HIS NAME WAS BOND, JAMES BOND. TIMOTHY DALTON ON THE WORLD OF 007.

by Edward Gross

When Timothy Dalton appeared in Licence To Kill, which was destined to be his swan song as James Bond – with no one, not even the actor himself expecting Pierce Brosnan to replace him in the next film six years later – he was proud of what had been accomplished in a plotline that had Bond seeking vengeance against drug lord Sanchez (Robert Davi) for the near-death of CIA agent Felix Leiter (David Hedison).

"The Living Daylights," said Dalton in an interview from the time, "was already written and was very much of the preceding humour when I signed on. We did shape it a little bit as we went along, trying to make it more involving and special. In this one we've been able to take big leaps, and we've got it right back to its basics and right back to its origins. This is a film that really inhabits the proper world of James Bond. I mean, James Bond lives in a world that is violent and dangerous. If you like that kind of thing, great. If you don't, then it's not for you, but those books and those early films were about danger and frightening violence. They were written in a way that we could vicariously be a part of that world, and that’s what a Bond movie should be. I'm delighted that we’ve got it back in that world, where a Bond film should be...it's a world that a Bond film should live in."

As should be apparent, Dalton took playing Bond seriously, as his research into the character's past shows. "There's a very interesting moment in 'Casino Royale', the very first book," he said. "It was a book unlike the rest of the series, a book at the end of which Bond felt that he had had enough. He was finished. He couldn't resolve the morality of working and living in a world where one day someone is your friend and ally, and the next day he's setting out to kill them, just on the whim of the government; the whim of policy. How do you deal with yourself morally when you're supposed to be on the sight of right and good, when you're a killer? When your job is to kill people? It was either in 'From Russia With Love' or 'Casino Royale', where he says, 'When I was younger I used to think that I was doing something noble and worthwhile by assassinating somebody, and now I realize I'm a murderer. I'm just killing me, the person who works for the other side.' But in Casino Royale, this malaise, dirty morality disgusted him and he wanted to quit. It was in that book that someone told Bond he should then go out after the big people; the major threats, and from then on Fleming wrote books that were about a hero against evil. A flawed hero. A hero ridden with weaknesses and vices, but also a hero of strength and conviction and you definitely had honor and a sense of justice. But he didn't live in a real world of politics. He wasn't a vigilante, because he often depends on other people."

There was also an element of Bond being a manic-depressive, particularly in Fleming's short stories. "It's a theme that runs through all the books, really," he concurred. "He has a thing Fleming called acidity, which is an odd word and I don't know what it meant. But I think it means revulsion or distaste for your work. The man is a paradox. He's a contradiction. In the short story The Living Daylights – rough story, isn't it? – he's in a room with whiskey, uppers and downers in order to murder someone he doesn’t want to murder, but has to because he's licensed to kill. In other stories, of course, he takes a very pragmatic course and does kill people, because he believes in what he's doing. I don't think he’s a role model. He is a flawed hero, but then heroes come in all shapes and sizes. Sometimes they're white knights in shining armour, sometimes they're detectives like Raymond Chandler, Philip Marlowe or Hammett. "Understand," he continued, "I don't think Bond reflects all of that at all. We're talking about Bond as Bond. But what is reflected in this film is that Bond is seen as human; a Bond who's a real person, with more dimension than maybe he's had before. In order for the audience to be swept along in this fantasy, you've got to believe in the person. We want to believe. We want to be caught in it, we want to be thrilled and excited, and you can only feel those things if you're involved. And I don't believe Bond is superman, a cardboard cut out or two-dimensional. He's got to be a human being. He’s got to be identifiable, and that’s what I'm trying to be. This is a particular kind of story. In another kind of story I hope we can bring in some of those other qualities. In The Living Daylights where he's with his associate, Saunders and he says, 'I don't give a f*** if M fires me. I don't like this work.' Every movie is a different story and each film we do will present different opportunities, and show different aspects of the character. What I'm trying to do is get him back to being a real person that we can identify with, to show some of his flaws, to show his strengths too. I want to participate in bringing the movies back to a world that I think a James Bond movie should inhabit. It's not a spoof, it's not light, it's not jokey. Its humour is darker, it's blacker and more morbid. It's difficult for me to talk about the movie, because I did it, but I think it is a movie that is thrilling and exciting, and I believe we get more out of it that way and we feel that because we're involved in it. Because we believe in it. It’s not believable, but in order to suspend disbelief, you must believe, so it's got to be real in that particular world."

Interestingly, the efforts to make Bond more human in Licence To Kill also conveyed the impression that he was out of control. "It's also the particular quality of the story," Dalton noted. "He's not behaving as a professional. Normally in any other story and in any other future story, one would presume that Bond would behave as a professional, detached, objective, skilled agent, but this time he's personally involved. He becomes consumed by this mission, backed by fury because nobody is going to do anything about it. A good man's been viciously maimed and his wife's been murdered. Don't forget, Bond's been married and his wife was murdered, too, and because of the corruption, the drug money and the influence of that corruption, no one’s going to do anything. So he becomes very, very involved, and he f**** up. It's a destructive course of action. It's very understandable; in a pragmatic sense commendable. Maybe not from an idealist viewpoint, where you’re supposed to arrest people and let justice take its course. In this case he kills them, but then he changes his tact because he's gone down that course almost to the point of self-destruction. But he realizes it, and then he broadens out the view of what he’s after, and he behaves much more objectively, because he realizes that he just doesn’t have to go against the man, he's got to go against what the man stands for and what the man is, and his empire as well. Bond is very clever, preying on the man's weakness which the man thinks as being his strength, and planting that paranoia, allowing the man to destroy himself."

With two 007 films under his belt, Dalton was pleased to note that his life had not changed significantly from where it had been a few years earlier. "It's changed professionally," he clarified. "Being in a big success, you get more offers. But on a regular, personal level, it hasn't changed very much at all, and I'm very pleased. A lot of people have said, and of course the press is partly responsible for creating a public image or public awareness that your life ceases, and that you are besieged by photographers, besieged by the public, but it's not actually true. Given that it's a possibility you have to think about it, but thankfully it hasn't happened. If you go out on the street and behave like a regular guy, most people are decent and self respecting and they'll talk to you like you're one of them. If you behave like an asshole, you'll get treated like an asshole. If you go out behaving like a star, maybe people will make your life hell. But if you go out on a regular basis, like a regular guy, they'll treat you like a regular guy, and I'm thrilled by that. What could be more foolish or self destructive than to remove yourself from the very roots and foundations of your work? We, all of us... writers, actors, producers, directors... we deal with life, and if you cut yourself off from life and then go and live behind barbed wire on top of a hill, or look at the world through the tinted windows of your limousine, you've cut yourself off from the sustenance of your work."

Something that has perplexed Dalton through most of his career has been the notion of "celebrity stardom". To this day, he can't quite figure it out. "When I was growing up," he said, "people I thought of as stars were people at the very top of their profession. Those people who worked for many, many years were stars. They earned it, and they deserved it and it was the product of a great amount of achievement. Even as a kid, if you made one movie that was popular, you shouldn't think of a person as a star, because you know it’s a very changeable, uncertain world. These days, celebrity seems to be the goal; the thing itself. When you ask a kid what he wants to do when he grows up, he says, 'I want to be a star.' 'Yeah, but what do you want to do?' 'I wanna be a star.' It's crazy, and it's a crazy world today, this whole emphasis on stardom, celebrity or even just money. All of these things are fine if you've won them, but they should come as a consequence of achieving something. Build a very great bridge, a building, or make a medical breakthrough, be at the top of your profession. So in that sense, no, and I've always felt that way. You say, 'What happened?' I know exactly what happened. When I was in my 20s, I'd had a lot of good successes. I'd done The Lion In Winter, Mary Queen of Scots, Wuthering Heights - playing any parts. Rightly or wrongly, and I think I was influenced by peers and colleagues around me who had been involved in filmmaking or stardom, and then disappeared. I actually wanted to learn my craft. I wanted to be an actor all my life. I love writing, I love the work, I love my job and I knew I was a beginner. I also felt that I wasn't ready to be playing leading parts with Katherine Hepburn, Peter O'Toole, Alec Guinness, Richard Harris, Glenda Jackson, Vanessa Redgrave, Ian Holm... when I'm in my early 20s? I felt, in a way, that I didn't deserve it, so I knocked it all on the head. I turned every movie down and went into three solid years of theater, because I wanted to improve; I wanted to learn and really develop. I was wrong, because only young people can play young parts, and it was young parts I was playing, and I think I was playing them very well. But I know I'm a better actor because I went back to learn." And, he emphasized, he sees no difference between playing James Bond or appearing in Shakespeare. "I approach it exactly the same way I'd approach anything," he detailed. "You look at the script, you understand the script, it's structure and you try to analyze your role in it, so that the story affects you. Then you do all the research and work, and you bring that character to life in the best way that you can. I give a Bond movie as much commitment as I give anything else, because nothing is worth doing unless you at least attempt to do it as well as you can. You want to be as good as you can be, and the character must be as good as it can be, and the story must hold together." Fully expecting to come back for a third stint as Bond, the actor also offered his views on his future as Bond. "One of the best moments that's happened to me – it has happened to me previously over the past twenty years, but we are talking about Bond – was here in New York two years ago," Dalton smiled. "I say best because I had a lot riding on The Living Daylights. If I failed as Bond, I would have been a world famous failure, and I would have been very seriously hurt as an actor for a long time. Much of the public was divided. Some people loved the Connery movies and hated the Moore movies, and some loved the Moore movies and hated the Connery movies, and the fear was that they might have all gotten together and hated me. So there was a lot riding on it. I went to see The Living Daylights here in New York. I sneaked into the back of a theatre, because a movie is not finished when you finish shooting it or after postproduction. It's finished when an audience sees it, because that’s who you're doing it for. Just like you can write an article, but you're not going to tuck it away in a draw. What good will it do? You write it for people to read, so a movie is only finished when people have seen it. So I snuck into the back, and I was overwhelmed by the pleasure and the delight that people were taking in that movie. They're very vocal in America. Much more than anywhere else, I think, in the world, and to see that response was so satisfying and made me feel so happy, that if anyone said, 'Would you care to do another?' how could you refuse? If you think you can achieve that again. So, sure, if I was offered another one, I'd be happy to do it. But we won't know until we see the results of this one."

Of course, now we do know: six years later Pierce Brosnan would make his debut as Bond in 1994's 'Goldeneye', breaking previous Bond box office records and completely reinvigorating the franchise for a new generation of fans.

