On the subject of early Connery appearances, the 1957 movie Hell Drivers stars a young Connery alongside Patrick McGoohan, who turned down the role of Bond in 1973..
McGoohan was one of the producers' first choices prior to Dr No in '62, alongside Richard Burton, David Niven, Cary Grant and others. (McGoohan, then the highest paid star on TV due to the success of Danger Man, turned it down because he felt Bond was too licentious, as I'm sure you know SoD - probably just as well, as where would we be with a Bond who didn't get the girl or carry a gun? )
"McGoohan was one of the producers' first choices prior to Dr No in '62,"
Interesting. McGoohan was also slated to star in a Rank Organisation film version of Casino Royale in 1959, following Fleming's initial submission of a script to the company based on Moonraker. This would have starred Robert Morley as Le Chiffre but the project collapsed after the producer died suddenly.
Finally McGoohan was apparently approached for LALD but like 1962 turned the role down. A shame as I feel he could have made a decent Bond, at least based on The Prisoner where he plays a secret agent-type. Oh well, we got Roger Moore instead...
I wonder why McGoohan was willing to star as Bond in 1959 if he turned the role down so flatly in 62 and 73. Makes one think he hadn't read the original novels...
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McGoohan was one of the producers' first choices prior to Dr No in '62, alongside Richard Burton, David Niven, Cary Grant and others. (McGoohan, then the highest paid star on TV due to the success of Danger Man, turned it down because he felt Bond was too licentious, as I'm sure you know SoD - probably just as well, as where would we be with a Bond who didn't get the girl or carry a gun?
Interesting. McGoohan was also slated to star in a Rank Organisation film version of Casino Royale in 1959, following Fleming's initial submission of a script to the company based on Moonraker. This would have starred Robert Morley as Le Chiffre but the project collapsed after the producer died suddenly.
Finally McGoohan was apparently approached for LALD but like 1962 turned the role down. A shame as I feel he could have made a decent Bond, at least based on The Prisoner where he plays a secret agent-type. Oh well, we got Roger Moore instead...
I wonder why McGoohan was willing to star as Bond in 1959 if he turned the role down so flatly in 62 and 73. Makes one think he hadn't read the original novels...