Interviews: Bond Girls Do it Better at Hollywood Celebrities Show

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CHICAGO – The James Bond legend lives on, with Daniel Craig currently holding the reins of that character. Giving aid and comfort to the man with the golden gun are the so-called “Bond Girls.” Britt Ekland, Maud Adams and Lana Wood were part of that exclusive girl club.

The three Bond co-stars were appearing at the Hollywood Celebrities & Memorabilia Show in September of 2010. The show is a biannual event that brings celebrities to Chicago to meet, sign autographs and interact with their admirers. Joe Arce of HollywoodChicago.com was there to photograph the iconic beauty of the Bond Girls.

Britt Ekland, Mary Goodnight in “The Man With the Golden Gun” (1974)

Britt Ekland became famous overnight in 1964, when she was romanced and then married Peter Sellers. The marriage lasted four years and produced a daughter, Victoria. Ekland’s film career included “Get Carter” and “The Wicker Man” before taking her turn on the Bond stage.

Ekland speaks several languages, and it was her that spoke in whispered French at the end of (then boyfriend) Rod Stewart’s song, “Tonight’s the Night.”

Britt Ekland, Hollywood Celebrities Show, Chicago, September 26th, 2010 Photo credit: Joe Arce of Starstruck Foto for HollywoodChicago.com

HollywoodChicago.com: What childhood memory from Sweden do you hold most dear in the midst of the circumstances of your life?

Britt Ekland: When I was about nine or ten, I had to go out skiing with my mum, and I hated it because I was quite fat. We would stop at some point, and she would bring out oranges. Oranges weren’t common in Sweden, and so I always remember that.

HollywoodChicago.com: As a person blessed with extraordinary beauty, what was the most difficult thing about receiving all the attention because of it?

Ekland: I’ve never had any problems receiving attention. [laughs]

HollywoodChicago.com: Now that you have a few years of retrospect regarding your complicated relationship with Peter Sellers, what advice would you give him now on how to handle his life back then?

Ekland: Take a couple of lithium and relax. Enjoy your money and your fame. He could never do that.

Maud Adams, Octopussy in “Octopussy” (1983)

Maud Adams was actually a Bond Girl twice, playing Andrea Anders in The Man with the Golden Gun, and then brought back by producer Albert Broccoli to play the title role in Octopussy. Adams was also born in Sweden, and is fluent in five languages. She started as a model before morphing into film, also starring in 1970s cult classics “Rollerball” and “Tattoo.”

Maud Adams, Hollywood Celebrities Show, Chicago, September 26th, 2010 Photo credit: Joe Arce of Starstruck Foto for HollywoodChicago.com

HollywoodChicago.com: What made you so adaptable to languages when you were younger, since you speak five?

Maud Adams: I have no idea, but I have a musical ear because I began playing the piano when I was young and I think that’s why. It helps because I know the basis for many languages and it helps me to pick up other words.

HollywoodChicago.com: Looking back at your first film, “The Boys in the Band,” were you aware about the significance of it’s breakthrough status regarding the portrayal of gay men?

Adams: I had no idea at the time, but later I understood. I’ve worked with gay men all my life, having worked as a model and in the business. Now it’s no longer stigmatized as it used to be, and that’s a very good thing.

HollywoodChicago.com: You never intended to get into modeling, but you had a long career in it. What was your greatest experience as an international model, as in getting to do something or going somewhere that you might not had experienced otherwise?

Adams: I love traveling, I love meeting other people. I grew up in a very homogenous place in Northern Sweden, which means I was fairly isolated, but because I was a big reader I became very curious about the world. And my modeling career really took me to a lot of different places and gave me the means to travel. It has been great to me.

HollywoodChicago.com: You most likely have heard every pick-up line in the world. Do you have a memorable one that you can recall?

Adams: I’ll give you a line, it’s not a pick-up line. A man came up to me with his kids and said, ‘I love Maud Adams, didn’t you used to be Maud Adams?’ [laughs]. I said, ‘what do you mean, used to be Maud Adams?’ I still laugh about that.

HollywoodChicago.com: Finally, can you tell us something about Roger Moore that the rest of world doesn’t know.

Adams: I think everyone knows that Roger is a rascal, very smart and a very kind man. What else? Maybe tell his age? No, no, no. [laughs]

The ‘Girls’ Are Back in Town: Lana Wood, Maud Adams and Britt Ekland Photo credit: Joe Arce of Starstruck Foto for HollywoodChicago.com

Lana Wood, Plenty O’Toole in “Diamonds Are Forever” (1972)

Lana Wood, the sister of Natalie Wood, also had a notable career as an actress and producer. Like her sister she was a child actress, making her film debut at the age of nine in John Ford’s legendary “The Searchers.” She went on to beach movies (”The Girls on the Beach”) and television (”Peyton Place”).

Wood was also linked romantically with several big stars, including Warren Beatty, Ryan O’Neal and her James Bond co-star, Sean Connery. She also wrote a book, ”Natalie, A Memoir by Her Sister.”

Lana Wood, Hollywood Celebrities Show, Chicago, September 26th, 2010 Photo credit: Joe Arce of Starstruck Foto for HollywoodChicago.com

HollywoodChicago.com: You were a child actor, following in the footsteps of your sister Natalie. Do you thinking working as children made you and Natalie’s lives more difficult later?

Lana Wood: I don’t know whether it made it difficult or not, because at the time I didn’t know what the choices were. Did it make life different? Probably very much so, because I know when Natalie had her kids she did not want them to go into show business, because she felt we’d missed out on childhood.

HollywoodChicago.com: What have you since found out about your Russian heritage that connects you with your former homeland?

Wood: I like the music. I play an old album that my Dad used to play called, “The Soviet Army Chorus and Band.” [laughs] I love Russian music. I’ve never been back to Russia, but Natalie did a TV special with Peter Ustinov, where they both went back there, but she wasn’t comfortable there.

HollywoodChicago.com: You’ve been associated with famous men in your life. What do you like about them, and what characteristics make them most difficult to be around?

Wood: Actually for the most part I have more men friends than women. I get along great with guys, but the fear of intimate discussions is what they need to get over. That would make life a little easier.

HollywoodChicago.com: Why did so many people get upset about your memoir about Natalie, and what compelled you to set that record straight?

Wood: Beats the heck out of me, I don’t know why anyone would have been upset. I sent the galley proof to Robert Wagner, which he never read. He was openly critical, which was odd because he never read the book. I thought I was very honest about myself and my feelings, and I didn’t say a lot of things on purpose so I wouldn’t hurt anyone. So I don’t know what anyone’s beef is with it.

HollywoodChicago.com: Finally, tell us something about Sean Connery that the rest of the world doesn’t know?

Wood: [Laughs] He’s not embarrassed to use the bathroom with the door open.

By PATRICK McDONALD Senior Staff Writer HollywoodChicago.com pat@hollywoodchicago.com