James Bond - A BAFTA Tribute (December 2002)

The programme was hosted by British chat show host Michael Parkinson, and he interviewed many who had acted in the Bond films over the years, that is all the actors who were Bond also, apart from Sean Connery who was not present. During the show the camera focused on the audience and at times you saw Timothy. Dame Shirley Bassey sang the theme from 'Diamonds Are Forever,' and along the way various clips from the different Bond movies were shown, and of course there was Timothy's interview and here it is for you.

Michael Parkinson: "The year is 1987 and a new Bond. In The Living Daylights and Licence to Kill Cubby Broccoli wanted to reconnect with some of the original facets of Bond, as written by Ian Flemming. The man he chose to embody that exchange, welcome please Timothy Dalton.

The audience applauds enthusiastically.

Michael Parkinson: "So they wanted change."

Timothy: "They wanted change."

Michael: "So how do you give it to them?"

Timothy: "Well the Bond movies are fantasies but I think in order to enjoy the fantasy you've got to hold into the reality and I was very very influenced as a young kid by the movies of Sean Connery, 'Dr No,' 'From Russia With Love,' and 'Goldfinger' and so I wanted to bring, at least be able to contribute a sense of reality, a sense of involvement, a sense of excitement, hopefully some danger and possibly some risk."

Michael: "How tough is it though to project that in a film where you might be overwhelmed by the technology, and all that sort of stuff? You have to fight for your corner, don't you in a sense?" Michael laughs.

Timothy: "You do have to fight hard for your corner, and although Cubby did want to bring the movies back to something more akin to the original. It was by no means unanimous or an overwhelming decision."

Michael: "Wasn't it?"

Timothy: "No, no, everybody has their opinion's about a Bond."

Michael: "Yes that is true."

Timothy: "You can't escape anyone working for the movies, in the movies, or in the street who doesn't know what they want out of Bond. But everyone is committed, it is a wonderful group of people..."

Michael: "Really."

Timothy: "and we got on with it, and perhaps put in place some, some building blocks for a change in the direction of the series."

Michael: "Was it from your point of view, obviously it was good for your career, was it a happy experience, did you enjoy it, you relish going to work and being James Bond?"

Timothy: "It is not a movie that illuminates the social condition (Michael and the audience laughs) but umm and it was very long days, but it was a great bunch of people. I had fabulous times, I have got a lot of friends from those days, it has been terrific for me. I enjoyed it."

Michael: "Do you miss it?"

Timothy: "I can't possibly miss it, because it is part of my life."

Michael: "Of course."

Timothy: "It is in my blood, it is in my heart, it is part of me, you go on to do other things but you never leave it behind."

Michael: "Yes. Timothy Dalton thank you very much indeed. Timothy Dalton."

Timothy: "Thank you."

The audience applauds as Timothy leaves the stage.

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 "Roger can climb out of a pocket aeroplane and give a glib remark, I can't." (Timothy Dalton)

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"It's very important to make the man believable, whether people will like this kind of Bond is another question." (Timothy Dalton)

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"I knew if it ("The Living Daylights") was a failure, I'd be a world-famous failure. You think about it very hard in a way you would not think about any other project." (Timothy Dalton, "Premiere", January, 1989)

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"We're going back to the origins. Ian Fleming wrote books about a dangerous, violent, extreme world and the early movies were about that world. What we've done is force the Bond movies back into that world of the first movies under Fleming. I hope the majority of the people will like that. I know obviously some people won't. Some people will prefer a comedic style, but to me this is right. I'm all for humor, but the humor shouldn't be jokey, or tongue-in-cheek, it's got to have a morbid or a darker edge because it's a darker world, a world of violence and danger." (Timothy Dalton)

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"I wanted to capture that occasional sense of vulnerability, and I wanted to capture the spirit of Ian Fleming." (Timothy Dalton, Inside The Living Daylights documentary)

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"My approach is to humanize the man much more. Bond is not a superman, he is an ordinary man. He's a lapsed idealist who is rediscovering what is right or wrong, what is the truth." (Timothy Dalton, "Newsweek", July 27, 1987)

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"You can't relate to a superhero, to a superman, but you can identify with a real man who in times of crisis draws forth some extraordinary quality from within himself and triumphs but only after a struggle. Real courage is knowing what faces you and knowing how to face it." (Timothy Dalton. "The Making of Licence to Kill" by Sally Hibbin. 1989)

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"Last year (1996), I went up to the frozen north of Canada to do a documentary on wolves. I stepped off the plane and all these wonderful Inuit people in parkas started chanting James Bond." (Timothy Dalton)

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Any negative effects from Bond on the kind of roles offered: "I've not found it to be a problem. If anything it's been an advantage. Quite simply, if you're in a huge commercial success, which both of the Bonds have been, it helps you get other offers for other work. And as there are very few other movies like James Bond, it means all the offers you get are very different, so I've got more choice." (Timothy Dalton)

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"It would be idiotic to say that this is necessarily going to be like Fleming. But it is the foundation for all these films, you know. Therefore, for me, anyway, it has to be the foundation of what I do." (Timothy Dalton)

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"I find it fascinating. It obviously works for audiences worldwide. I think that Fleming obviously found something that satisfied a great deal of fantasies. He found adventure, excitement, and a character that I guess a lot of men would like to identify with, and perhaps a lot of women might like to conquer." (Timothy Dalton)

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When asked about the censors regarding License to Kill: "Well, yes, but that's ridiculous. It's the only place in the world where a full audience can't go and see it. It is unique to England. The rest of the world, everybody can go and see the movie. It's a peculiar quality of our censors and I don't think it's deserved. It's classic, isn't it? You know, people get eaten by sharks and blown up and set on fire…it's everything you'd expect from a Bond movie. I suggested violence. It is tense and exciting. But look, the rest of the country says it's fine for everybody. We're the only country that says not. And of course the tragedy is that it applies to other movies...movies with serious social content. The responsibility of choice that the parents used to have to decide what their children went to see has been taken away from them, and that's wrong."(Timothy Dalton)

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Asked about learning to scuba diving for the stunts: "I did indeed. I never thought I'd like it. I learned in the West Indies. I was thrilled that I did. Great fun." (Timothy Dalton)

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"Well, it's a terrific part. It's the first time I've ever been offered a film that s a modern contemporary action role." (Timothy Dalton)

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"I think comparison is not necessary. My predecessors have made great successes of these films…done extremely well. I've tried to capture the spirit and the essence of the Ian Fleming books and if I've succeeded I'll be very happy." (Timothy Dalton)

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"It is true that Cubby's very kindly asked me in the past if I'd be interested in doing it, and up until this time.… The first time was a long, long time ago. It was when Sean Connery relinquished the part. Then I had a very good career in films as a young man and was very flattered to be asked. But, you know, I mean, Connery was so good. I mean, Connery was terrific. And I was, I don't know, 24 or 25. I didn't think it possible that I could take over from him. So I said, 'Thank you. Terrific, terrific thanks for the interest, but no." (Timothy Dalton)

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When asked about doing his own stunts: "This is the sort of question that you should not be asking. Cinema is magic. When people pay their money and go sit inside a cinema, they must believe. And programs like this, I mean, betray all our tricks. You wouldn't expect a conjurer or a magician to give his tricks away. Now the truth of the matter is that audiences are very sophisticated now and there's been too many questions like this asked of very many films, and we know there're stuntmen and we've got a terrific team of stuntmen on this movie. Very, very highly skilled professionals led by Paul Weston. Stuntmen do stunts, and I do as much action as I can. But you must believe it's me. If you believe it's me, it's me. Otherwise and audience would be….would feel betrayed." (Timothy Dalton)

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Timothy Dalton: "When I felt that I could do and should do the action that we see in the film, I did it."

Arthur Wooster – "The Living Daylights" 2nd Unit Director: "We got him on top of the jeep and I said 'All we want Tim is just some nice big close ups of you'. 'Oh but I can do it, I can, I can swing around you know?' I said 'Tim just want some close ups of you we don't want..' and he was so keen and he was throwing himself around, he was throwing himself off the side of the truck and my old heart was going like this."

Paul Weston – "The Living Daylights" Stunt Supervisor: "The producers were not too happy but they accepted our judgment, and he did it safely, and he did it spectacularly, and he went down the side of that hill hanging on the top of the jeep, great courage."

Inside The Living Daylights documentary, 1987

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"I think this film, The Living Daylights, it's not just an action adventure film. It's the first time we've seen what could be called a romantic mystery film. There's an honest and good relationship with the leading lady. You see Bond with a lot more I think, I hope, harder edges and also softer edges." (Timothy Dalton)

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"Fleming's Bond is a man who often is extremely vulnerable. You read passage after passage after passage throughout the books where his insides were taut and wrenching with nerves, where, you know, you have to have a drink or a pill just to stay calm in order to do the job he had to do. You see, in our films these days people talk about heroes and superheroes and supermen and all that. I don't think they're heroes. Anyone that is bound to win, anyone that's inhuman, not human, ain't a hero. Heroes are the survivors. Heroes are the people that have that extra tenacity and resolve to deal with what life throws at them." (Timothy Dalton)

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"He was a sucker…Bond. I mean, he'd get out on some dangerous mission and have no time at all for ladies, for pleasure, for women. In some of the books he'd make it absolutely clear, no you can't have any women when you're working…they get in the way, they're excess baggage, you put yourself at risk. Within two pages, you know, he's met some woman in distress…a damsel in distress…and fallen in love with her. It is a very romantic way, and it's one of the things we try to do in our film." (Timothy Dalton)

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"Cinema is magic. It's tremendous magic. You go in there and the screen opens and you've got to believe. No one wants to spend their five pounds or their twenty-five pounds if they're taking the family, and be sitting watching what could be the most terrifically exciting moment and with the clear knowledge of he did that or he didn't do that Oh that was a trick, you know what, they really didn't…they hung a this, there was blue…and it was all fake. They must believe, and it's our job as professionals to make them believe. So one shouldn't expose the tricks, but I thought it was important to do as much of the action as I could." (Timothy Dalton)

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Every time some men look into the mirror in the morning when they're going to shave, they imagine that they're James Bond. What happens to you when you look in the mirror in the morning? "That's a rotten question (deep laughter). I just think, 'Oh God!'" (Timothy Dalton to Kathy McGowan, 1989)

