Casino Royale (1967)

Casino Royale is a 1967 spy parody comedy film originally produced by Columbia Pictures featuring an ensemble cast. It is loosely based on Ian Fleming's first James Bond novel. The film stars David Niven as the "original" Bond, Sir James Bond 007. Forced out of retirement to investigate the deaths and disappearances of international spies, he soon battles the mysterious Dr. Noah and SMERSH. The film's tagline: "Casino Royale is too much... for one James Bond!" refers to Bond's ruse to mislead SMERSH in which six other agents are pretending to be "James Bond", namely, baccarat master Evelyn Tremble (Peter Sellers); millionaire spy Vesper Lynd (Ursula Andress); Bond's secretary Miss Moneypenny (Barbara Bouchet); Bond's daughter by Mata Hari, Mata Bond (Joanna Pettet); and British agents Coop (Terence Cooper) and The Detainer (Daliah Lavi).

Charles K. Feldman, the producer, had acquired the film rights in 1960 and had attempted to get Casino Royale made as an Eon Productions Bond film; however, Feldman and the producers of the Eon series, Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman, failed to come to terms. Believing that he could not compete with the Eon series, Feldman resolved to produce the film as a satire. The budget escalated as various directors and writers became involved in the production, and actors expressed dissatisfaction with the project.

Casino Royale was released on 13 April 1967, two months prior to Eon's fifth Bond movie, You Only Live Twice. The film was a financial success, grossing over $41.7 million worldwide, and Burt Bacharach's musical score was praised, earning him an Oscar nomination for the song "The Look of Love". Critical reaction to Casino Royale, however, was generally negative, with many reviewers regarding it as a baffling, disorganised affair. Since 1999, the film's rights have been held by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, distributors of the Bond films by Eon Productions.

Storyline[]

Plot[]

This wacky send-up of James Bond films stars David Niven as the iconic debonair spy, now retired and living a peaceful existence. Bond is called back into duty when the mysterious organization SMERSH begins assassinating British secret agents. Ridiculous circumstances lead to the involvement of a colorful cast of characters, including the villainous Le Chiffre (Orson Welles), seasoned gambler Evelyn Tremble (Peter Sellers) and Bond's bumbling nephew, Jimmy Bond (Woody Allen).

Genres[]

Action
Comedy
Satire
Spy
Adventure
Parody film

Motion Picture Rating[]

PG (Australia) (DVD/video rating)
A (Australia) (original rating)
16 (Austria)
14 (Brazil)
PG (Canada) (Manitoba/Ontario)
A (Canada) (Nova Scotia)
G (Canada) (Quebec)
15 (Denmark)
K-12 (Finland)
Tous publics (France)
12 (Germany) (2001, re-rating)
12 (Hungary)
12 (Iceland)
U (India) (re-rating)
A (India) (1968, original rating)
PG (Ireland) (Video rating)
G (Ireland) (1967)
T (Italy)
G (Japan)
14 (Netherlands) (original rating)
6 (Netherlands) (re-rating)
9 (Norway) (recommended rating)
16 (Norway) (1967, cinema rating)
PG (Singapore)
18 (Spain)
11 (Sweden)
U (UK) (original rating)
PG (UK) (re-rating)

Images[]

Cast and Crew[]

Directors[]

John Huston
Ken Hughes
Robert Parrish
Joseph McGrath
Val Guest

Writing Credits[]

Wolf Mankowitz (screenplay)
John Law (screenplay)
Michael Sayers (screenplay)
Ian Fleming (novel)

Cast[]

