Now we're breaking new ground in the April 2012 A-Z Blogging Challenge - and maybe by looking at three movie posters we'll Bond over this next post...because...
B is for Bond Double Features!
In the days before home video - people went out to the movies. A lot. Sometimes film distributors would repackage a couple of older films and send them back out for another run. This happened with the James Bond movies several times before ABC started showing them regularly. Here are three double feature posters from 1970 and 1971. Believe it or not, these re-releases did boffo box office, bringing in the crowds for another round of 007...
And that wraps this post - hope you can "C" your way clear to returning tomorrow...until then, you Can Poke Me With A Fork, Cause I Am Outta Here!
The Bond movies are always a form of mental escapism for me, although I must admit that the only Bond movie that I ever saw in theaters was "Casino Royale," and I wasn't really a fan! As a poker player, the hands were just too ridiculous and too impossible.
ReplyDeleteI loved Casino Royale - Bond has been winning card hands that the camera shows he lost going back decades - for example, in For Your Eyes Only it is announced in a chemin de fer game that Bond has nine, the winning number. His hand is seen on camera though, and he has five. I think you have to let these slips go so you can enjoy some really good movies. Thanks for the comment!
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ReplyDeletedo check my GAC a-z too
Thank you - I'll try to stop by later this evening! Thanks for the invite!
DeleteI wish the double feature would return! Those were the good old days. You know I'm a Bond fan big time. Most of the films I saw on the Big Screen. And I mean BIG...not those tiny multi-plex screens.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I've never been to one of the movie palaces - I sure would love to see one of the Bonds in one, though. After the recent success of Casablanca, I keep hoping they'll do more classic screenings - with a 007 movie or three on The Big Screen!
DeleteIn love with Bond movies, although I never watched any of them in a theater. I still enjoy that the Bond movies include a little bit of everything!
ReplyDeleteAs Felix Leiter says when he helps Bond strap on the giant Q branch backpack before the final battle: "...and the kitchen sink!" I'm sorry your comment got shuffled over to my spam folder (not by me!) and I was just in there clearing it out - and got this put back in its rightful place! Sorry! Hope you come back!
DeleteI love double features. The drive-ins near me still have them, but they are limited to warmer weather -- and primarily new releases, except for the Dusk-to-Dawn horror movies for Halloween. I totally believe double features of Sean Connery as bond would bring in the audiences.
ReplyDeleteErin - I quite agree - and if the theater is doing digital projection - they wouldn't even have to cart in a print - just download a file and voila - 60's spy magic back on The Biggest Screen of all! I'm glad your drive-in is still a going concern - the local one here is a flea market...*sigh*
DeleteOHMYGOD, I'm so happy you're posting about Bond, James Bond. I wanted him to be my B, but it didn't fit my theme. Next year. I LOVE Bond. I've seen every Bond film ever made, and often pull a double feature. Cannot WAIT for the upcoming Bond film.
ReplyDeleteAwesome post! Happy A-Z blogging.
Thank you! I am a Bond Megafan, so I don't think I could do something like April A-Z without getting into at least a little 007...
DeleteThank you, and back atcha!
P.S. Definitely a new follower here.
ReplyDeleteThat is great! I truly appreciate it!
DeleteI had no idea they gave Bond films a second spin as big screen double features. That would have been cool, cool to see.
ReplyDeleteYou know, I appreciate movies on demand and DVDs and such, but sometimes I wonder what we've lost. Movies as an event? Outside midnight openings, there's little of that left.
Thanks for the new bit o' trivia added to my collection--and the very cool poster post!
Yeah, I guess I wasn't taken to any of them as a toddler - as I'm sure I would remember shots at least - as I do remember shots from the Dark Shadows movie, Little Big Man, The Godfather, and Papillon - all movies I was taken to before kindergarten.
DeleteI agree about the loss of movie events - and the shared experience of watching the same movie on broadcast TV as your neighbors for a finite distance around the broadcast tower. I do think the recent 70th Anniversary screening of Casablanca that took place simultaneously all over the country was actually a step back in that direction - and I fervently hope the studios do more - including...dare I dream it? 007?
I love James BOnd movies and I love these posters you've shared. Great A-Z post!
ReplyDeleteNutschell
www.thewritingnut.com
I love them too - thanks for the kind words, and thanks for coming by!
DeleteAbout the only place I ever saw a double feature was the drive-in and those are hard to find now.
ReplyDeleteI think these double features were mostly for the drive-in - but who knows, a 007 loving hardtop owner may have booked them in too!
DeleteI also miss the drive-in a lot. I didn't want to see every movie there - but there are movies I would prefer to only watch there. Cheers!
Great pictures! I'm a new follower from the AtoZ Challenge. Nice to meet you. :)
ReplyDeleteMargo! So nice to meet you! Thanks for the follow! Please come by anytime, and comment as often as the mood strikes!
DeleteJames Bond double-features? I didn't even know they existed outside of TV. Amesome!
ReplyDeleteYeah, they were apparently a fairly big deal - getting their own posters and trailers - and apparently sticking in the memory of anyone lucky enough to see them!
DeleteI have seen every movie listed above. I miss the James Bond series but did hear another was being made.
ReplyDeleteI wish the studios would bring back Sean Connery as a spy out of retirement for a special case. That would be awesome!
Yes, I have owned all of these movies on at least two formats, and sometimes in five different editions (taped off TV, full screen VHS, widescreen VHS, DVD, and Blu-Ray).
DeleteSkyfall is just about 220 days away as I type this.
And you might enjoy some cleverly edited trailers over at YouTube, using footage of the older Connery from The Rock, Rising Sun, and Entrapment mixed with Judi Dench footage to cobble together what that movie you've imagined might look like!
Thanks for coming by, Jeremy!
My very first Bond film was the Thunderball and You Only Live Twice double-feature. I was in hog heaven!!! :)
ReplyDeleteOh man, DL - that is the heat right there! My first theatrical was For Your Eyes Only, I think. Definitely not a Connery.
DeleteKaren - thanks for coming by!
ReplyDeleteMy first theatrical experience of Bond was Golden Eye. I can only imagine the awesomeness of seeing Connery as Bond on the big screen. Man, not even the cheap theaters ran Bond around here.
ReplyDeleteWow - Bond #4 was your first in the theater! Well, I'm only one earlier - #3 for me!
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