Those Two Times I Met Roger Moore

I enjoyed the privilege of meeting Sir Roger Moore, the screen star and UNICEF ambassador who died this week, not once, but twice.

One of my friends, Lisa Bigazzi Tilt, was with me on both occasions, and most of the other folks present are still connections and longtime pals.

Just about everyone with us the first time probably was sad like me when news of Moore's passing started to hit the wires.

He was a memorable, friendly celebrity personality as is his wife, now widow, "Kiki" -- who accompanied him both times we shook hands -- was also a friendly person. 

The New York Times' A.O. Scott penned an appreciation of Moore that aptly names the second actor to portray James Bond as "the best" in the role. Though my personal favorite title in the series -- "Goldfinger" -- stars the "original" Bond, Sean Connery, I just smile thinking of each of Moore's turns donning spy shoes and gadgets.

In some ways, meeting Moore in person and experiencing his cheerful, genuine friendliness sealed his ranking as "the better Bond" in my book. Others with fun memories echo this sentiment. 

My first Moore encounter arrived in November 2002 via my longtime client IAAPA, the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions.

Lisa and I were working in the press room at the association's annual trade show in Orlando, now known as IAAPA Attractions Expo.

The 2002 convention was our fourth, and joining us from our public relations agency team was the "newbie" Dawn Brewer, still a great friend as is Lisa.

Moore was chosen to present a speech about his work with children and UNICEF's relevance to the "business of fun," and we enjoyed the longtime James Bond and "The Saint" actor's remarks at an executive breakfast.

Prior to the convention, we also hand-picked a few key media outlets to speak with Moore -- for a knighted celebrity, he was overly generous with his time, and also excellent at staying on message about Expo (which was difficult since national TV outlets like CNN and Fox News only wanted his satellite interviews to focus on the latest Bond film "Die Another Day" which happened to open the same week of Moore's visit to IAAPA's gathering).

Following Moore's breakfast remarks and his trek to a local TV studio for the aforementioned satellite interviews, it was my job to introduce Moore the actor to Roger Moore the film critic for the Orlando Sentinel newspaper -- the scribe Moore wrote a great piece about finally meeting his coincidental namesake. I was standing beside the Sentinel photographer who snapped the image appearing the next day, as shown here:

(Film critic Roger Moore is now writing MovieNation posts, including this remembrance of meeting the actor. Interesting to get a nod as "A P.R. wag" as described by the critic).

We next escorted Moore and his wife to the IAAPA Press Office for a trade magazine interview with another longtime friend, Tim O'Brien, then editor of Amusement Business and contributor to Funworld (IAAPA's monthly). As the interview got underway, a happy accident occurred (at least this is how I recall it when sharing this memory).

When Moore, his wife, O'Brien, our IAAPA client, Dawn and I gathered around a press room table, we offered fresh coffee to the Moores to be sure they were comfortable. Dawn was kind enough to bring the new brew, and without realizing it, upon offering sugar, I swear she said "Here is your coffee ... shaken, not stirred ..." with the straightest deadpan face (or perhaps she did not realize the correlation to James Bond's martini preferences).

A great big laugh was shared by all. Moore's bright blue eyes smiled with the unexpected chuckle (though my guess is that he regularly heard similar lines for most of his post-007 years).

We later joined Moore for an outdoor photo op with a British video game manufacturer who was showcasing an interactive football (soccer) video game for which Moore was not shy to play along and complete a few place kicks. Then like taking off in "Moonraker" or "Live And Let Die" Moore was soon gone in a flash. 

Sadly, I had no camera with me that November afternoon, and the images I snagged from others are no longer available, lost in a move or still packed away in storage. I dropped in the above left image from a EuropaPark event to give an example of Moore and his wife's age and demeanor in 2002. 

We did not think another Moore encounter possible, but the following year on a work trip to New York with Feld Entertainment, our merry band of Ringling Bros. publicists (including Lisa) went out in search of a late-night meal after we experienced the circus at Madison Square Garden.

As we approached an off-Broadway Irish Pub around 40th Street, we noted a town car driver awaiting his passengers when, you guessed it, Moore and his wife emerged from the restaurant.