David Niven as Sir James Bond
Peter Sellers as Evelyn Tremble / James Bond
Ursula Andress as Vesper Lynd / James Bond
Joanna Pettet as Mata Bond / James Bond
Daliah Lavi as The Detainer / James Bond
Woody Allen as Dr. Noah / Jimmy Bond
Barbara Bouchet as Miss Moneypenny / James Bond 007
Terence Cooper as Coop / James Bond
Deborah Kerr as Agent Mimi / Lady Fiona McTarry
Orson Welles as Le Chiffre
William Holden as Ransome
Charles Boyer as Legrand
John Huston as M / McTarry
Kurt Kasznar as Smernov
George Raft as himself
Jean-Paul Belmondo as French Legionnaire (as Jean Paul Belmondo)
Jacqueline Bisset (credited as Jacky Bisset) as Miss Goodthighs
Bernard Cribbins as Carlton Towers
Ronnie Corbett as Polo
Anna Quayle as Frau Hoffner
Geoffrey Bayldon as Q.
John Wells as Fordyce, Q's assistant.
Gabriella Licudi as Eliza
Angela Scoular as Buttercup
Tracey Crisp as Heather
Elaine Taylor as Peg
Alexandra Bastedo as Meg
Derek Nimmo as Hadley
Colin Gordon as Casino director.
John Bluthal as MI5 Man/Casino doorman.
Graham Stark as Cashier
Duncan Macrae as Inspector Mathis: he shows Evelyn Tremble his "credentials" in the pre-title sequence.
Richard Wattis as British Army officer.
Vladek Sheybal as Le Chiffre's representative.
Tracy Reed as Fang Leader.
Chic Murray as Chic.
Jonathan Routh as John
Percy Herbert as First piper.
Jeanne Roland as Captain of the Guards.

Producers[]

Charles K. Feldman (produced by)
Jerry Bresler (produced by)

Details[]

Country[]

USA

Language[]

English

Release Dates[]

April 13, 1967 (UK) (London) (premiere)
April 19, 1967 (US) (premiere)
April 23, 1967 (UK)
April 28, 1967 (US)
May 26, 1967 (Ireland)
July 2, 1967 (Brazil)
July 23, 1967 (Venezuela)
July 26, 1967 (Mexico)
August 24, 1967 (Uruguay)
September 8, 1967 (Australia)
October 6, 1967 (Yugoslavia) (Belgrade)
December 16, 1967 (Japan)
December 20, 1967 (Monaco)
December 21, 1967 (Austria)
December 21, 1967 (Denmark)
December 21, 1967 (Netherlands)
December 21, 1967 (West Germany)
December 22, 1967 (Spain) (Madrid)
December 22, 1967 (Finland)
December 22, 1967 (France)
December 22, 1967 (Italy)
December 22, 1967 (Sweden)
February 22, 1968 (Colombia)
April 1, 1969 (Turkey)
January 8, 1971 (South Korea)
June 23, 1977 (Korea)
June 21, 1980 (Finland) (re-release)
December 25, 1980 (UK) (BBC1 broadcast)
October 15, 1994 (Japan) (re-release)
June 15, 2001 (Germany) (DVD premiere)
February 20, 2002 (France) (re-release)
March 8, 2005 (Greece) (DVD premiere)
July 1, 2005 (Czech Republic) (DVD premiere)
November 6, 2007 (Canada) (DVD premiere)
October 31, 2012 (Belgium) (Razor Reel Fantastic Film Festival Bruges)

Home Media Release Dates[]

May 4, 1993 (UK) (VHS)
November 22, 1993 (UK) (VHS) (re-release)
1997 (UK) (VHS) (re-release)
March 18, 2002 (UK) (VHS) (re-release)

Company Credits[]

Production Companies[]

Famous Artists Productions

Distributors[]

Columbia Pictures (1967) (USA) (theatrical)
Columbia Films (1967) (France) (theatrical)
Columbia International Films (1967) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
Columbia Pictures Corporation (1967) (UK) (theatrical)
Columbia-Bavaria Filmgesellschaft m.b.H. (1967) (West Germany) (theatrical)
Columbia Film (1967) (Sweden) (theatrical)
Columbia Films S. A. (1967) (Mexico) (theatrical)
Columbia Films (1967) (Finland) (theatrical)
Paramount Pictures (1967) (1993 UK VHS)
Interpeninsular Films (1967) (Spain) (theatrical)
Kamera (1967) (Norway) (theatrical)
SPE Films India (1968) (India) (theatrical) (Columbia Films of India)
CBS (1970) (USA) (TV)
Suevia Films - Cesáreo González (1977) (Spain) (theatrical)
Kent Filmi (1980) (Finland) (theatrical)
RCA/Columbia-Hoyts Home Video (1983) (Australia) (VHS)
RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video (1986) (USA) (VHS)
RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video (1987) (USA) (VHS)
Video Trade (Norway) (VHS)
BCI Eclipse (1989) (USA) (VHS)
Columbia TriStar Home Video (1992) (USA) (VHS)
MTV3 (1996) (Finland) (TV)
20th Century Fox Entertainment (2001) (Spain) (DVD)
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2001) (Australia) (DVD)
FS Film (2001) (Finland) (DVD)
MGM Home Entertainment (2001) (Germany) (DVD)
MGM Home Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
MGM Home Entertainment (2011) (Germany) (Blu-ray) (DVD)
Yleisradio (YLE) (2016) (Finland) (TV)
Nelonen (2018) (Finland) (TV)
LK-TEL Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video (USA) (all media) (laserdisc)
Video Trade (Finland) (VHS)
British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) (1980) (UK) (TV) (BBC1)
CIC Video (1993) (UK) (VHS) (re-release)
Universal Pictures (2002) (UK) (VHS) (re-release)

