A super villain, a hit man, a mountain chase and an Aston Martin equipped with gadgets – the Alpine scenes in 1964’s ‘Goldfinger’ set a new benchmark for the archetypal James Bond series. And besides being arguably the most iconic six minutes and 37 seconds in the history of the franchise, it’s also one of the best-documented.
In a publicity movement never seen at the time, journalists and photographers were invited to the Swiss Alps for the seven-day shoot, where they mingled with cast and crew members. The strategy seemed to work – “Goldfinger” became one of the highest-grossing movies ever at the box office at the time.
This fully accessible approach resulted in a rich archive of behind-the-scenes photos. Waelty brings together more than 200 of these in his book, in addition to call sheets, annotated scripts and production documents.
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The late Sean Connery pictured next to Bond’s Aston Martin DB5. Browse the gallery to see more behind-the-scenes images of the “Goldfinger” Alpine range. Credit: EON Productions / Promotion shot by Arthur Evans
One of the first images shows the late Sean Connery arriving at Zurich airport with a surprisingly thin head of hair (wearing a toupee like James Bond). Later photos capture the crew taking photos and actors relaxing during the downtime on set. One of the best-known photos is that of an impromptu fashion shoot with actress Tania Mallet, who in the photo is wielding a – real, not a replica – AR-7 rifle.
‘Drink a lot’
The famous series centers on Bond’s encounter with Mallet’s character, Tilly Masterson, as they separately pursue the wealthy villain Auric Goldfinger. After Masterson’s botched assassination attempt on Goldfinger nearly kills Bond, the British cop chases her and forces her car off the road before casually introducing himself and taking her to the nearest garage.
Director Guy Hamilton, along with his production designer and location manager, chose the Furka Pass, which meanders through the Urseren Valley in central Switzerland, for the shoot. During the week’s production, 50 crew members settled in the small mountain village of Andermatt.
Rehearsals for the scene where Tilly Masterson tries to kill Bond’s nemesis, Auric Goldfinger. Credit: EON Productions / Promotion created by Arthur Evans
“Surprisingly, the Swiss government has given approval, which is really amazing,” Waelty said, explaining that the sites were close to several military sites. “But they always had to have two soldiers and two police officers there (during filming). The police were installed to stop traffic and the soldiers were there to make sure they didn’t film anything mysterious.”
Waelty interviewed a range of people involved in the shoot, from the doctor on set to a bartender at the crew’s hotel. And while the photography records what happened on set, the anecdotes tell what happened next.
They paint a picture of a tough production, with a lot of late nights. “There was a lot of drinking and a lot of binge eating,” said Waelty. In the book, a member of the hotel band, Arthur Dänzer, recalls that Harold Sakata, the Japanese-American actor who played Goldfinger’s henchman Oddjob, was a “ huge attraction. ”
“On the dance floor in the club, he would pile up all kinds of wooden planks and stones every night. He cut it all in half,” said Dänzer of Sakata, who was also a wrestler and Olympic medal-winning weightlifter.
Although Connery was married at the time, Waelty’s book says that every female journalist spoken to during the investigation received “a more or less clear proposal” from the actor. Tom Carlile, then press officer for United Artists, the film’s distributor, says that to get an interview with Connery, “all a newspaper has to do is send a girl.”
Signature images
Despite his infamous charm, not everyone was in love with Connery. The Swiss magazine Schweizer Illustrierte published its story about the shoot under the headline “James Bond – ein humorloser langweiler” (or “James Bond – a humorless boredom”).
The villagers in Andermatt also seemed indifferent to the whole thing.
Prior to the trip, the film’s production company struggled to secure hotel rooms in the area, with local owners both unaware of the Bond franchise and “having doubts about the solvency of the British,” according to Waelty’s book.
“They didn’t really care,” Waelty said. Can you imagine a James Bond film crew coming these days? Every village, every city would go crazy. But not those guys. ‘
Sean Connery portrayed alongside Tania Mallet’s stunt double, Phillys Cornell (left), and director Guy Hamilton’s wife, Miriam Charrière (right). Credit: EON Productions / Promotion shot by Arthur Evans
Still, Bondmania wouldn’t get a fever until the movie came out later that year. While its predecessors, ‘Dr. No ‘and’ From Russia With Love ‘, had performed reasonably well,’ Goldfinger ‘got a significantly bigger budget of $ 3 million, which it earned many times over, grossing $ 46 million worldwide during the first box. office run.
According to Waelty, this is partly due to the Alpine series, which not only helped generate buzz but also provided a visual blueprint for Bond films to come.
“When Sean Connery died, so many photos were published showing him standing on the Furka Pass with his Aston Martin,” he said. “This appears to be James Bond’s signature photo.”