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What do your mum and dad think now that you're Bond: "I honestly don't really, I mean I know that they're very proud and very happy and very pleased. That I know. I don't think that's the crucial question. I think the crucial question for them would be, or would have been twenty-odd years ago, could the kid make a living? Well, he has done." (Timothy Dalton to Kathy McGowan, 1989)

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"I think the great problem has been often our own publicity. The way our publicity and the media represent the films, you see lots of ladies in bathing costumes surrounding James Bond. The truth is you hardly ever see these ladies in the movies. The ladies you see in the movies are good leading actresses."(Timothy Dalton)

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"I was asked if I'd be interested twice, which isn't quite the same thing as having an offer. The first time was many years ago when Sean gave up the part. I thought he was terrific, he was splendid. I'd seen Sean Connery in my local cinema back home as a kid. I'd sneaked in, I was underage. There were sixteen-year-old films then. I thought he was great. (Dr. No) That's my favorite."(Timothy Dalton)

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"I said if I was to do it, I'd love to try and take the movies back to being action adventure thrillers for adults that kids could enjoy, but nevertheless something like those early movies, and the Ian Fleming books, and Cubby was wholeheartedly behind that."(Timothy Dalton)

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Asked if playing Bond was counterproductive to his classical theater training: "Last year in between the two Bond movies I did a play in the West End of London, a Eugene O'Neill play, called A Touch of the Poet with Vanessa (Redgrave) who you've interviewed here. In fact you interviewed her when we were doing The Taming of the Shrew together. We always got people at the stage door who came and said, 'I've never been to the theater before. I only came because you were James Bond.' They didn't expect to see this little gray-haired, paunchy drunkard on the stage. And said they loved it and they were going to come to the theater again, so it helps to fill the theater, it brings people, it's no hindrance whatsoever." (Timothy Dalton)

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"I think you should perhaps know that I believe our business is magic, this is magic. We all pretend, right, as directors, actors? It is pretence, but we've got to pretend so well that everybody believes. One doesn't go into the stunts. I've tried to do as much action as I possibly can because I think it's very important. An audience had got to identify with the character playing Bond because action is part of the story, part of the man's nature. And I was guided and helped by a terrific team of professional stuntmen, and by a splendid effects team who carried my health in their hands. But apart from that I'm not going to say anything more." (Timothy Dalton)

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"I wake up one Tuesday morning as a sex symbol. Well, I don’t think I'm going to feel any different. It's not really realistic, is it? I mean you can't take one seriously. If anybody responds in that way they're responding to an image on the screen. They're responding to that particular kind of man, who can do those particular kind of things. You know, it's not me." (Timothy Dalton)

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"The differences between James Bond and myself are extreme. It's strange, because, as an actor, I must look for common identities in order to express Bond through me - but it isn't easy. Obviously, I don't know what it's like to be a secret agent, and I'm certainly not licensed to kill. And I don't know if I would want to be licensed to kill. Well, you never know, do you? There are odd times when it has flashed across my mind." (Timothy Dalton: "The Living Daylights: The Official Poster Magazine")

THE BARD'S BOND TIMOTHY DALTON

For Your Eyes Only - Behind the Scenes of the James Bond Films

by David Giammarco

A bored, bikinied beauty is sunning herself on the deck of her Mediterranean yacht. "If only I could find a real man," she sighs hopelessly into her mobile phone. Seconds later, a certain black-clad secret agent parachutes onto the canvas awning and somersaults down into her arms.

It was a most fitting introduction for Timothy Dalton as the new James Bond. Deciding to forgo the more lighthearted tongue-in-cheekiness of Roger Moore's 007, the producers wanted to reestablish Bond as a flesh-and-blood human being for 1987's The Living Daylights. Since the departure of Sean Connery, James Bond had become much more an invincible comic book superhero then the dark and damaged killer of Ian Fleming's original text. With his extensive Shakespearean background and acclaimed film and television work, the 40-year-old Timothy Dalton was deemed a perfect choice to make Bond more human. But in the end, perhaps too human.

Recalling the initial discussions for The Living Daylights, Dalton told me that, "We think it's getting a bit too flippant...People are beginning to not take the movies seriously at all. Maybe people are even beginning to slightly mock them, so we want to get back to something more serious," related Dalton of the 1986 meetings with the Broccolis and director John Glen. "And I said, 'Well I think that's how they should be too!' So I went back to the books, to Ian Fleming's original conception of the character and tried to do something like it was originally intended...

"I guess I was being a real purist about it all," added Dalton with a wry grin.

Dalton's efforts, however, did not go unappreciated. Most critics praised his interpretation of the role, welcoming the return to the harder edge of the early Connery films. Audiences were intrigued by the about-face; Dalton's Bond was a more textured, vulnerable, and romantic hero. But moviegoers had also grown accustomed to the languid humour and breezy charm of Roger Moore, which for many was an indelible ingredient in the mix. Dalton's more somber portrayal left little room for the expected throwaway humor. Dalton said he was aware there would be some problems with his choices. "Going into it, I knew some people preferred Sean Connery, and some people preferred Roger Moore, but I thought to myself, 'My God, what if nobody likes me?" Dalton noted with a hearty laugh. "It doesn't even matter if you make a good movie, what if they don't like you as Bond? I mean, the results ended up being lots of people really loved what I did, but I guess there were a lot of people wishing it was more like what Roger Moore was doing. But that's one of the perils of stepping into an institution and following in the footsteps of lots of famous people."

It was a dilemma that first troubled Dalton back in 1969 and again in 1971, when he was originally approached by Broccoli and Saltzman to take over the role from the departing Connery. Then in his early 20's, Dalton was a rising young Shakespearean actor with already a number of impressive film credits under his belt, including The Lion in Winter (opposite Katherine Hepburn, Peter O'Toole, and Anthony Hopkins), Cromwell (with Richard Harris and Alec Guinness), Wuthering Heights (opposite Laurence Olivier), and Mary, Queen of Scots (with Vanessa Redgrave). Dalton remembered declining the initial Bond offer by telling Broccoli and Saltzman that "I was absolutely flattered, but I thought Sean was a tremendous Bond - too good actually. It would be a very stupid move to try and take over from him.

"But there was a second, more practical, reason," emphasized Dalton. "I was only about 24 or 25 at the time. And Bond can't be that young. He must be a mature man. Basically, I considered myself too young and Connery too good."

LICENCE TO ACT - TIMOTHY DALTON USES BOND TO GET WHAT HE WANTS

“Lifestyles” July 11th 1989

by Marshall Fine

In an ideal world, Timothy Dalton says, a movie such as Licence to Kill would reach audiences unburdened by preconceptions about what it could or should be like. Its blend of incredible stunts, tongue-in-cheek wit and incendiary special effects would seem dazzlingly unpredictable - and, above all, new.

"Wouldn't it be wonderful to have a movie people would go see and enjoy - or not?" Dalton wonders aloud, finishing a filtered Silk Cut cigarette and sipping coffee in a suite of the Plaza Hotel.

Dalton, tall, dark and handsome with piercing grey-blue eyes, stubs out his cigarette and gets his feet back on the ground, figuratively speaking. Licence to Kill, after all, isn't just another movie: It's a James Bond movie.

It's the 16th James Bond movie in the past 27 years, to be exact, in you don't count the unauthorized upstarts (the spoofy 'Casino Royale' and the rogue 'Never Say Never Again'). As such, it carries a lot of expectations from fans - and detractors - of the series: the Bond girls, the ingenious gadgets, the ultra-nasty villains and the death-defying feats of derring-do.

"In essence, every Bond film is new," maintains Dalton, who is making his second appearance as Agent 007 of Her Majesty's Secret Service. "But it's like playing Hamlet. Everybody's watched 'Hamlet' - but they want to see what someone new does with it."

DIFFEREND AND THE SAME

Like The Living Daylights, Dalton's first Bond adventure, Licence to Kill is less jokey and more no-nonsense then the predecessors, which starred Roger Moore as Bond. That's to Dalton's taste and, he says, more in keeping with the character created by the late Ian Fleming in his novels.

"Some people have criticized the later films as caricatured and cartoonlike," Dalton says. "The market research shows that, all over the world, there's a sort of 50-50 split between the Sean Connery films and the Roger Moore films. How can you compare them? They're so different. I think the films should be exciting, dangerous and violent, because Bond operates in a violent world. My commitment was to make the character and the film reinhabit the world of the early movies and the books."

John Glen, who has directed the last five James Bond films, says, "Tim is a very convincing James Bond. When he has a gun in his hand, you believe he really could kill someone. I don't think that was ever the case with Roger Moore."

Dalton has less to prove this time out then he did two years ago, when he made his debut as Bond in The Living Daylights. At that point, he was a well-regarded British stage and screen actor who was relatively unknown in the United States.

"For that first movie, I think Tim was a little in awe, stepping into cinema history with a bunch of us who had been there all along," Glen says. "He was keen to make his mark. On this one, the script was tailored more for Tim and he fits the part more comfortably."

In fact, the role was offered to Dalton three times before he accepted. "They asked me if I would be interested twice before," he says. "Once was when Sean Connery had decided to stop. And once was in the late 1970s, when there was a question whether Roger Moore would continue. The first time would have been the dumbest move I could have made - professional suicide," Dalton says with a throaty laugh. "I wasn't going to take over from Sean Connery. And, on a more sensible level. I was too young. The other opportunity never came about because Roger did do the next one. The obvious downside, once I did agree to it, would have been to have failed. It would have been a world-famous failure. That would have had a serious effect on my career. Still, I was lucky. I was 20 years down the road in my career so at least I had something to fall back on."

STORY-TELLER

Dalton was a kid from the provinces when he was smitten with acting. Born in Wales to English parents, he was "very taken by the excitement, fantasy of other worlds and aspects of life you see in the movies," he says. "But that's childish; it's childlike.

"As I got older, a feeling just grew that I wanted to be a part of telling stories to people. The moment where it all crystallized was when I saw my first play. Movies are one thing; but with theatre, it's people in the same room as you are making this wonderful story. I thought, 'I can do that too. "

Dalton started with the National Youth Theatre in England, then was accepted to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. Before graduation, he was hired by the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, "a company where I'd always wanted to go to. This was where Olivier did his early work, where Albert Finney did his early work. I was thrilled to get the call."

Dalton worked steadily in British theatre, winning film and television roles as well. He made his movie debut playing the French Prince Phillip in The Lion in Winter and went on to Mary, Queen of Scots, Cromwell, the remake of Wuthering Heights (in which he played Heathcliff) and Dino De Laurentiis' Flash Gordon, as well as numerous television roles.