Special Effects[]

Camera Effects
Camera Effects (Malcolm Bubb)
Camera Effects (compositing and effects)

Other Companies[]

Bermans, London (costumes for Ursula Andress and Joanna Pettet by)
Chombert (from Paris: furs for Ursula Andress)
Guy Laroche (from Paris: casino dresses)
Paco Rabanne (from Paris: guard girl dresses)
Richard Williams Films (titles) (uncredited)
Westrex Recording System (sound recording system)

Technical Specs[]

Runtime[]

131 mins

Color[]

Color
Black and White (archive footage: Keystone Cops)

Aspect Ratio[]

2.39:1

Trivia[]

Peter Sellers and Orson Welles hated each other so much that the filming of the scene where both of them face each other across a gaming table actually took place on different days with a double standing in for the other actor.
Although the conflict between Peter Sellers and Orson Welles has become legendary, it was reportedly Sellers who suggested Welles for the role of Le Chiffre.
Woody Allen's scenes were shot in London. Producers delayed his final day of shooting so many times that, out of frustration, Allen left the set, went directly to Heathrow Airport, and flew back to New York City without changing out of his costume.
Back in 1962, Ian Fleming had already decided on David Niven for the role of James Bond in Dr. No (1962). He was cross when Sean Connery was chosen, but was apparently so impressed with the way Connery portrayed Bond that he gave the character Scottish ancestry.
According to interviews with director Val Guest, Peter Sellers became such a problem during the filming that the decision was made to fire him before he had finished all of his scenes. As a result, the end of the marching band torture scene was noticeably altered and Sellers' subsequent scenes were written out.
Apparently most of the stars were not aware when they signed on that this was a comedy spoof, not a straight James Bond movie.
Some biographies of Peter Sellers suggest that he took the role of Bond to heart and was annoyed at the decision to make the film a comedy, as he wanted to play Bond straight. This is illustrated in somewhat fictionalised form in The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004), based on the biography by Roger Lewis, who has claimed that Sellers kept rewriting and improvising scenes himself to make them play seriously. This story is in agreement with the observation that the only parts of the film close to the book are the ones featuring Sellers and Orson Welles.
The rift between Orson Welles and Peter Sellers was partly caused by the arrival on set of Princess Margaret, sister of Queen Elizabeth II. Sellers had known her previously and greeted her in an ostentatious manner to ensure all cast and crew noticed. However, the Princess walked straight past him and made a big fuss over Welles. Nonplussed, Sellers stormed off the set and refused to film with Welles again.
Peter Sellers hired Terry Southern to write his dialogue (and not the rest of the script) to "outshine" Orson Welles and Woody Allen.
For the scene in which she was supposed to seduce James Bond wearing a nightgown and suggestively cradling a big bottle of champagne in her arms, Jacqueline Bisset was shocked when Peter Sellers suddenly turned on her and fired a gun directly into her face when she entered the room. Though the gun only had blanks, the stunt left her face coated in burning gunpowder and bleeding from where the shards tore her skin. "First I thought I had been actually shot and then when I realized it had been a blank, I thought I'd been blinded. My face looked like a shower spout of pinpricks leaking blood," said Bisset. The noise scared Bisset so much, she dropped the champagne bottle on her feet. After that, "I was panicked whenever I had a scene with Peter Sellers," said Bisset. "To get shot in your first scene with a big star, that is a nightmare."
According to writer Eric Lax, Woody Allen was astonished by what he viewed as extravagant spending on the film (for example, he was flown in and put up in an expensive hotel for several weeks doing nothing before they got around to shooting his scenes) and the chaotic production. In a letter to friend, he described the production as "a madhouse. I haven't begun filming yet but saw the sets for my scenes. They are the height of bad pop art expensive vulgarity. Saw rushes and am dubious to put it mildly, but probably film will coin a mint. (Not money, just a single peppermint.) I play the villain (okay to give that out) and also James Bond's bastard nephew (not all right to give that out) and my part changes every day as new stars fall in....I would like it emphasized and made quite clear that I am not a writer of Casino. I'm adding a few ad-lib jokes to my own part but that's all. In fact...we demanded a letter saying my name cannot appear on screen as writer. This because everyone who contributed a comma is demanding his name on the film and the writers' list looks like Terry Southern, Ben Hecht, Michael Sayers, Frank Buxton, Mickey Rose, Peter Sellers, Val Guest, Wolf Mankowitz, etc."
