda local flea market. He noticed a pile of unlabeled 16mm filmslaying in the rain and quickly made a deal to salvage them fromthe owner at small cost. Upon returning home, he was shocked tofind that among the reels of film was a complete, uncut printof the “Climax!” production of “Casino Royale”.Schoenberger recognized the value of his find and eventually donatedthe print to the care of the Museum of Television and Radio inNew York City (several years ago, Barry Nelson hosted a screeningof the program at the museum). In the early 1990’s, theAmerican cable station TBS presented a one-off showing of the“Climax!” production introduced by noted film historianLeonard Maltin. When it was discovered that Maltin had presidedover a notoriously incomplete showing of the film, he voiced hisdispleasure. It seems that another print of the show had surfacedand it was mysteriously missing the last few crucial seconds inwhich Bond has to finally dispose of Le Chiffre by shooting himonce again. In the cut version, the villain is presumably dispatchedwith one shot and the show ends far too abruptly. Sadly, thisis also the version that has been produced on most home videoversions, although Spy Guise had made the uncut version availableon VHS some years ago. In 2003, MGM released the big screen versionof “Casino Royale” on DVD in the United States. Thedisc contained an interesting chat with the film’s lastsurviving director, Val Guest. As an added bonus, the 1954 “Climax!”show was included - although much to the frustration of fans -the studio made the mistake of using a print of the truncatedversion of the program.
Fifty years after the original telecastof the first James Bond screen adventure, it’s worthpausing to reflect on how this modest production paved theway for the screen legacy of agent 007. Sometimes Bond’simpact on popular culture manifests itself in unorthodoxways. Barry Nelson recalls a recent experience in which he andhis wife Nancy attended a small theater production thatrequired them to take a brief elevator ride to where theplay was being performed. Two young men and a woman enteredthe elevator with them, causing the confined space to becomevery crowded. Nelson recalls, “After a short lift,everything stopped and we were between floors. Nothing wasopen and there was nowhere for any air to get in. It gotvery hot…..Everyone started to get a little panickyand someone said “I wish James Bond were here!”I thought to myself, “If only he knew that he is!” Right: Commemorative lithograph by SpyGuise Inc. Art by Jeff Marshall. Copyright www.spyguise.com |
Cinema Retro Magazine
A more in-depth interview with Barry Nelson will be publishedin a forthcoming issue of Cinema Retro magazine. Nelson will expandupon his comments regarding playing James Bond, as well as discussworking with legends such as Dean Martin and Stanley Kubrick.For information about subscribing to the magazine, visit www.cinemaretro.com
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