Dalton looks back on his large body of work with a certain bemusement: "I'll see something I did and think 'Did I do that?' I'm sometimes pleased and astonished. When you're working well, something takes over and moves you beyond what's planned. Years later, when you've forgotten what your thinking was at the time, you get this astonishing shock."

Often, however, Dalton says he can't separate himself from the performance he is watching: "It's very paradoxical. It's not you you're watching - it's a performance. But you can't judge the performance because it is you. I know whether something has worked but I have no way to judge it on an objective level.

"The question of what is good acting has got to be paramount in order to keep developing. If you cease to think about it, you cease to develop."

Glen says "Tim's a man of great depth. He cares very much about what he does. For Bond, he went back and read all the literature about Ian Fleming and the early Bond thrillers. And he's very inventive as an actor."

Dalton subscribes to the "less is more" school of acting: "There's the showy style and the acting that doesn't look like acting. I go for the latter. There are performances full of brilliance and imagination which can have the highest regard of audiences and you still know that they lack certain truth. And there are performances of such reality that you marvel at the complexity and truth - and people outside the business think, 'Well, they're just being.'"

Since making The Living Daylights more then two years ago, Dalton has seen his stock rise among producers and directors, who offer him more commercial projects. More to the point, he can choose to do work he believes in, aware that he will draw an audience by virtue of having played James Bond.

For example he and Redgrave revived Eugene O'Neill's A Touch of the Poet in London's West End. And he acted in the low-budget black comedy film, Hawks, about cancer patients who use humour to retain their dignity. Hawks which has played elsewhere in the world, was runner-up in the viewers poll at the Toronto Film Festival.

"Hawks deals with the subject of extraordinary relevance: Why does it take a crisis to make you realize how bloody precious life is?" Dalton says. "Unfortunately, it's about cancer, which is a not a word the film business thinks of as being particularly commercial. Still, doing the first Bond film enabled me to get Hawks made. Doing the Bond film helped the O'Neill play find an audience. This is a commercial business. If you have a commercial success, you have enhanced viability."

Dalton is unsure about his next project. He'd like to find a neglected play and bring it to London's West End. He's got a pile of film scripts to read, though the ones he has already read are "good movies that will get made, but none that grab me". And he's trying to decide how much he really wants to work at the moment. "There's a trap: When you can do anything you want, what do you do?" he laughs. "In some sense, I feel like a workaholic. In the past four or five years, I've done four or five films, a TV series and three plays. One part of me just wants a break, to renew and recharge. But part of me wants to get cracking, to be working 20 hours a day."

INTRODUCING TIMOTHY DALTON

by Glenn Fuller, Prevue Magazine 1987

"A while ago I read something Sean Connery said about Bond," gestures the tall, lean actor as he drops comfortably into a convenient canvas-backed chair on the set of one of the most expensive thrillers ever made. "The quote stated that he believed he'd have gotten better scripts if he hadn't been typecast as a super hero. Yet, who's to say Connery would ever have achieved the level of fame he did if he hadn't been the first 007.

"I don't know," Timothy Dalton shrugs, looking up with an expression that could melt a maiden’s heart or turn a villian's blood to ice water. "I'm nearing 40, and - let's be honest - only now, in The Living Daylights, will I become that kind of international star."

Although the ruggedly handsome Welshman has performed extensively in theatre. TV and film for the past two decades, his manner indicates he is preparing for the coming shockwave "I don't think it's shameful to deliberately make a popular picture now and then," he nods, as though apologizing for the impending fame and fortune - and then winks, dispelling the notion. "Sometimes, those films can fund the better or riskier roles in smaller-budget movies.

"Of course, there are parts I'd like to forget, but that's hindsight - the easy way out! Commercially, I could wish that everything I've ever been in had gone gold, but, if that were the case, who do you think I'd be today?" He laughs and feigns a shudder. "Sylvester Stallone?"

The idea is extremely unlikely, considering that Dalton has spent much of his performing life in Shakespearean guise, from Macbeth to Henry IV. His films are no less distinguished; he appeared prominently in The Lion in Winter with Katherine Hepburn; in Cromwell with Alec Guinness in Le Voyeur with Marcello Mastroianni; in Mary, Queen of Scots with Glenda Jackson; in Permission to Kill with Dirk Bogarde, and in Agatha with Dustin Hoffman. TV viewers have witnessed him in Centennial, Jane Eyre, Master of Ballentrae, Mistral's Daughter and Sins, with Joan Collins.

Knowing that a billion-and-a-half people - about a third of Earth's total population - have eyeballed Bond's celluloid capers. Dalton is aware that 007 will give him a larger audience then all his previous efforts combined. The money involved is even more impressive; Roger Moore reportedly earned $4 million per Bond picture.

"In Britain, actors tend to earn less then in Hollywood; so, when that irresistible offer comes along, one often does grab it - without guilt because we spend our lives working on the stage for almost nothing. We do it because we love our craft."

Bond, represents a turning point in Dalton's life almost as much as Dalton does in Bond's. The Living Daylights marks a quarter-century of 007 girls, gadgets and gunplay, an appropriate moment in heroic mythology to introduce a new face, a new era - all of which have not been easy to come by.

The last three thrillers were riddled with rumors of Roger Moore's retirement, each generating a tidal wave of media speculation and fan madness regarding a replacement. A score of actors had been touted for the part. Then, after months of double-O second-guessing, Dalton was placed into Bondage. With or without a man available to fill the superspy's shoes, a new screenplay was under development. Writer/producer Michael Wilson teamed with veteran 007 scribe Richard Maibaum, as they had for numerous Bond outings, including 'For Your Eyes Only' and 'Octopussy,' to collaborate on a script for the 15th adventure.

The title was taken from a story originally published in a February 1962 London Times Sunday Section, and subsequently reprinted four years later in a three-tale collection. 'Octopussy,' which also includes the last available Bond story title 'The Property of a Lady.' Using the traditional elements - beautiful, dangerous woman; exotic locales; insidious villains with diabolic master plans - they created a fast-paced East-vs-West caper of intrigue and deception which leaps from the Rock of Gibraltar to an opulent Czech concert hall, from the bordellos of Tangiers to the remote battlegrounds of Afghanistan.

"It's lucky I love to travel," admits the debonair, 6'2" actor, knowing Bond's globe-hopping habits will turn his career into a turbulent travelogue. "Although I work a lot on stage, I find TV and films very enjoyable because of their variety - and this picture guarantees me plenty! All the attention is rather new to me, and, actually, I'm a shy person. In fact, I've given very few interviews outside of Britain until now."

As Dalton discusses where the action in The Living Daylights will take him, an nearby army of technicians positions lights, reflectors and cameras for the next shot. The scene is part of the picture's opening sequence that spotlights three 007's - and another parachute jump. Bond's home base, as usual, is London's Pinewood Studios, where the series' previous entries were lensed. Principal photography began on September 1986 and will continue through February 1987.

If the 38-year-old performer has any apprehension about playing the world's most famous secret agent, he conceals it like a real spy. He is appropriately tanned, steely-eyed and as confident as a wolf tracking a rabbit. Even the dimple in his chin seems to suggest a wry, roguish appeal that will obviously be put to full use. "I guess I always knew I had good looks - or so I was told - but, I didn't have that boy-next-door quality. Consequently, I seemed to get the parts more interesting then the usual man-type roles. Frankly, I prefer the days when leads like Clark Gable were both handsome and kind-seeming. Too many of today's stars act like house-breakers, and seem unappreciative about their good fortune. I feel lucky just to be working, let alone getting a break this big. I've always worked hard to deliver a good performance, even in mediocre movies. And, if anyone watching is turned on by me, fine. That's the most natural thing in the world; cinema thrives on fantasy and innuendo. But, I'm not for going about in the raw on screen; if an actor has to do that to be thought attractive or get attention, how desperate! I think a twinkle in the eye or a sexy smile is the most appealing."

Dalton pauses to stretch his long legs, and wipes his brow with a handy towel, immediately, a make-up man appears and dabs a touch-up pad to the star's forehead. Taking it as a cue, a script girl jumps in to go over continuity for the scene to be shot. After a minute, both turn toward director John Glen, hoping to determine how much longer the set-up will take. The editor ('On Her Majesty's Secret Service') turned director ('For Your Eyes Only') is still engaged in blocking the scene with a camera operator, so Dalton settles back in his chair again. "I like keeping busy and I think people believe I must be over 40 because I've worked so hard in so many productions. I've really been around, but I'm not bothered by the fact that my name's not a household word - that's not what I set out to be.

"My goal has always been to play what feels interesting, even scoundrels. One does not morally judge a character, and, as actors, most of us accept the plurality of human beings. Everyone is different, and it would be boring to portray the same type over and over again. I suppose that's why I don't mind being cast as a cad who treats woman badly - or even an outright villain!"

Perhaps that versatility will allow Dalton some insight into the allies and antagonists he must confront in The Living Daylights. European actress Maryam ('White Nights') D'Abo co-stars as the beautiful Czech cellist, Kara Milovy, who becomes entangled in a deadly conflict between warring factions. Joe Don ('Walking Tall') Baker appears as the ruthless American arms dealer Whitaker, while John ('Raiders of the Lost Ark), Rhys-Davies is seen as Leonid Puskin, head of the KGB. Pakistan-born Art Malik is Kamran Shah, leader of the Afghan freedom fighters, with Dutch actor Jeroen Krabbe featured as top Soviet KGB official Koskov. Former Berlin ballet member Andreas Wisniewski portrays the treachrous terrorist Necros.

The $40 million production is not only the most expensive Bond epic to date, it is also Dalton's most ambitious vehicle. Born in Colwyn Bay, North Wales, the son of a advertising exec, he was attracted to the theatre at age 16 after seeing his first play, an Old Vic production of Macbeth. Attending school in Manchester, he joined a dramatic group, and later, moved onto the National Youth Theatre where he made his professional debut. Further study at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts led to a series of engagements in prestigious Shakespearean productions and subsequent film and TV roles.

While Dalton distinguished himself as one of Britain's finest actors, he also managed to temper his career with a few minor entertainments, such as 1978's Sextette, in which he played Mae West's sixth husband (she was 85 at the time). "That's what a call a silly role," Dalton confesses, more then a little abashed. "But to be honest, I admired her nerve, and enjoyed working with her - I was even interviewed by Rona Barrett in the picture! It was a real stretch for me, and, frankly, after making love to a woman in her mid-80's, I knew I could handle any assignment!"