In Guatemala, the movie is known as "The Movie of the Night Before the Earthquake." It aired for the first time in the country on February 3, 1976, hours before an earthquake that killed thousands.
Woody Allen called the production "a madhouse". To this day, he regrets taking part in the film.
Peter Sellers punched director Joseph McGrath, a personal friend, when he complained about Sellers' behavior on the set.
In 1999 MGM paid Sony $10 million for the rights to this film.
The film's original studio-approved budget was $6 million, a large sum for 1966. Production problems resulted in the shoot running months over schedule. By the time the film was finally completed, the budget had more than doubled, making it one of the most expensive films made up to that time. The previous official Bond movie, Thunderball (1965), had a budget of $9-$11 million. You Only Live Twice (1967), released the same year, had a budget of $9.5-$11.5 million. The film got a reputation as "a mini Cleopatra (1963)", referring to the out-of-control costs of the film that almost bankrupted 20th Century-Fox.
Peter Sellers often caused interruptions by leaving the set for days at a time.
This is the only James Bond movie to feature two US Top 40 chart-toppers. The "Casino Royale" Theme by Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass went to #27 on the Billboard chart. "The Look of Love" by Dusty Springfield, with music by Burt Bacharach and lyrics by Hal David, went to #4, and was nominated for a Best Song Oscar.
A carpet beater can be seen hanging from the side of Orson Welles's chair. This is a link to the original Casino Royale novel, in which Le Chiffre tortures Bond by thrashing his testicles with a carpet beater.
John Bluthal was to play more roles but Peter Sellers had him sacked.
Orson Welles attributed the success of the film to a marketing strategy that featured a naked tattooed lady on the film's posters and print ads.
The Mata Hari Dance & Spy School is located on the fictional Berlin street Feldmanstrasse, named for producer Charles K. Feldman.
Director Joseph McGrath was fired and replaced by Robert Parrish.
Orson Welles reportedly insisted on including magic tricks in his scenes, a possible source of the friction between him and Peter Sellers.
Woody Allen was inspired to direct his own films after experiencing the chaotic production of this film.
Peter Sellers ordered one set to be torn down because he had a dream the night before in which his mother had visited Shepperton and told him she didn't like it.
In his first scene, David Niven bounces up and down in a chair whose seat is fixed to what appear to be accordion bellows. It's a "chamber horse", a home exercise machine popular in 18th-century Britain.
Stuntman Tony Smart would later serve as a special effects technician on the remake Casino Royale (2006).
In addition to the credited writers, Woody Allen, Peter Sellers, Val Guest, Ben Hecht, Joseph Heller, Terry Southern, and Billy Wilder are all believed to have contributed to the screenplay to varying degrees.
David Niven was Ian Fleming's original choice to play Bond.
Jack Lemmon refused a cameo.
Several actors have also appeared in official EON James Bond films: Ursula Andress, Vladek Sheybal, Angela Scoular, Burt Kwouk, John Hollis, Milton Reid, Jeanne Roland, Caroline Munro, and Peter Burton. The prize goes to Nikki Van der Zyl, who dubs the Bond Girls, as she does in most official films. As ever, she is uncredited.
Numerous screenwriters and directors contributed uncredited bits, including Billy Wilder (the "Nobody's Perfect" tag line) and Terry Southern (the war room in Berlin).
Though the movie has little in common with the original Ian Fleming James Bond novel, a tie-in book was released, complete with the film's tattooed girl movie poster on the cover. The tagline read: "From: M. To: 007. IMMEDIATE ACTION. Have just seen Charles K. Feldman's film of this book - Only one thing in common - Both brilliant. Investigate and report."
Ian Hendry was cut out of this project. All that remains of his role is a dead body being removed.
Joan Collins turned down the role of Giovanna Goodthighs.
The film reputedly cost more than the combined budgets of the first four Broccoli - Saltzman Eon James Bond films.
