Bond, James Bond

To me the best news out of Bondville is not that Daniel Craig, a competnet Brittish actor who was in "Tomb Raider" and "The Road to Perdition," has been picked as the next James Bond. Yes, I would have chosen Sean Beam as my first choice, and yes Jason Connery is out there somewhere, but no biggie. The fact that he's blonde (not really blonde, mind you, just a sandy brown) isn't a problem, although Jason Conery did once say he would never play Bond because Bond is supposed to be dark and swarthy. This pick has taken a lot of people by surprise int he same way the George Lazenby and Timothy Dalton did. But I don't care. No: what really interests me about this choice is that the movie they are filming is Casino Royale. Casino Royale holds a unique place in Bond history. It has been filmed twice, but never as part of the "offical" bond catalogue. The very first James Bond film was a version of Casino Royale from the 1954 TV series "Climax Mystery Theatre" staring Bary Nelson and Peter Lorre that is so rare it doesn't even have an IMBD entry. The 1967 version wasn't a James Bond film in the traditional sense but a classic "60s Acid Comedy" staring Peter Sellars and Woody Allen. Bond fans have been waiting for a full-scale big budget production Casino Royale since "Dr. No." It's about time!