Obviously, there is more then a little truth in Dalton's comment, especially if one is to assess his wisdom to appear in 1980's Flash Gordon. Although the swashbuckling spacemen failed to conquer the universe - or even the box office - Dalton filled the role of sword-wielding Prince Barin with suitable dash and panache. "I enjoyed being a comic book character," he laughs in a rich throaty voice that suggests much more humor then his credentials indicate. "Besides salary does become a consideration at times."

A similar consideration may have been made when Dalton signed for Brenda Starr, in which he portrays the flame haired reporter's mysterious lover, Basil St.John. Lensed in Puerto Rico, the soon-to-be-released comic strip adaptation stars Brooke Shields, whom the actor holds in high regard. "Brooke is a beauty who hasn't yet had a role, but the picture should put her back on the cinematic map – and may also do me some good too."

Typically Bond, the actor is currently surrounded by a host of lovely, leggy ladies, all ready for passion at the drop of a zipper. Unlike his alter ego, however, Dalton apparently finds that one lady in his private life is enough - if the lady happens to be Vanessa Redgrave. Both have worked on several films together, but, as a longtime companions, decline comment beyond that point. "I've always liked hearing about big stars, and working with them; but I felt it was awful that they have no privacy, that their every relationship is scrutinized and blown out of proportion.

"I've solved that problem simply by not discussing my personal life, though as I'm better known, there's more pressure to do so. But, thus far, I'm keeping mum about it. I will say that working with Vanessa can be intimating because she is impossibly good. Whether or not you condone her politics - which I don't pretend to understand - you must admit she is first rate, and has that range that defies the

talents of most other actresses on either side of the Atlantic.

"There have been comparisons made between us, but, until we play the same role, I don't suppose that'll matter. After all, more emotion is expected from a woman then a man. She's also far better known then I, so I have little to lose. And, in the end, working with someone as great as Vanessa just makes me look good."

Across the set John Glen nods to several assistants that arrangement with camera's, sound and fx equipment is almost complete. Several actors stroll to their positions, and Dalton prepares to join them, looking as sharp and sophisticated as the custom-made Saville Row suits that have become Bond trade-marks. Like her Majesty's best cinematic secret agent, he appears to the manner born. And, like Connery and Moore, confesses he has no intention of being seduced by a Beverly Hills lifestyle.

"God! I hope I never reach that point," he declares with brisk finality. "I'm London-bound because my friends and colleagues are here, and they mean an awful lot to me. Besides, I still crave the excitement and immediacy of a live audience, and there's no other city in the world where an actor can do film, telly and stage - all in the same week!

"I know the tendency with movies is to work less for more money, and I really cannot predict precisely how I'll react to that - but, I promise to definitely struggle against that demon. I must say, though, I'm looking forward to being recognized on the streets and in restaurants. Isn't success supposed to feel delightful?"

Suddenly, Dalton stands - and becomes Bond, complete with twinkle. "I suppose after a while the part will become rote, but, with big budgets, tight scripts, good actors to work with and the weight of the films resting on my shoulders, I know I'll never take the character for granted. I'm trying to bring something new to the role, so that neither the audience nor can I get bored; I'm attempting to inject something different - an expression, some humor, and interesting nuance - into every take, into every scene. Perhaps the 007 image will get a tad more intellectual. Who knows? They may tag me the 'thinking man's James Bond.'

"Richard Burton was Welsh; Tom Jones is Welsh, and we Welshmen like to think of ourselves as heroes - on screen and off!"

LICENCED NEVER TO THRILL

Dalton Tones Down Bed-Hopping And Is Faithful To Fleming

by Garth Pearce, ‘Today’ May 27th 1989

James Bond looks at his most dangerous in a dinner suit at the blackjack tables surrounded by beautiful girls and hard-faced croupiers. He sits with lover Pam Bouvier on one side and the scheming Lupe Lamora in blood-red dress on the other. Suddenly, Bond's green eyes narrow. He dispatches Pam to the bar for a drink - vodka martini, shaken but not stirred - and leans forward to accept Lupe's offer of a secret meeting.

The scene, filmed more then a mile above sea level in the stifling thin air of Mexico City, is vital to Bond's fate in the latest 007 film Licence to Kill.

Between takes, the new 007, actor Tim Dalton, paces the casino like an expectant father. He inhales deeply on a cigarette - like Bond he smokes 40 a day - and prefers to think in silence. The moment a take is over he slumps alone in a canvas seat marked with his name and 007 logo, knowing it has become the hottest seat in his 43 years. For despite the glitter and glamour of the setting, there is some frank talking to be done. Dalton, 6ft 2ins tall with dark hair and an athlete's figure, is playing it as tough off screen as on. His uncompromising stance includes his resistance to making love with Lupe, played by Telisa Soto. That is, to say the least, unconventional for the womanising 007. Dalton however, argued that Ian Flemming's Bond was a one-girl man. Once 007 had established a relationship, he did not bed-hop. And since he was already involved with Pam (Carey Lowell), other bed scenes should ruled out.

"I know a lot of people will disagree with me," he says, drawing on a cigarette. "But the scene with Talisa comes too late in the movie. As she plays a girl who has been brutalised by men, it would make Bond just another guy who is using her for his own ends.

"In all the Flemming books, however the relationship starts with the woman, it's always with one woman. In this one you've got two. "Really when you talk about AIDS and new morality it's not our job to reflect or try to influence an outside circumstance," he says. "Our job is to be thoroughly up to date, be modern, but to reflect the spirit of Ian Flemming's books which made them such attractive, popular adventure films."

Dalton is an enigmatic character, a workaholic dedicated to acting. His ability to study the Bond character as minutely as a Shakespearean role has meant scripts in the new film have been shaped to suit his interpretation.

"I look at every role as a character part," he says. "I have to find individual qualities about every character I am playing. I wouldn't say anything as pompous or as arrogant as I'd cracked the role of Bond. The author gave a hell of a lot of information about the kind of man he is."

The voice, with its edgy mixture of North Wales, where he was born, and Derbyshire, where he grew up, is darkly authoritative. Few take up the challenge.

Even writer and co-producer Michael G. Wilson says "Tim is a man with passion. He expresses himself very frankly. I never take offence because I can express myself with some passion too."

Dalton has been accused of rudeness and being difficult. But he is a perfectionist who has become 007's greatest protector.

Before his 1987 debut in The Living Daylights, he read every Bond book and watched all of 14 previous films. If there is a detail out of place, then he forcibly points it out.

Costume designer Jodie Tillen, who gave Don Johnson his pink trousers image for Miami Vice, quickly discovered he was his own man. "She wanted to put me in pastels," says Dalton, emphasizing the word as if it were an unpleasant disease. "Can you imagine? "I thought, 'No, we can't have that.' The clothes say so much about Bond. He's got a naval background, so he needs a strong, simple colour like dark blue."

Dalton also challenged the regular "Bond Girl" pictures. For the first time in recent memory there is no photograph of 007 draped by beautiful girls. "That line of publicity is very demeaning," says Dalton. "It gives a rather false impression of what it's all about. There is always the classic picture of your leading man surrounded by all six or seven beauties but they don't actually appear in the film. None of those girls was the leading lady." The result is that we see Bond as Dalton, and probably Fleming, intended. It is a tough, ruthless film that nearly erases the memory of Roger Moore's funny one-liners. Such realism, with Bond being blooded, beaten and at times looking positively scared, will be welcomed by those who fondly remember Sean Connery in 'Dr No' and 'From Russia With Love.'

Licence to Kill's storyline, which involves a vigilante campaign against drug baron Franz Sanchez (Robert Davi), also cuts down on gimmicks.

"This one was written with Timothy firmly in mind," says Wilson. "I originally thought that given his Shakespearean acting back-ground he might not absorb himself totally in the character, but I was completely wrong. I welcome him for being so involved, even if it means feeling the sharp end of his tongue from time to time."

So what is Dalton really like? It is difficult for many to understand that acting really does dominate his life. But for a man whose looks have brought him constant fan mail in a 21-year film career he can be rather naive to the ways of the outside world. He cannot understand, for example, why people want to know about his private life. It is not through any fear of what can be unearthed. Dalton is a healthy heterosexual who has had relationships with beautiful woman, including Vanessa Redgrave. Instead it shows a lack of appreciation of why anyone should be interested.

"I go fishing and enjoy a game of poker," he says when I ask what he does in his spare time. "But as to where I fish and who I play poker with, then that is another matter. To involve friends is an intrusion into their lives."

It makes life impossible for gossip writers. Dalton has successfully sued inaccuracy with the same dedication he shows to everything else. He has usually given his money to charity.

"If there is anything I can sue about, then I do," he warns. "The irresponsibility and lack of integrity when people make things up both annoys and saddens me."

But what those who don't know him have the greatest difficulty in understanding is a stubborn resistance to change. He remains in the modest semi detached home he had before Bond. The only designer label on his clothes is St Michael.

"Why should I change?" he smiles. "I can walk around the streets, drink a pint without being bothered too much and still go shopping for my baked beans. I can't see how I can begin to play other roles if I'm so far removed from life I never meet the kind of people I am playing. "

CELEBRITY PROFILE - TIMOTHY DALTON'S TOP SECRETS

The Newest James Bond is Licensed to Lady-Kill

by Ian Blair, Playgirl Magazine, July 1987

James Bond is in a jam, and Timothy Dalton knows it. Lighting up a cigarette with an even fiercer concentration then the legendary spy, the actor stretches his long, lean frame out on a sofa, and nervously taps the back of the screenplay as he rereads the scene one more time.

There's a sudden loud rap on the dressing room door. "They're ready," announces a voice. Looking distinctly relieved to be exchanging the quiet sanctuary of his cozy room for the frenetic jumble of the set, Dalton leaps up, grabs his battered leather jacket, and, mixing a devil-may-care grin with a look of steely determination, heads off eagerly to where the action is.

Outside, the English countryside is covered in snow and firmly in the grip of the coldest winter in living memory. Inside the soundstage at London's famed Pinewood Studios, things aren't much warmer on the set of The Living Daylights, the latest Bond movie and the 15th in the world's most successful film series.

It's also the film that will introduce the Welsh bachelor as the new 007 to a worldwide, and hopefully enthusiastic, audience. With the weight and future of the entire multi-million dollar Bond industry now firmly resting on his shoulders, it's no surprise to see the devil-may-care grin slightly evaporate at the scene before him. Crew members and technicians mill around cameras and lights while director John Glen lines up another complex fight sequence and extras and stunt men block out their moves. As Dalton appears all eyes turn on him expectantly. Still, despite the considerable psychological pressures and sheer "bloody hard physical work" involved in playing Bond. Dalton looks relatively relaxed and manages to exude a certain playfulness as he psyches and pumps himself for another arduous afternoon spent kicking the blinks out of some pesky Russians.