Producer Charles K. Feldman originally intended to make the film as a co-production with official Bond series producers Harry Saltzman and Albert R. Broccoli, with Sean Connery as James Bond and Shirley MacLaine as Vesper Lynd. Saltzman and Broccoli had just co-produced Thunderball (1965) with Kevin McClory, and didn't want to do it again. United Artists supposedly offered Feldman $500,000 for the rights to Casino Royale in 1965, but the offer was rejected. Forced to produce the film on his own, Feldman approached Connery to star as Bond. Unwilling to meet Connery's $1 million salary demand, Feldman decided to turn the film into a spoof, and cast David Niven as Bond. After the film went through numerous production problems and an exploding budget, Feldman met Connery at a Hollywood party and reportedly told Connery it would've been cheaper to pay him the $1 million.
Dr. Noah's name was a spoof of the name of the Bond villain Dr. No, and the name of Miss Giovana Goodthighs was a parody of the Miss Mary Goodnight character, both from Ian Fleming novels. These characters appeared in EON Productions' Dr. No (1962) and The Man with the Golden Gun (1974), respectively.
Woody Allen wrote the script for Take the Money and Run (1969) while cooped up in his London hotel during production delays.
Woody Allen spent his time off the set playing high-stakes poker, using his winnings to buy German Expressionist art (including an Emil Nolde watercolor and a drawing by Oska Kokoschka) and hard-to-find jazz records.
The film premiered on April 13, 1967, exactly 14 years to the day after the Ian Fleming "Casino Royale" novel was published.
Peter Sellers was unavailable for the filming of an ending and of linking footage to explain the details, leaving the filmmakers to devise a way to make the existing footage work without him. The framing device of a beginning and ending with David Niven was invented to salvage the footage. Val Guest indicated that he was given the task of creating a narrative thread which would link all segments of the film. He chose to use the original Bond and Vesper as linking characters to tie the story together. Guest states that in the originally released versions of the film, a cardboard cutout of Sellers in the background was used for the final scenes. In later versions, this cardboard cutout image was replaced by a sequence showing Sellers in highland dress, inserted by "trick photography".
After the film proceeded to become a flop at the box office, Joseph McGrath was approached by some of the producers of the movie, who told him that whilst they didn't blame him for all the tension and problems which occurred during filming, they made it clear that they never wanted to work with that b****** Sellers ever again.
At the Intercon science fiction convention held in Slough in 1978, David Prowse commented on his part in this film, apparently his big-screen debut. He claimed that he was originally asked to play "Super Pooh", a giant Winnie The Pooh in a superhero costume who attacks Tremble during the Torture of The Mind sequence. This idea, as with many others in the film's script, was rapidly dropped, and Prowse was recast as a Frankenstein-type Monster for the closing scenes. The final sequence was principally directed by former actor and stuntman Richard Talmadge.
Maude Spector, the casting director for this film, also worked on a number of "official" Sean Connery and Roger Moore James Bond Films.
A draft from 1957 discovered in Ben Hecht's papers, but which does not identify the screenwriter, is a direct adaptation of the novel, with a poker-playing American gangster replacing Bond.
Capucine, Joan Collins, and Elizabeth Taylor turned down the role of Vesper Lynd.
Film debut of David Prowse.
The name for the organization SMERSH comes from a Soviet counterespionage organization that existed during World War II. It was a branch of the NKVD (later KGB). The name is derived from the Russian phrase "smiert spionam" ("death to spies"). The Living Daylights (1987) later made use of Smiert Spionam as a plot device.
Ian Fleming received three offers for the film rights to his "Casino Royale" novel in 1954. Producer/director Gregory Ratoff bought a six-month option to the rights in May 1954 for $600. Ratoff took it to CBS, which produced it and broadcast it as Climax!: Casino Royale (1954). CBS then purchased the rights for $1,000. John Shepridge negotiated the sale of the film and television rights in 1954. Before the sale, the novel had not been successful, and was retitled and Americanized for its paperback issue. Twelve months later, after the TV episode, Ratoff bought "Casino Royale" outright in perpetuity for an additional $6,000. Fleming later said he regretted both sales because he sold them so cheaply, but he needed the money at the time. With the money from the larger sale, Fleming bought a Ford Thunderbird for £3,000. Ratoff died on December 14, 1960. In 1961 his widow sold the rights to Charles K. Feldman for $75,000. Instead of a straight James Bond film, Feldman shot it as a parody. In 1999, Sony paid MGM $5 million to settle a $40 million lawsuit that MGM had brought against Sony over the Bond rights, due to Sony's intentions to remake "Casino Royale". Sony agreed to hand over all of its rights to the Bond character and "Casino Royale". In an ironic twist of fate, Sony bought MGM in 2005. In 2006, they released their own serious adaptation, Casino Royale (2006).