I happened to be closest and called out, "Mr. Moore, great to see you and your wife again since the theme park convention" (or similar) to which he extended a hand and with his thoughtful gaze and handshake expressed "I remember -- that was fun!" before turning to remind his wife, who smiled back.

And away they went as we turned to find our Ringling Bros. clients standing agape. 

Like millions of others, I enjoyed Moore's "007" roles and campy-by-comparison-to-Sean-Connery approach Moore took to the character. "For Your Eyes Only" is my favorite for his work on the Cortina Olympic ski jump, downhill slopes as well as his climbing scenes at Meteora, Greece, a site I went out of my way to visit as inspired by Moore's work. 

Every single time I play backgammon, Moore's winning game in "Octopussy" comes to mind, and it was fun to see the actual board and dice from the scene in a "007" exhibition during the London 2012 Olympics.

My prom tuxedo was white because of Moore's wardrobe selection to roll double sixes. 

"Cannonball Run" gave Moore an opportunity to poke fun at himself as he did with witty remarks at the IAAPA press events.

And who could forget his "Moonraker" scenes in Rio de Janeiro (the city showcases Moore in many of the sites where he performed)?

Just last week on holiday in Paris, I experienced many of the sites of "A View To A Kill" and its Eiffel Tower opening sequence featuring Moore in hot pursuit of one of my favorite Bond Girls, Grace Jones. 

Moore even reprised his 007 likeness in support of the successful London 2012 Olympic bid, according to this article.

And he drove a Volvo P1800 like my parents' first car as a couple in Oklahoma City (I've wondered for awhile whether my dad selected the Swedish sports car inspired by the actor's role on "The Saint").

It will be fun to share these memories of Roger Moore for years to come, and to smile about them any time a 007 marathon appears or Carly Simon's "The Spy Who Loved Me" plays on the radio. R.I.P., Roger Moore.

Images via Pinterest and EuropaPark website

Oscar Comes To Atlanta

Watching the Academy Awards presentation tonight, it was good to see an array of nominated films take home some hardware.

Honorees for "The Fighter," "The Social Network" and "The King's Speech" appeared on my ballot, and it was good to see Melissa Leo, Christian Bale and Colin Firth victorious. Big relief to see that Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross earned statues (bravo!).

Though it was pleasing to see a longtime actress favorite, Natalie Portman, as winner for "The Black Swan" I was rooting for Annette Bening's amazing, emotional performance in "The Kids Are All Right."

Biggest disappointment of the evening: Twenty-time nominee Randy Newman winning for original song (in my opinion, his was the least original, again).

Another letdown was that Winona Ryder received no nominations for her twisted character in "Black Swan" (she stabbed herself in the face with a nail file, for crying out loud!).

Going into the evening, I maintained that "The Social Network" might take home best picture, and though "The King's Speech" is excellent, the moodier tone of the former seemed more contemporary.

"The King's Speech" themes of friendship and British connections remind me of best picture from 30 years ago, another U.K. great (which some say 'saved' British cinema), "Chariots of Fire."

I was just seven years old when "Chariots of Fire" won best picture of 1981, and I still enjoy vivid memories of viewing this film on the big screen with my dad and my grandmother.

What a treat it was to again experience "Chariots of Fire" in a theatre last Thursday when the premiere 30th anniversary presentation, including Q&A with the film's Oscar-nominated director, Hugh Hudson, appeared as the centerpiece of the 2011 Atlanta Jewish Film Festival.

Interviewing Hudson during the film was an extraordinary treat.

In our one on one conversation in the lobby of Regal Cinemas Atlantic Station (with thanks to the AJFF's P.R. team at MS&L), Hudson explained that sport played an important part of his upbringing.

"I was always interested in sporting achievement," said Hudson. When asked about his earliest Olympic memories, he said, "I went to the 1948 London Olympics and have memories of Fanny Blankers-Koen. I saw her run!"

Hudson said that athleticism and the Olympics were not the intended themes of "Chariots of Fire;" rather, the "timeless story of youth standing up for [their] beliefs ... for their own sense of freedom, [and] refusing to have ideals diverted by their elders."