Dalton's the fourth actor to portray the world's most famous secret agent; original model Sean Connery (universally conceded to be the best), George Lazenby (his unknown replacement who almost sank the series with his single disastrous appearance in 1969's 'On Her Majesty's Secret Service'), and the much liked Roger Moore have all retired to safer and less demanding pictures. But right now, Dalton has far more to worry about then erasing the memory of his distinguished predecessors or the discomforts of the set. For his alter ego is actually stuck inside a top-security Soviet prison set deep in the heart of Russian occupied Afghanistan (this is Bond at his most topical) - and is momentarily on the wrong side of the bars. Worse still, he's handcuffed. But not for long. Ducking past one beefy guard, Bond feints and spins around his clenched fists connect satisfactorily with another jailer's chin. Not even pausing to make a verbal crack, the new all-action Bond uses the fallen gorilla as a human stepping-stone and swings across the cell block, introducing the first guard's face to a concrete wall and ramming the heavy iron grille into a third guard's arm. There's another satisfying crunch of broken bone and Bond, who pauses only long enough to grab the girl (the latest in a long line of Bond beauties, played by stunning French-Russian newcomer Maryam D'Abo), disappears into the Afghanistan night...and off camera.

"Cut!" yells the director, looking pleased with his third take of the scene, while Timothy Dalton tired, sweaty but happy, flops down in a chair with the look of someone who's genuinely enjoying all the hard work. "I think it's probably every kid's dream to play James Bond, chasing after gorgeous woman and beating up the bad guys," he comments, dragging hard on another cigarette, "After all, he is the ultimate fantasy figure, and it's an irresistible appeal. I know I certainly wanted to be Bond when I saw all those early films with Connery. I must have been about 15, and now here I am, 25 years later, getting paid handsomely to live out a childhood fantasy."

Dalton laughs, and with his infectious smile and the slightly devilish twinkle in his eye, it's easy to see the kid in relishing the role. But at 6'2", with dark, classically strong looks, a lithe physique, and clear green eyes, Dalton also exudes a very adult air of danger and menace that makes him the ideal successor to the ultra-suave Roger Moore and marks a return to the original tougher, more ruthless hero as portrayed by Connery. As director Glen points out, "With Roger, you always knew he'd basically joke his way out of a tight situation. But with Timothy - as with Connery - you feel he'd just as soon kill the guy." It's an interesting and revealing distinction. "Bond is rather humorless and deadly serious about his work, at least in the books," says Dalton, who has studiously reread the Ian Fleming novels. "I definitely wanted to recapture the essence and flavour of the books, and play it less flippantly. After all, Bond's essential quality is that he's a man who lives on the edge. He could get killed at any moment, and that stress and danger factor is reflected in the way he lives, chain-smoking, drinking, fast cars and fast women. How much am I like that?" Dalton grins mischievously and puffs on another cigarette, inhaling deeply and savoring the tabacco. "Well, we both love women, but just let's say that I don't like flashy women and I don't like flashy cars. Sorry to disappoint you but I don't have any vices apart from chain-smoking," he continues. "I live a pretty quiet lifestyle when I am not working. I don't generally get too involved in the social whirl and the party scene, it doesn't really interest me very much. And when I'm working I don't have any time to get into trouble anyway. After a full day of this sort of stuff, you have absolutely no difficulty falling asleep at night, believe me! I certainly don't lie awake at night worrying about my image as Bond either," he stresses. "When I go home at night, I leave Bond behind and become quite normal - honest! I mean, you hear all this talk about movie stars unable to leave their roles on the film set who live out their fantasy in their private lives. Well, that may happen, but I know far too many really big film and television stars whose lives aren't hell," he snorts. "People love to pretend and fabricate an image to be worshipped and envied. But it doesn't have to rule your personal life, and I don't let it rule mine."

And Dalton is very much his own man, it appears. Despite his current Bond salary (reportedly around the $1 million mark), the actor still lives in the same unpretentious house in a quiet London suburb that he's occupied for several years. Less understandably, he also drives an anonymous white Toyota, "Yes, it is strange to climb out of Bond's fantasy Aston-Martin and then head home in my old Toyota, and I guess it'll blow my image completely. But it does keep my feet firmly on the ground," he rationalizes. The actor is also a man who is happiest relaxing with a few close friends at a country pub after a solitary day's fishing on a quiet river bank. "Yes, it's a very reclusive sport, and I find it very rewarding," he comments. "I suppose I am a bit of a loner in that sense. But I go with friends," he adds quickly. "The word 'loner' has a romantic connotation, which I find rather egotistical, and I'm certainly not going to say that about myself."

His colleagues are not so coy. "He can be difficult," reports one. "He's quite a perfectionist, probably because of all the Shakespearean training," says another. "He won't stop until he's absolutely happy with a take."

But the universal reaction from the Bond production line - and after 14 pictures it's very much a family affair - is to welcome the new Bond with open arms. "Timothy was always our ideal choice," commented one senior member of the production staff. "He's the right age, he's got an enormous amount of experience at his craft, and most importantly, he looks like James Bond. Everyone feels we got the right man in the end. Pierce Brosnan was actually always second choice to Timothy, and he's almost too much of a pretty boy for the role. But Timothy has just the right balance of dashing good looks and a slightly jaded, world-weary air about him."

The 40-year-old actor certainly seems tailor-made for the role, "He's someone I can relate to," he admits. "After all, he's essentially and old-fashioned hero, and I think that's his great appeal, to both men and women. He's steadfast, loyal, tenacious, and in the great tradition of British romantic heroes that probably started with Sir Galahad and The Knights of the Round Table, and who were epitomized by the Spitfire pilots in The Battle of Britain."

Is Dalton steadfast, loyal, tenacious...? "Sometimes," he hedges, before carefully shifting the emphasis back to his alter ego. "Bond is also a very potent sex symbol because of those very qualities. Yes, he may be slightly old-fashioned in his attitude to women - it's definitely a love'em and leave'em atttitude - and he's not going to put up with any nonsense. Yes, he's a ladies man, but he's also a very male member of the species. "He's the ultimate romantic, for Christ's sake, always out there rescuing the damsel in distress, usually at great personal risk. Let's face it, I'm sure an awful lot of feminists who accuse him of being macho and chauvinistic wouldn't half appreciate being saved from death by him."

Dalton is quick to disassociate Bond from the current crop of macho, muscle-bound cinematic heroes like Rambo. "Bond is utterly and totally different," he stresses, wincing at the mere thought of comparison with a Stallone or a Schwarzenegger. "For a start, he uses his brains and ingenuity as much as his fists. And Bond would never, ever spend hours in some gym pumping iron - Christ, Stallone will probably kill me for saying all this! (Dalton looks less then worried.) No, you're far more likely to find him in a casino with a beautiful girl on his arm or at his club with a stiff Scotch in his hand; none of this carrot juice and celibacy nonsense."

Dalton the actor happily defends his alter ego's swaggering sex symbol status and lady-killer reputation. Dalton the man enjoys much the same status off camera, in the real world, where despite a series of well-publicized liaisons, he has remained conspicuously elusive and single. "Me, a sex symbol? 'Cause I'm playing James Bond?" He laughs incredulously, as if the thought had never occurred to him before. "That's ridiculous. In fact, I think the very idea of a sex symbol is ludicrous. It's all an illusion, and I never think of myself like that at all - you should see me first thing in the morning," he adds, somewhat unconvincingly. But when pressed, Dalton does admit, "It's inevitable that I'll be saddled with the sex symbol thing to a certain extent, particularly by the press, who delight (the word pops out with explosive disdain) in creating that sort of image. I mean, I haven't been besieged by screaming females yet, but I suppose some of that can't be avoided can it?" He looks more happy then gloomy at such a prospect, although he quickly points out: "I'm far too old to be a bona fide sex symbol, surely? Don't the girls all like these clean-cut 20-year olds like Rob Lowe and Michael J. Fox nowadays?"

It's not a statement the actor's many female fans are likely to agree with. The highly eligible Dalton first made his screen debut back in 1967 playing the King of France in The Lion in Winter opposite Peter O'Toole and Katherine Hepburn ("the two greatest influences on my career"), and since then has successfully alternated Shakespearean drama with such potent symbols of male passion as Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights, and Rochester in Jane Eyre and Darnley (opposite Vanessa Redgrave) in Mary, Queen of Scots.

And such on-screen heat has fanned the speculation about Dalton's off-screen leading ladies, who have long been the subject of intense scrutiny by the British press, not renowned for pulling punches in such delicate matters. 'One Bond Affair That Remains Top Secret' (its' about Vanessa Redgrave) and 'The Man With The Deadly Eyes,' screamed recent Fleet Street headlines linking Dalton with a string of beautiful women. But true to his new role, Dalton himself isn't telling about his alleged many romantic entanglements. "Bond never talks about his private life, and neither do I," he states gently but firmly. "I just don't think it's fair to the other person. Times change, situations change, and many women in my past are now happily married with children. It certainly wouldn't be very pleasant for them, or their husbands to suddenly start reading about an old affair in the papers," he adds gallantly. "Let's face it, certain newspapers will say anything for a story. I mean, I know I'm still single, but I think I already read somewhere that I'm secretly married to Brooke?! And if Mae West had been slightly younger when we did Sextette together, I'm sure I'd have had a torrid affair with her, too. You've got to laugh at that sort of thing, don't you," adds Dalton, forcing a smile, as a production assistant lumbers into view. "They're ready for you again" the assistant announces. Dalton brightens, rams the butt of his cigarette into an ash-tray, and mumbling "Once more into the breach" heads back to the set. "The truth about all that rubbish," he throws over his shoulder "is that I am married - to James Bond, as you can see."

NOTHING PERSONAL

by Donna Rosenthal, ‘New York Daily News’ July 29th 1987

The latest Bond, Timothy Dalton, will talk almost anything - except himself.

Curses were shooting through the Carlton Hotel suite door. The new James Bond was erupting: A reporter had dared to ask him personal questions. Outside the suite, the next reporter decided to give the volcanic Timothy Dalton time to cool. When he finally opened the door, Dalton oozed charm. Superb transition. After all, this fourth James Bond is a skilled Shakespearean actor. But when the reporter mentioned she'd overheard his emotional outburst, the smile disappeared. He took a long drag on his cigarette. "She (the prior reporter) asked me such silly questions: What I'd eaten for breakfast, whether I'd showered" he said with disgust. "Aren't actors entitled to private lives?"