The film was released two months before You Only Live Twice (1967). It was the first time two James Bond films were released in the same year. It happened again 16 years later with Octopussy (1983) and Never Say Never Again (1983).
The British Intelligence agency in this movie is MI5 and not MI6 nor SIS as in EON Productions' official James Bond series.
Though this film is not part of the EON Productions official series, a number of compilation albums and CDs of James Bond film music actually often incorporate one or both of two tracks from this film, "The Look of Love" and "Casino Royale", in their compilations.
Prior to the release of Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), The Times did a dedication of its newspaper for an entire week to the world of 007. This was the only film to be given a bad billing. Opinion was divided as whether the best mistake was "the producers for funding it or the audience turning up to see it!"
Val Guest directed additional sequences, scenes with Woody Allen, and additional scenes with David Niven. Ken Hughes directed the Berlin scenes. John Huston directed scenes at Sir James Bond's house and scenes at Scottish castle. Joseph McGrath directed scenes with Peter Sellers, Ursula Andress, and Orson Welles. Robert Parrish directed some casino scenes.
Virtually nothing from Ben Hecht's scripts was ever filmed. He died from a heart attack in April 1964, two days before he was due to present it to Charles Feldman. Time reported in 1966 that the script had been completely rewritten by Billy Wilder, and by the time the film reached production only the idea that the name James Bond should be given to a number of other agents remained. This key plot device in the finished film, in the case of Hecht's version, occurs after the demise of the original James Bond (an event which happened prior to the beginning of his story) which, as Hecht's M puts it, "not only perpetuates his memory, but confuses the opposition."
Virtually nothing from Ben Hecht's scripts was ever filmed. He died from a heart attack in April 1964, two days before he was due to present it to Charles Feldman. Time reported in 1966 that the script had been completely rewritten by Billy Wilder, and by the time the film reached production only the idea that the name James Bond should be given to a number of other agents remained. This key plot device in the finished film, in the case of Hecht's version, occurs after the demise of the original James Bond (an event which happened prior to the beginning of his story) which, as Hecht's M puts it, "not only perpetuates his memory, but confuses the opposition."
John Huston originally wrote the role of M with Robert Morley in mind. When Morley was unavailable, Huston played the part himself.
Val Guest found himself finishing the work started by several other directors. Guest said the producer offered him a unique "Co-ordinating Director" credit, but he refused.
The opening sequences were filmed in County Wicklow, Ireland. Director John Huston was an Irish resident at the time.
On Peter Sellers' first day he was presented with a gift of a white Rolls-Royce by Charles Feldman, appreciative of the success of What's New Pussycat (1965).
Peter Sellers, Peter O'Toole, Woody Allen, Ursula Andress and Burt Bacharach all previously worked on What's New Pussycat (1965).
The Scottish cultural paraphernalia in the film is a nod to Sean Connery, the actor who made James Bond an internationally popular franchise.
Peter Sellers' then-wife Britt Ekland would go on to play a Bond girl in The Man with the Golden Gun (1974).
Despite the film's poor reputation amongst Bond fans and critics, it not only turned a handsome profit but grossed more than the first 2 official James Bond films (Dr. No (1962) and From Russia with Love (1963)) combined.
An entire sequence involving Tremble going to the front for the underground James Bond Training School (which turns out to be under Harrods, of which the training area was the lowest level) was never shot, thus creating an abrupt cut from Vesper announcing that Tremble will be James Bond to Tremble exiting the elevator into the Training School.
