Tag Archives: John Gavin

The Man Who was Almost Bond: John Gavin

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Actor John Gavin

From Cary Grant to Rod Taylor, we have heard of many actors that were considered to play Ian Fleming’s James Bond.

And one came closer than others: John Gavin.

John Gavin, who passed away Feb. 9, 2018, is not an actor as well-known as Grant or Sean Connery, but he was a handsome leading man throughout the 1950s and 1960s. He retired from acting in the 1980s and went on to become the United States Ambassador to Mexico during the Reagan administration. Today, Gavin is best known for his role in Alfred Hitchcock’s “Psycho” (1960) and Lana Turner’s love interest in “Imitation of Life” (1959).

Gavin was considered for the role of James Bond after George Lazenby refused to continue playing the character after the film “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” (1969).

In an interview at the 2015 Turner Classic Movies Classic Film Festival, Lazenby said he got bad advice and was told to quit the role, because Bond films were going to lose popularity with changing times.

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Musical Monday: Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967)

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It’s no secret that the Hollywood Comet loves musicals.
In 2010, I revealed I had seen 400 movie musicals over the course of eight years. Now that number is over 500. To celebrate and share this musical love, here is my weekly feature about musicals.

This week’s musical:
Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967) – Musical #366

Studio:
Universal Pictures

Director:
George Roy Hill

Starring:
Julie Andrews, James Fox, Mary Tyler Moore, Carol Channing, John Gavin, Jack Soo, Pat Morita, Beatrice Lillie, Lisabeth Hush, Mae Clarke (uncredited)

Plot:
Set in 1922 New York, Millie Dillmount (Andrews) strives to be a modern woman; dressing as a flapper, becoming a stenographer and marrying her boss. She becomes friends with sweet, naive Miss Dorothy (Moore), who is also new to New York. Millie encounters many adventures along the way, including eccentric millionairess Muzzy Van Hossmere (Channing). She also uncovers a white slavery ring, which kidnaps orphans.

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