The star of the $32 million 15th Bond film has a firm rule: Thou Shalt Ask No Personal Questions. Dalton, who pocketed $750,000 for The Living Daylights, sees no point in interviews, other then informing audiences they'll get "value for money. It's narcissistic for actors to talk about their homes, lovers, divorces," said the 40-year-old bachelor. "When I was a kid," he continued, "a star was someone who'd spent years working himself to the top of his profession. Now celebrity is a goal in itself, rather then the corollary of achievement. A Playboy bunny can become a superstar. Whom we're choosing as celebrities is a sad reflection on our values."

Dalton was indeed Bond-like, expertly deflecting questions like bullets. Agent 007 treats reporters like KGB spies. "Why don't people focus on the real issues that govern our lives?" said Dalton with blazing intensity switching deftly to politics. "Everybody should be interested in politics. If not, you lose the very fabric of your country." He points out that the drugs-for-arms plot of the latest Bond thriller has "timely political parallels. "The American arms dealer and shady KGB agent in the film are trading in drugs, profiting in other peoples' misery, degradation and ultimate death." Dalton, an avid reader, pointed to a copy of 'Spycatcher,' a book banned in Britain, written by an ex-MI5 agent. So few people read anymore, observed Dalton. "Without reading, you can't analyze or think. Are we present at the fall of Rome?" he wondered.

Dalton says he was approached about playing Bond four times. First, he was too young (25) and didn't want to take over from Connery. Then he didn't feel suited to the light-hearted technological Bond extravaganza; and finally, he already had signed to act Shakespeare. No Schwarzenegger or Stallone fan, Dalton complained that few of today's heroes have human qualities. "Bond's anxiety is realistic," he said puffing his way through a pack of Benson and Hedges. Dalton hopes he has brought "fresh humanity" to Bond by "sticking close" to Ian Flemming's original 007 who is "at home in a dirty, ruthless, cynical world; but also complex and sensitive."

Offscreen, except for a record player, the new 007 said he "doesn't go for hitch gadgetry." Unflashy Dalton drives an old Toyota and when asked about his activities, Dalton glares, answering like he was revealing the combination to Fort Knox. "I love fishing, catching up on movies, listening to music and reading." When the word 'women' was mentioned, Dalton flinched. "I'm not Bond and my views about women are mine.

"If my Bond is a failure," the superserious Dalton says, "it'll be a world famous failure."

TIMOTHY DALTON WON’T LET BOND ROLE CHANGE HIS CAREER

By Susan King - Los Angeles Herald Examiner

Los Angeles - Timothy Dalton insists he'll never let James Bond go to his head. He insists you'll never see him surrounded by bodyguards or press agents, traveling in limousines or living in a big house surrounded by a barbed wire fence.

"If you behave like a regular guy, you get treated like a regular guy," he states. "You can't cut yourself off from the world. You ultimately would go crazy, wouldn't you?"

When Roger Moore abdicated his title as James Bond three years ago, the 43-year-old Welsh actor beat out favoured candidate Pierce Brosnan for the part.

Critics and audiences alike responded favorably to his first outing as Bond in 1987's "The Living Daylights." Now, Dalton is back as 007 in Licence to Kill.

In person, this 007 certainly rates a 10. He is, as the cliché goes, tall, dark and handsome - with dancing green eyes. Dalton is relaxing in his small but elegant suite at the Bel Age Hotel. He's dressed casually in a blue shirt and matching slacks. For someone who has been labeled 'press shy', he's friendly, charming and articulate - a seemingly regular guy.

He's also passionate about his craft. Mention the name of his favourite playwright, Eugene O'Neill, and Dalton becomes highly animated, excited. "He's the greatest writer of the 20th century," he says fervently.

Dalton lights up a cigarette, his first of several, and sits back in his chair. He plays nervously with his red lighter as he talks.

His career, says Dalton, hasn't changed since following in the footsteps of previous Bonds Sean Connery and Moore. In fact, instead of 'going Hollywood,' he returned to his first love, the theatre, last year, appearing in London's West End in the highly successful production of O'Neill's A Touch Of The Poet.

"I've been in the business for 20 years as a professional working actor with all sorts of jobs," he explains. "It would be foolish and stupid to allow it to change."

When Bond producer Albert 'Cubby' Broccoli approached Dalton to play 007, he wasn't worried he would be typecast as the cool, suave British secret agent.

"The problem you have to face when you decide to do a movie like this is an artistic one as well as a personal one," he explains. "Every one's got an opinion of a Bond movie and how they like James Bond to be. So you know you stand a chance of coming into a fair bit of flak, because some people will love what you do, and others, of course won't.

"The whole world could be against you," he admits. "If you failed you'd be a massive failure, a world famous failure."

But Dalton didn't think he would fail as Bond. "I liked the Bond movies when they started," he says. "'Dr. No' is my favourite. I wondered if it would be possible to shape and bend them back to being myself, 'Do I think I can do it? I'm going to take a hit, but perhaps I can win'."

The Living Daylights was written before Dalton entered the picture. Though Dalton's Bond is somber and serious - much closer to writer Ian Fleming's original concept - The Living Daylights is peppered with the sexual innuendoes that permeated the Moore Bond films.

"In the latest action thriller Licence to Kill, Bond sets the villain on fire and feeds another bad guy to a great white shark. Licence to Kill is a tougher, more believable and violent movie," says Dalton. Perhaps too violent? Dalton doesn't think so. "In the early films, people were burned and fed to sharks. Everything in this is classic Bond."

from "NEW WOMAN"

(August '87)

"Bond never talks about his private life, and neither do I. When you're in the public world, your private life becomes very important to you, and it's necessary to preserve it even more fiercely. My job is to act." [TD]

"I didn't feel it would be right to take it [the Bond role] over then. Sean was so damn good, he was absolutely wonderful. And besides I was too young." Dalton says he accepts the role with "great joy, with real enthusiasm. I realizes this particular script was more realistic, more exciting, and a better story than a lot of previous Bond stories had been."

"He's [Bond] a man who likes to live on the edge." [TD]

"You never know what's going to come next. If you have confidence in yourself and care for what you do, you take on that insecurity in a healthy way." [TD]

"It's [doing stunts by himself] a matter of being convincing." [TD]

He [TD] has been a Bond fan since he was a teenager and thinks the best films of the entire series are Goldfinger and Dr. No. "But the best sequence," he says firmly, "was the train sequence in From Russia with Love."

"I think the Bond films did perhaps overexploit some of the very qualities that made them successful. But I'm delighted to see that we've brought back certain things that are redolent of Bond and Bond movies - the Aston-Martin car is back, and though we have far fewer gimmicks and tricks, we have some wonderfully inventive and ingenious ideas." [TD]

"She's [Maryam d'Abo] got a brain. She falls for Bond totally, but not in a stupid or naive way." [TD]

"He's [TD] a terrific to work with. He also happens to be a great actor, and great actors only make you better. He's also a giver: he'll find what's real in a scene and work with you, as his partner. And he doesn't kiss badly, either!" [Maryam d'Abo]

Director Glen describes Dalton as a combination of Sir Laurence Olivier and Christopher Plummer, adding, "He also has a wonderful voice because of his Shakespearean training." That sophistication - combined with the fact that Dalton, though terrifically handsome, has a jaded, world-weary air about him - makes him "a departure from both Roger Moore and Sean Connery, " Glen says. "He's going to make this part his own, and initially that may shock people. When Tim is holding a gun, he truly looks like a man with a license to kill." And though Glen agrees there's still an element of male chauvinism in the Bond character, he's quick to add, "I think Bond is a great lover of women. He respects women, but he uses women, as I think happens in real life. But he also has a softer side to his nature, as you'll see in his relationship with Maryam d'Abo."

Dalton wants the final word on this: "It's incorrect to think of Bond as a chauvinist. In fact, he often puts his life in more danger by helping the woman. He's the ultimate romantic, for Christ's sake, always out there rescuing the damsel in distress - and usually at great personal risk. He could often make his escape swifter if he didn't do the gentlemanly thing and wait for or protect the safety of his female accomplice. However, if the lady is a villain and gets in his way, she will be treated exactly the same manner as Bond treats a male villain. If, at the end of the adventure, Bond and the leading lady tumble into bed, it's because the lady wants to, as well as Bond. Both are falling in love, or should I say in lust."

TIMOTHY DALTON TO ROLLING STONE MAGAZINE (1987)

"I've no desire to put the last or any nail in the coffin. I'm very happy with my career."

"When you're thinking this over, you've got a responsibility to the past not to change it too much. And so you think about audience perception. What do they expect of Bond? That expectation has changed since Connery. Connery changed from Dr. No to the last one [Diamond Are Forever]. Moore sort of changed. Well, I can't go out and copy that."

"Dr. No is my favorite, for all its rawness. And I think Goldfinger's the best."

"My approach can't be 'How am I going to play it?' but 'What did Fleming write about? What made these stories work?' "

"When there's danger he's frightened. Every time you pick up Fleming, he's talking about the stomach getting wrenched knotted with anxiety. There are pills being taken. A glass of booze, just to get him through a moment. You can't identify with someone who doesn't feel relief or fear."

"He's [Bond] like a knight. Not shining, but tarnished."

"Your detective stories, Sam Spades, Bogart, they're downtrodden. Divorced. Got the occasional women. They drink. We like them because we recognize them as being one of us."

"I think Bond should have a bit more flaws."

"Bond is often afflicted by this malaise. I suppose the church would call it moral apathy. Anyone else would call it moral-ethical confusion. It's a world where a right one day is a wrong tomorrow. In Bond, Fleming created a fantasy where you could tell right or wrong. What was brilliant was that he created a champion who was tarnished. Not a superman."

"I think they made a mistake in the earlier ones. You can't escape the fact when you read the books - here's a man who's always right on the edge of his own death. He can't fall in love or have commitments. He can't. He'd be dead tomorrow."

"All these qualities of Bond, like a love of smoking or a love of cars. Drinking bourbon when he was in America or rough red wine in Italy. Or gambling. They're all things that are right. They're about living that moment. He's living with death, so everything is heightened - touch, taste, smell, the risk of gambling. I see it very connected to who he is."

"Our film is simplistic and popular, but its values are in the right place. One thing I admire about this production team is that they've never become jingoistic or immoral."