In his book "Woody Allen: A Biography", John Baxter lists uncredited contributors to the movie's script, including Allen collaborator Mickey Rose, Frank Buxton, Orson Welles, Joseph McGrath, John Huston, and former MGM president Dore Schary.
When Peter Sellers arrives at MI5 headquarters to be kitted out by Q, all of the soldiers are from the Intelligence Corps; the peaked caps have cypress green bands. The Intelligence Corps began to wear cypress green berets as regimental headdress in 1977. The soldier who knocks himself out when saluting is wearing the Intelligence Corps cap badge.
Carol White was offered the role of Mata Bond. "I could have earned $2,000 a day, but the part would have done nothing for me."
Ursula Andress suffered an eye injury while feeding deer at Hampton Court.
The first image seen in the movie is graffiti on the Paris pissoir reading "Les Beatles".
Geraldine Chaplin filmed a cameo appearance, but was cut out of the film.
Cameos by Frank Sinatra, Sophia Loren, and Barbra Streisand were planned.
Peter Sellers and Burt Kwouk played Inspector Clouseau and Cato in several Pink Panther movies. This film and The Fiendish Plot of Dr. Fu Manchu (1980) are the only two non-Panther movies in which they both appear.
This film was originally intended to be released on Christmas in 1966, but because the shoot ran several months over schedule, it was not released until April of 1967.
Peter Sellers secured such a good back-end deal on the film that it was still making money for his estate as late as 2011.
Was not screened for critics prior to release, a very unusual move at the time.
The stress of making the film proved so much for producer Charles K. Feldman that he developed heart problems that ultimately killed him a year later.
David Niven is the only actor to play James Bond whom Ian Fleming makes a direct reference to in the Bond novels. Fleming portrayed him in a positive light in the novel 'You Only Live Twice' (the film adaptation of which coincidentally was released the same year as this spoof film) as an actor spoken highly of by the novel's female protagonist in view of his respectful behavior towards Japanese women in Hollywood. In return, she had named her cormorant companion after him. Prior to the films being made, Niven had also been chosen as the ideal candidate by Fleming to play Bond, which likely inspired this tribute.
This is the first of two movies in which Peter Sellers dresses up as French artist Henri de Toulouse Lautrec. The second was Revenge of the Pink Panther (1978).
Charles K. Feldman wanted Brigitte Bardot for the role of Mata Bond.
Early in the film, M tells Sir James Bond "if you break the bloody glass, you won't hold up the weather." He is actually quoting (without acknowledgment) "Bagpipe Music," a poem by Louis MacNeice.
In the McTarry scene, the family wears Clan Davidson tartan. In the piper's scene near the end, Bond is in Dress Gordon clan tartan, and Peter O'Toole in Black Watch tartan.
The soundtrack album is a big hit with audiophile purists and is considered one of the finest examples of analogue recording. The original LP can fetch up to $50 or more in mint condition. The vocal track "The Look of Love" sung by Dusty Springfield is exceptionally transparent. You can "hear" the room through the microphones.
Ronnie Corbett refers to Peter Lorre, who played LeChiffre in Climax!: Casino Royale (1954).
The Bond / Casino Royale / Pink Panther connection: David Niven, Peter Sellers, and Roger Moore have all played James Bond and appeared in Pink Panther films, and their characters in The Pink Panther films had possession of the Pink Panther Diamond at one time or another. Roger Moore and Peter Sellers have both played Inspector Clouseau. Animator Richard Williams directed the opening credits for Casino Royale (1967) and The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976).
Vehicles featured included: James Bond's black supercharged Bentley Special 4.5 litre, Evelyn Tremble's black Lotus Formula 3 race car, a yellow Jaguar E roadster, a black Mercedes-Benz, Wrights Dairies white Bedford milk delivery van, a Citroën police car, and a Golden three-wheeler.
In 1977, Milton Reid played both the henchman Sandor in The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) and the henchman Eye Patch in No. 1 of the Secret Service (1977). Reid had applied to play Oddjob in Goldfinger (1964), but lost out to Harold Sakata. Reid had previously played, uncredited, one of Dr. No's guards in Dr. No (1962) and one of Mata Bond's attendants in this film.
As Woody Allen is being dragged before a firing squad, he shouts, "You can't shoot me... my doctor says I'm not allowed to have bullets enter my body". In Love and Death (1975), when a character challenges him to a duel "to the death", he replies, "I never do anything to the death, doctor's orders." (Allen is known to have ad libbed several lines in Casino Royale.)