I asked Hudson to reflect on great Olympic films that preceded his, and the extent to which he studied Olympic films or film makers prior to "Chariots of Fire." Hudson replied that Leni Reifenstahl's "Olympia" was "breathtaking" and he also cited "Tokyo Olympiad" by Kon Ichikawa as influential.

"[But] they were pure documentaries," said Hudson, who added that the use of slow motion in those films made it to "Chariots of Fire" but with more criticism for his work.

When asked the extent to which the International Olympic Committee, British Olympic Association or other Olympic entities engaged Hudson before, during or after the success of his film, Hudson said they never contacted him (I found and still find this hard to believe since the film screened at several Games since 1981). Hudson said, "Going into Barcelona [in 1992] I wrote a script" and "had a part in Spain" that fell through, but he declined to provide more detail because he "might still use that idea."

After talking about the impact of early Olympic films on his career, I followed up with questions about Hudson's impact on Olympic films that followed his. Hudson said he enjoyed Steven Spielberg's "Munich" and it reminded Hudson that he planned to attend the Munich Games in 1972, but instead he only watched the Games on television. Hudson added he did not attend a Games since 1948, and that organizers for London 2012 are not in contact with him.

HELLO, are there any London 2012 publicists reading this? Golden opportunity awaits!

(Disclosure: Some P.R. elements of London 2012 are organized by Edelman, the agency where I work.)

The last question I was able to pose to Hudson before his next interview of the AJFF concerned the iconic opening and closing sequence of "Chariots of Fire" during which the mesmerizing, Oscar winning theme song by Vangelis is played. Hudson confirmed my suspicion, since elementary school in 1981, that the beach runners were up to their ankles in "freezing cold water in March" (later, during the audience Q&A, seen in the video below, Hudson also explained the scene involved several takes and a quirky miracle of film making led to a second filming that captured more dramatic waves pouring into the shoreline; he also shared more detail about his friendship with Vangelis).

During the audience Q&A, I also learned that Hudson married a "Bond Girl" from the James Bond film "The Living Daylights" -- Maryam d'Abo answered two questions outside the Atlanta screening of "Chariots of Fire," explaining that the first time she viewed Hudson's film she was a drama student -- with Colin Firth -- and she met Hudson several times during the 1980s before he remembered her (they married in 2003).

I found Hudson to be pleasant and conversational, offering to share his popcorn during our theatre chat. It would be tremendous to see the 30th anniversary edition of "Chariots of Fire" on the big screen in several cities now through London 2012. If it is screening near your favorite theatre, guaranteed, it is the best picture in town.

Photos by Nicholas Wolaver at the 2011 AJFF
 

Oscar Loves The Olympics

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has been kind to films with Olympic themes.

Oscar smiled four times on one of my all-time favorite films, "Chariots of Fire" (to paraphrase Second City Television/SCTV's 1981 spoof, "More than a soundtrack"). Two major releases of the last 10 years also spotlighted the 1972 Games, with a best documentary Oscar to "One Day In September" (outstanding -- and the entire film is available on YouTube) and nominations for Steven Spielberg's "Munich" (which, by the way, is a high-budget REMAKE of a lesser known 1980s TV film on the same topic, "Sword of Gideon." ).

Other summer Olympic films of note, though not close to Oscar, include "Jim Thorpe - All American" and "Tokyo Olympiad." The 1936 feature documentary "Olympia" by Leni Riefenstahl, did not qualify for a gold statue, but it did win an honorary gold medal from the International Olympic Committee, according to the director's official website.

By my count, more feature films are out there regarding the Winter Olympics (though Oscar has been icy to these titles): "Cool Runnings," "Ice Castles," (OK, this one WAS nominated for Best Song ... you know the song, right?) "The Cutting Edge," and even "Blades of Glory" each had five-ring connections (some with better results than others).

It came as no surprise when someone told me that even James Bond has an Olympic connection. In "Goldfinger" that derby-clad Odd Job was played by Olympic Silver Medalist Harold Takata.
And who could forget Roger Moore's Olympic venues chase scene in "For Your Eyes Only" filmed at Cortina D'Ampezzo, host of the 1956 Winter Olympics?

Should be interesting to see how often these titles (summer Games films in particular) show up on cable during Beijing, or whether PBS replays "16 Days of Glory" by Bud Greenspan on their programming.