Friday, March 09, 2018

Chapter 5: George Lazenby: On Her Majesty's Secret Service




...The James Bond Rolex Story...

The Complete History Of James Bond Watches
Including ALL Watches Worn In All James Bond Movies
The Definitive Guide

Chapter 5: George Lazenby: On Her Majesty's Secret Service


Rolex Submariner & Pre-Daytona Chronograph



George Lazenby wore two different Rolex watches when he played James Bond. He wore a Rolex Submariner and a Rolex pre-Daytona chronograph which is pictured below. This watch came to auction in 2016 but apparently did not sell. I don't know why, but I imagine it was withdrawn because it did not meet the reserve, but I do NOT know that to be a fact.






“Bond surveyed his weapons. They were only his hands and his feet, his Gillette razor and his wristwatch, a heavy Rolex Oyster Perpetual on an expanding metal bracelet. Used properly, these could be turned into most effective knuckle busters.”  

—Ian Fleming's James Bond novel: 
On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.






An American James Bond?

Sean Connery grew tired of playing James Bond and in 1968 decided to move on with his acting career. Albert Broccoli, the producer of James Bond approached Burt Reynolds and offered him the role. Burt Reynolds claimed he rejected the role saying "An American can't play James Bond. It just can't be done!!!"


Burt Reynolds around the time he was offered the James Bond Role



It sure is interesting to wonder what would have happened if Burt Reynolds had accepted the role? Kind of like, wondering what Raiders Of The Lost Ark what have been like if Tom Selleck played Indiana Jones instead of Harrison Ford!?!

It is also interesting to see how remarkably similar Sean Connery and Burt Reynolds look when they got older. By the way, both Sean Connery and Burt Reynolds are wearing toupees in this photo.



The Search for a new James Bond Continued

Sean Connery had played James Bond for five straight movies and decided it was time to move on in his career. EON productions had to find a replacement in 1968 and narrowed down the field to these five British actors. Of course, George Lazenby was chosen. George Lazenby is located on the bottom right-hand side of the photo below.


Movie #7. On Her Majesty's Secret Service [George Lazenby, 1st] 1969
• Rolex Submariner [Reference 5513]
• Rolex Chronograph [Reference 6238]


"Bond surveyed his weapons. They were only his hands and his feet, his Gillette razor and his wrist-watch, a heavy Rolex Oyster Perpetual on an expanding metal bracelet. Used properly, these could be turned into most effective knuckle busters." –Ian Fleming [On Her Majesty's Secret Service].





Here is a really cool French version of the movie poster for On Her Majesty's Secret Service. Before becoming James Bond, George Lazenby was a superb skier and overall athlete. In the poster image below, George Lazenby as James Bond is shown wearing his Rolex Pre-Daytona Chronograph. 


On a side note, having grown up in San Francisco, I learned to ski at Squaw Valley, which is located near Lake Tahoe in California. I remember back in the early 1980s, when I was 16 years-old noticing, after a day of great skiing, how many dudes (including myself) were wearing Rolex Submariner watches. (I remember when I was 16 thinking there was something so James Bondish about the Rolex Submariner, even though at the time I was not aware that any James Bond had ever worn one.) 

There was something just so cool about wearing a Rolex and Skiing. It had to do with how sturdy and waterproof the Rolex watch was. If you ski, you probably know what I am talking about. Thus it is ironically cool that George Lazenby is pictured above wearing his Rolex Pre-Daytona in his ski outfit. Very Cool if you ask me!!!




George Lazenby Rolex Submariner & Pre-Daytona Chronograph

George Lazenby only played James Bond once. Believe it or not, he was offered a 7 movie contract to play James Bond and he turned it down!?!?!

In On Her Majesty's Secret Service, Lazenby wore two different Rolex Watches. He wore a Rolex Submariner as seen in the first four pictures below and in the last next two images that follow he is wearing a Pre-Daytona Rolex Chronograph.






How This Bond Got His Rolex Submariner
Reality Is Stranger Than Fiction

Apparently, Lazenby purchased the Rolex Submariner he wears in the movie to wear for his audition for the role of James Bond.

The Cure sings a song named Why Can't I Be Youand that is exactly how George Lazenby felt about Sean Connery. In his obsession to replace Sean Connery as James Bond, George basically became Sean Connery, and if you watch the fascinating interview below this photo, you will learn straight from George Lazenby how he became Bond.












Telly Savalas plays Ernst Stravo Blofeld–Bond's arch nemesis–leader of SPECTRE.












James Bond Pre-Daytona Rolex

Roger Lazenby wore two different Rolex watches when he played James Bond in On Her Majesty's Secret Service. First, he wore the Rolex Submariner seen in the photos above, and he also wore a stainless steel Rolex Daytona, as seen in the photos below.


















The Rolex in the photo below is the actual watch George Lazenby wore.












Roger Lazenby On Being Bond



George Lazenby Today
James Bond Wears Rolex On & Off Screen
Still Wearing Rolex 50 Years Later!!!

Actor George Lazenby replaced Sean Connery in the role of James Bond in 1969 in On Her Majesty's Secret Service. George Lazenby only played James Bond once but interestingly he wore a Submariner and a pre-Daytona Albino Rolex Chronograph in On Her Majesty's Secret Service.

To this day George Lazenby still wears a two-tone Rolex Datejust as seen below. I imagine, like Daniel Craig, he prefers Rolex in his real life. You can learn much more about George Lazenby and the history of James Bond Watches by clicking here.


I think it would be really cool if in the next James Bond movie if they brought back Lazenby to play a different character. You know, like one of the older dudes James Reports to. Wouldn't that be really cool!!!