Le Chiffre is a French word which translates as "The Cypher" or "The Number". Translations in other languages include "Die Nummer", "Herr Ziffer", and "Mr. Number".
Duncan Macrae died before the film was released in the UK.
Ironically, the film's underlying plot device of the "original" Sir James Bond (David Niven) having multiple newer namesakes to confuse SMERSH, SPECTRE, etc., within fan theory, could be seen to be actually a legitimate explanation of why the official James Bond canon has lasted some many decades with him looking so different. Especially with Judi Dench's M, clearly working with 2 men called "James Bond". Sean Connery's "original" official version of Bond could easily be retro-fitted as Sir James Bond, "passing on" his Bond persona to whomever replaces Daniel Craig, for example.
An enormous Taj Mahal-type set was designed for the film but never built. The real Taj Mahal appears in Octopussy (1983).
When Mata Bond swings into action, the background music is "Bond Street" also scored by this film's composer, Burt Bacharach. The real Bond Street can be seen in the later James Bond movie, Octopussy (1983).
Following Peter Sellers' departure, there were rumors that drag star Danny La Rue was being brought in as his replacement.
In later drafts, vice is made central to the plot, with Le Chiffre becoming head of a network of brothels (as is in the novel) whose patrons are then blackmailed by Le Chiffre to fund Spectre. The racy plot elements opened up by this change of background include a chase scene through Hamburg's red light district that results in Bond escaping while disguised as a female mud wrestler. New characters appear such as Lili Wing, a brothel madam and Bond's ex-lover, and Gita, wife of Le Chiffre. Gita goes on to become the prime protagonist in the torture scene that features in the book, a role originally Le Chiffre's.
This gave Anjelica Huston her first taste of filmmaking when her father, John Huston, asked her to step in as a hand model for Deborah Kerr.
The instrumental version of this film's main title music, recorded by Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass, was a chart-topping hit in 1967. And if you stay around for the end titles, you'll discover that the "song" actually did have lyrics, which are sung over the cast I.D.s, and are every bit as silly and irreverent as the film itself.
The aircraft depicting Peter Sellers' 007 arrival in France is a 1960 Douglas DC-8-32, registration N812PA. It was named Jet Clipper Bluejacket, and flew with Pan Am until 1971. It then flew with several other airlines until it was scrapped in 1982.
Shirley MacLaine was once touted in the media as going to feature in this movie.
Peter O'Toole and Daliah Lavi had previously appeared together in Lord Jim (1965).
The debacle of this film hardened Eon (the official producers of the Bond films) and their attitude so they blocked all subsequent efforts to make alternative Bond offerings. This particularly affected producer Kevin McClory who held the rights to a remake of Thunderball (1965) which he tried for years to get off the ground.
Composer Burt Bacharach worked on the film for two years. He was able to write the score for After the Fox (1966) during the numerous delays in production.
Last film appearance of character actor Richard Reeves.
Barbara Bouchet (Miss Moneypenny) said in an interview that she spent so much time in the overcast England that she missed the sun. So one day she went out and laid in Hyde Park in a bikini, but she got arrested because it wasn't allowed.
Stanley Baker, Laurence Harvey, William Holden, and Peter O'Toole were considered for James Bond. The latter two received cameos in the film.
Ironically, David Niven, who plays the real James Bond in this film, was one of creator Ian Fleming's intended picks to play Bond along with Cary Grant before Albert R. Broccoli picked Sean Connery to play the character in Dr. No (1962).
First film of Veronica Carlson.

Connections[]

Remade as[]

Casino Royale (2006) - Both are feature-length adaptations of the 1953 novel.

References[]

Dr. No (1962)
Goldfinger (1964)
Born Free (1966) - Main theme music heard as car drives through the lions

Referenced in[]

Catch Me If You Can (2002)

Spoofs[]

Dr. No (1962)
From Russia with Love (1963)
Goldfinger (1964)
You Only Live Twice (1967)

Spoofed in[]

Get Smart: 99 Loses Control (1968) (TV Episode)
Leisure Suit Larry: Love for Sail! (1996) (Video Game)
Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002)
Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story (2005) (Video)