Disastrous Demise: Our Sean is Gone...

You may be surprised to see the passing of Sir Sean Connery marked with my label for those beloved stars who helped contribute to the 1970-1980 cycle of disaster movies which changed my life. It's not something he is readily identified with. However, he did headline one of the entries in the genre, giving him a special place in my heart apart from his many other remarkable achievements. We did a pretty expansive photo essay on the physical charms of Connery quite some time ago (which bears revisiting!) if you wish to look him over carefully here. Today, we're going to touch on some of the (other) photos and projects that happen to be favorites of mine, though they may not be his most notable roles. Despite being known far and wide as the first James Bond, he had a remarkable range of movies under his belt when he passed away on Halloween, 2020 at the age of 90.

Born August 25th, 1930 in Edinburgh, Scotland, Thomas Sean Connery was 6'2" tall at age twelve. He joined the navy at age 16 and thereafter performed practically every job imaginable from lifeguard to milk deliveryman to artists model to coffin polisher! An interest in bodybuilding inadvertently led to a gig on stage in South Pacific and, from there, he worked on British TV and the occasional movie, honing his craft.

Connery had long since proven his virility whether it be taking on several members of a violent gang at once or tossing Johnny Stompanato onto his keister following some threatening behavior during Another Time, Another Place (1958) opposite Lana Turner. He had supporting roles in a few moderately successful films before landing the lead in the color Disney musical Darby O'Gill and the Little People (1959.)

It was 1962's Dr. No, his debut as super spy James Bond, that really put him on the map, though. Seen here with sultry Ursula Andress, he amassed thousands of fan letters a week and could hardly walk along the street without being called out as the character (a fact that perturbed him.) Despite the risk of typecasting, even he couldn't deny the staggering success of the part and he proceeded to more films in the series.

To the delight of virtually everyone with their vision intact, he was often shirtless in the franchise and frequently taking a roll in the hay in-between thwarting bad guys.

In the midst of his time as Bond, he worked for Alfred Hitchcock in the psychological drama Marnie (1964), shocking the director by asking to see a script first. (He wanted to be sure he would be doing nothing "Bond-like" in the story.) Some less empathetic or more shallow viewers (such as myself!) had trouble understanding how Tippi Hedren could remain frigid while wed to the palpably sexy Connery.

Regardless of the international success of the James Bond movies, Connery was itching to move on and explore other types of roles. This, even though his latest, Thunderball (1965), was the highest-grossing one to that time and the number one money earner in the U.S. for that year.

Gracing the cover of Life magazine, Connery was now a household name. He walked away from the franchise following 1967's You Only Live Twice, replaced by George Lazenby. (I wonder if Burt Reynolds was in any way inspired by this photo when he opted to wear a torn up scuba top in Deliverance (1972.)

Many of his films from this stage were not barn-burners, but he was exploring different genres and settings, such as in the western Shalako (1968.) Many people dislike it and find there to be no chemistry between him and Brigitte Bardot, but I've always been fascinated by the movie. Perhaps it is because of the way the characters, in their European finery, are eventually deconstructed by some (very!) hostile Apaches. This is a trope that I always enjoyed in the disaster movies.

With The Anderson Tapes (1971), Connery finally scored a decent box office hit and established success outside the Bond franchise. He had, however, by then committed to make one more - Diamonds Are Forever (1971) - whereupon he flatly stated, "Never again!" I always enjoyed The Anderson Tapes, directed by Sidney Lumet, who was a favorite of Connery's.

Surely one of his most unusual roles (not to mention scantily-clad ones!) came with 1974's Zardoz. This part had initially been intended for Burt Reynolds, which one can sort of imagine (though I don't know that Burt could have properly pulled this look off either.)

Definitely pursuing new horizons on the opposite end of the "shaken, not stirred" spectrum.

Also in 1974, he worked for Sidney Lumet again as one of a train-full of suspects in Murder on the Orient Express, a much-beloved movie of mine. He proceeded on to sweeping historical films such as The Wind and the Lion (1975), The Man Who Would Be King (1975) and Robin and Marian (1976.)

On the heels of A Bridge Too Far (1977) and The Great Train Robbery (1978), Connery filmed his entry into the then-hot genre of the all-star natural disaster movie, in this case Meteor (1979.) Co-starring was a somewhat drab Natalie Wood, who accepted her part because it permitted her to speak Russian.

Although the movie wasn't cheap (and was directed by Ronald Neame of The Poseidon Adventure, 1972, fame!), it nonetheless had a cheap look, in particular where the title object was concerned. At least he was surrounded by a variety of esteemed performers from Karl Malden to Martin Landau to Brian Keith and even Henry Fonda, though most of them were far from their highest peak, career-wise.

Connery reportedly lost his shit once when a deluge of disgusting mud was unleashed onto him before he was expecting it, which is rather understandable.

Nonetheless, most of the on-set shots from the movie seem to depict a happy experience. The day this climax was filmed, an impish Connery pretended that he was going to drag a visiting Dinah Shore into the muck with him! The movie is not terrific, but I love every one of these films, which sparked my childhood imagination incredibly.

After filming Cuba (1979), Connery was off-screen for two years when he returned with a new look in Outland (1981.) A reworking of High Noon (1952) in outer space, he sported a scruffy beard and a close-cropped hairpiece.

The still-handsome, still-virile remained in demand as an actor (though shooting overruns on Outland cost him a featured role in Chariots of Fire, 1981, a Best Picture Oscar-winner.) In 1983, he would do something he swore he'd never do...

In 1983, Connery was coaxed back to the role which made him famous, James Bond, in the aptly-titled (and suggested by his wife) Never Say Never Again. Made by a rival company of the one who produced the franchise, it was a remake of Thunderball, a property partly owned by said rival. While reasonably successful, it was a highly-troubled production and that truly was the end of Connery in the role.

Mr. C was aging handsomely and lent his authoritative and commanding presence to various films including, as seen here, Highlander (1986.) He could still star in a picture (such as The Name of the Rose, 1986), but more often than not he was a prominent costar for much of the time now.

In this portrait from Highlander, he somewhat resembles Stanley Baker, a Welsh actor on whose film he worked way back in 1957.

The Untouchables (1987), in which he lent some heart to the Brian De Palma redux of the famed television series, copped him a Best Supporting Actor Oscar and he parlayed that into a wave of new high-profile roles. Here, he's seen as Harrison Ford's father in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989.)

Among many other hit movies of this period was The Hunt for Red October (1990), in which he helped bolster Alec Baldwin's debut as Jack Ryan in what would become a series (though Harrison Ford took over the next two entries, none of which contained Connery again.) He remained a sought-after performer up into the millennium until The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003) soured him on the process and he retired. A decision to decline the role of Gandolf in The Lord of the Rings trilogy (claiming not to understand the script) cost him an estimated $450 million! But Connery virtually always did things his way.

Easily one of the most notable movie actors to come out of Scotland, Connery had come from delivering milk on a truck route to enjoying international superstardom. Sadly, his final years were affected by the onset of dementia, one of life's more cruel diseases.

He's now at rest, but left behind one impressive resume of stirring movies. (I guess I could have cropped out these bottles! But, hey, like many actors and others he liked a drink or two after work...)

The End!