"They're [Bond movies with Roger Moore] very successful and carry with them the height of technical and imaginative ingenuity. But I think they lost the humanity."

"They rounded off some of the edges." [About some things in The Living Daylights that were perhaps improbable and unlikely.]

"I cut the wardrobe down by three-quarters." [About his clothes in the movie.]

"Bond was never flash or ostentatious. In fact, he really wore a uniform, a dark suit, navy blue. He was very navy blue. He wasn't a wealthy man. He used his money to buy the best that he needed, but then he kept it. For example, his suitcase. At one time it was a very good suitcase. But he's had it for ten years."

"A powder-blue jump suit [which Sean Connery wore in Goldfinger]? I'd prefer laser torture. Nerve gas. Perhaps if it were navy blue..."

****************

"Timothy Dalton has Shakespearean training, but he underestimated the role. The character has to be graceful and move well and have a certain measure of charm as well as be dangerous." (Sean Connery, "Entertainment Weekly," 1995)

****************

"The women flipped for him - and I remember he gave a good performance." (Albert Broccoli, "Newsweek", July 27, 1987)

****************

"I'm amazed at how fit Timothy Dalton is. His big sport is ... fishing!" (Marian D'Abo, Cannes, 1987)

****************

Timothy Dalton (at The Living Daylights press conference in Vienna, 1987): "One of the qualities, that I might share with a secret agent who works for the British Government would be their desire to keep their private life and their thoughts about it private."

****************

RB: How has playing James Bond changed your life, positively and negatively?

TD: Hardly at all negatively - I'm very happy to say that. Positively - professionally, of course, because the nature of our world is a commercial world and if you can have a commercial success you'll get a lot more offers.

RB: What about the legions of fans that will hound you for autographs for the rest of your life?

TD: Well, that's all bullshit, isn't it? It's all bullshit. That is not true. You get all that when you're in a publicity situation. There might be a few people outside the hotel, but those are the professional autograph bounty hunters, or the paparazzi. But you and I could walk down the street here or in London, and people would certainly recognize me, but nobody is going to bother me. Most people on the street are healthy, decent people with their own sense of self-respect and integrity and they'll treat you regularly if you behave regularly. If on the other hand you behave like an asshole, and go around with battalions of bodyguards and limousines and press and photographers and all that, and make an issue out of it, then it's a different story. The majority of people who go and see a movie or play, if they like it, they come out and say that was a bloody good film or play, and so on, but they're not going to go around to the stage door, they're not going to write and ask for an autograph. Only a tiny percentage of them will. And the bulk of that percentage are people who just realy want to say it was great and would you mind if I had an autograph. The kind of thing you're talking about is the tiniest minority and it's a bit odd anyway.

RB: The Bond world has that group, you know, like "Star Trek" and "Batman" - it's got its legion of fans. It's going to last.

TD: Frankly, I love it from some. Someone in the airport the other day just said, "I saw the film - terrific - thanks", and walked on. Thhat felt great. That's how I would react, that's how you would react, if you see a performance you love, and if you ever met the guy, maybe - but even if you did, even if you were in a restaurant you might not want to disturb him having his dinner, you'd just think, "Oh, there's..." But some people make a profession of being a fan. It's on the edge of abnormality in a lot of ways. It's gone beyond genuine care and respect. And there's not many of them. The press tend to build up all the screaming hoards. Sure, if you go to a premiere it's par for the course, it's everybody's game. New rules are set. But just going down to the street and going to a pub, the real world is not problem.

RB: So you don't get much of that.

TD: And I'm very pleased. As an actor you can't cut yourself off from your roots; you can't cut yourself off from the foundations of your work, and they are people - it's people who you act, it's people you take parts in stories life is about people.

An interview done during a break in filming on the set of 'The Living Daylights' at Pinewood Studio's. Timothy said:

"I find it fascinating, it obviously works for audiences world wide. Fleming obviously found something that satisfied a great deal of fantasies. He found adventure and excitement and a character I guess a lot of men would like to identify with and a lot of women might like to conquer".

"I don't make those comparisons, I have a script called 'The Living Daylights' and a character called James Bond. I did my best to make it as well as I can. I can't think of copying or being different too, I've tried to be original. I mean it will be different, I shall make it my own, I start from the books".

Excerpts from an interview with Timothy Dalton on 2.11.98 by Bob Thomas

Bob: Were the Bond movies hard work or a walk in the park?

Dalton: It's neither. Well, it's both. No, it's hard work. Sorry, I'm kind of jumping around. It's a certain kind of movie. All movies are hard work because you're trying to get them right and do your work well. Most movies - and certainly the Bonds - are simply hard physically because you're often working 14 to 15 hours a day on very long schedules.

Bob: Did you do your own stunts on the Bond films?

Dalton: I was involved in them. I didn't do anything that is going to break my neck. In those days there was never a stunt or a moment in a Bond movie that hadn't been done for real. Nowadays we're so used to what you can achieve with computer graphics.

Bob: Do you drink martinis, and if so, how prepared?

Dalton: No, I don't. I've always found martinis knock me sideways. I don't think I've drunk one since I left the Bond movies. Every bar, every restaurant you go in, there's always some wisecrack, 'Oh, yours will be a martini, shaken, not stirred.' You get sick and tired of that.

from "The New-York Times"

July 14, 1989 page 8

...But Mr. Dalton glowering presence adds a darker tone.

...Mr.Dalton is perfectly at home as an angry Bond and as a romantic lead and as an action hero, but he never seems to blend any two of those qualities at once. He does not seem at ease with all of Bond's lines and to the actor's immense credit he seems least comfortable when M. meets him at Hemingway's house, a Key West tourist attraction and tells him to turn over his gun "I guess it's a farewell to arms" says Mr. Dalton not quite cringing. They have to stop writing lines like that for the Dalton Bond or he'll really be full of angst. Meanwhile he is beginning to hold his own with the shadows of his former self...

from "The New-York Times"

July 9, 1989 page H11

"The best James Bond will always be Sean Connery, but Timothy is the best actor of the four of them"- says Richard Maibaum. "Timothy's Bond is a real man with a real sense of destiny; and real people are in jeopardy".

"Tim is a more gritty, down-to-earth Bond who can have ruthlessness and vulnerability"- says Mr. Wilson.

"I tried to bring some dimension to James Bond, to make him a human being" - says Mr. Dalton. "He is determined, often very ruthless, by no means a white knight. If you're going to deal with villains, you have to be villainous to beat them. I take my cue from the novels and the very early Bond movies. "Dr. No" caused a great scandal. A man walks into Bond's bedroom and pumps bullets into a figure on the bed. He empties his gun. Then Sean Connery, who is sitting behind the door says: "You had your six" and kills an unarmed, defenseless man. Bond murders his own murderer. A hero is not supposed to behave that way.

When Mr. Wilson watched the daily rushes on "Licence" he was often startled to find Mr. Dalton doing his own action sequences instead of relying on stunt men. The actor wanted "to make it believable"- says Mr. Wilson.

Mr. Dalton who says he was asked to take on the role of James Bond when Mr. Connery quit "That would have been the most suicidal move I could make and, besides, I was too young,"- agreed to replace Mr. Moore only if he could play " a James Bond I could believe in," a James Bond who in "Licence to Kill" has "a moral justification for killing, if not necessarily a legal one". 

INTERVIEW WITH TIMOTHY DALTON

Celebrity Magazine, March 1987

Sean Connery is 56 and balding, Roger Moore is 59 and graying - neither is getting any younger. So when the time came to make another James Bond movie, The Living Daylights, the producers decided to get another 007.

It was rumored for a time that 'Remington Steel's' Pierce Brosnan clinched the favored Bond role, but unfortunately for him, a network contract dispute nulled his chances. Bring on Timothy Dalton - tall, dark, handsome and British. He's a 39-year-old actor trained in the English theatre, where notables like Sir Lawrence Oliver and Sir John Gielgud began their illustrious careers. "A stage actor is what I want to be," Dalton confirms. "Of course, I will do the best part that comes along, in whatever medium it happens to be."

The magical stage took hold of young Timothy at the age of 16 after attending his first play - an Old Vic production of Macbeth. His own stage credits are many, including a stint as Lord Byron in The Lunatic, the Lover and the Poet.

Presumably, it was the part and not the money that lured Dalton away from his beloved stage to the cameras for the secret agent man role. He says that the money is of little concern to him. "Having money or not having money doesn't really bother me," he explains. "Oh, I admit it's nice if one doesn't have to exist on Spaghetti Milanese every day, and it's nice to be able to afford to drink more than just a pint every other day.

"But really, I never see the money, no matter how much I earn. All that having money means to me is that if I have it, I can take a taxi when I want and go out and have a good dinner when I am hungry," he says with a smile.

Before the roles as Basil St. John in the upcoming Brenda Starr and James Bond, Dalton starred in many films including Mary, Queen of Scots, and Agatha with Vanessa Redgrave, Permission to Kill with Ava Gardner, TV's Mistral's Daughter and Sins with Joan Collins.

"I do very little besides act," says the Welsh-born actor. "It's really all I think about. In my home, I'll put on a little music, but while it's playing, I'm thinking about acting. I'm not one of those lucky people who can just leave the job behind when they go off the stage."

Acting is a Dalton family tradition; Timothy's paternal grandfather was England's first theatrical agent, and an impresario as well. His great-grandfather had been a big star in English music halls, and family legend has it that grandma was Charlie Chaplins's first vaudeville partner. Timothy's own father skipped a show-biz career to become a successful advertising executive.

"I think when I first said I wanted to act," he smiles, "it pleased everybody on my father's side of the family. My mother and her side, however, were worried. None of them felt acting was a secure profession for a young man."

But working with Katharine Hepburn in his debut film, as King Phillip of France in The Lion in Winter, calmed the fears of his mother and her family. "In my very first camera shot on my very first day of my very first film, I worked with her," he says with great admiration of Katharine Hepburn. "I was supposed to be introduced to her, and had one brief line acknowledging that introduction.

"When it came time for my close up shot, the director said there was no reason for her to stay. Someone else could read her lines off camera. But she not only insisted on staying, but also, to get the proper angle so I would be looking at her in a sitting position, she crawled on her hands and knees behind and under the camera and crouched down. Then I said my line.

"It was truly extraordinary. In all the films I've done since then, very few actors would have done that."

Perhaps that special quality separates good actors from great actors - and Timothy Dalton certainly seems destined for greatness. "My goal is to do a good job so that I can keep on working. I love the time I spend acting, and definitely want to do this for the rest of my life."

BOND FAULTS