March 29, 2019

SHANE RIMMER R.I.P.

Another sad announcement this week; Canadian actor Shane Rimmer has passed away. Rimmer played a part in many Spy Vibe faves produced in the UK, such as Thunderbirds, UFO, The Saint, Doctor Who, Danger Man, Captain Scarlet, Joe 90, The Persuaders!, You Only Live Twice, Diamonds Are Forever, Live and Let Die, The Spy Who Loved Me, Dr. Strangelove, The Protectors, Space 1999, Return of the Saint, Superman (I-III), The Hunger, Gandhi, and even Star Wars (A New Hope). He might have been the busiest actor in the business! And he was just as ever-present with fans, always generous in sharing his memories and stories about experiences on various projects and signing autographs. Check out his audio CD autobiography. I never got to meet him, but I know many Spy Vibers, especially in the UK, will be thinking of him today. R.I.P. More info at the Shane Rimmer site. 


Selected Spy Vibe Posts: UFO PrimeSpaceship to MarsModesty Blaise CompanionSpy Vibe Radio: FantomasGeorge DayFantomas BluDark Shadows DocBedazzled Blu-rayMary Quant ExhibitLaika CalypsoLost in Space JapanSpy Dust CalypsoAtomic CafeJohn Barry MonoInterview: John Barry BookLand of the Giants ScoreSkyfall ConcertDearest EmmaSpy Vibe Radio: UppersevenOgilvy at ElstreeMabuse PropagandaBond Beatles DaySpy Vibe Radio: LiquidatorDiabolik LPFab DressesEurospy Music CollectionBeetle Bailey in West BerlinWhy Mort Walker?Spy Vibe radio: The Beatles Help!, Avengers Critical GuideThe SpotnicksBenny SpiesJames Pond 0017'Satire StonesAnnette Andre BookCat DaySpy Vibe Radio: Get SmartCaine: My GenerationInterview: Ian OgilvyHorror of Party BeachSylvie Vartan RenownRingo At 78Dark Shadows StripsSpy Vibe Radio: FlintArchie Batman 66Paul at 76Beatles Pac-ManSpy Vibe Radio: Jerry CottonThe Invaders007 Horowitz Book TourMcGoohan/Prisoner Event at ElstreeThe Prisoner Interviews Vol 1British Underground PressInterview: Fab4 ManiaBond Cocktail BookBond at BletchleySpy SmasherSpy Vibe Radio: Peter GunnAgent Zero MNew Prisoner ComicDr. No Villains Edition,  Spy Vibe Radio: Danger DiabolikDr. No 60thOy-Oy-SevenSpy Vibe Radio (UFO)Cold War Comic StripsThunderball EventMission to IndiaMort Walker Celebration,  Peter Wyngarde CelebrationBatman 66 ExhibitPrisoner Fifty EventIan Fleming Publications 2017-2018Interview: Ed Hulse PulpAvengers Audio DramaInterview: Callan At 50Interview: Playboys, Spies, Private EyesTWA ReturnsSpy Vibe Radio 8Interview: Ryan HeshkaMid-Century Modern SchulzAgent WerewolfMata Hair ExhibitJohnny Sokko 50thInterview: Trina RobbinsEddie IzzardThe Prisoner Capt Scarlet 50thHugh Hefner R.I.P.Jack Good R.I.P.Interview: Shaken Not StirredCallan 50thSpy Vibe Radio 7The Prisoner 50th EventSpy-Fi EventKaho Aso 007Two MillionBo DiddleyCarnaby PopLe Carre EventsBilly Bragg SkiffleElvis 68Jack Kirby The PrisonerCasino Royale ConcertReview: The Prisoner Vol 2Interview: The Prisoner Essential GuideMaud Russell MottisfontSpy Vibe Radio 4Batman GallantsAdam West R.I.P.Village TriangleRoger Moore R.I.P.Spy Vibe Radio 3Sgt Pepper 50thSatanik Kriminal OST60s OverdriveMake Love in LondonSpy Vibe Radio 2Spy Vibe Radio 1James Bond StripsPropaganda MabuseInterview: Police SurgeonXTC Avengers1966 Pep SpiesBatman Book InterviewExclusive Fleming InterviewAvengers Comic StripsRobert Vaughn RIPUNCLE FashionsThunderbirds Are Pop!, Interview: Spy Film GuideLost Avengers FoundThe Callan FileMission Impossible 50thGreen Hornet 50thStar Trek 50thPortmeirion Photography 1Filming the PrisonerGaiman McGinnins ProjectIan Fleming GraveRevolver at 50Karen Romanko InterviewMod Tales 2Umbrella Man: Patrick MacneeNew Beatles FilmThe Curious CameraEsterel Fashion 1966Exclusive Ian Ogilvy Interview007 Tribute CoversThe Phantom Avon novels returnIan Fleming FestivalArgoman DesignSylvia Anderson R.I.P.Ken Adam R.I.P.George Martin R.I.P.The New Avengers ComicsThe Phantom at 80007 MangaAvengerworld BookDiana Rigg Auto ShowThe Prisoner Audio Drama Review.

March 26, 2019

RANKING ROGER

Sad to hear today that Ranking Roger passed away. Spy Vibers will know his work in The Beat ("The English Beat" in the States), where he shared lead vocals with bandmate Dave Wakeling. They were an important part of the Ska and Mod Revival movement in the late 70s and early 80s. I first heard The English Beat in the darkroom at boarding school. The song was Mirror in the Bathroom, and I'll never forget my initial reaction. The band seemed to play at such high energy- I was even startled! And I always loved the island vibe Ranking Roger brought to the group's sound. He and Wakeling went on to form General Public (1983-1986) and Roger then began new projects, including collaborations and performances with members of The Specials, The Clash, and The Police. In 2013 he began touring a UK-based lineup of The Beat as Wakeling continued as The English Beat in America. Roger had a stroke in 2018 and was recently receiving treatment for cancer, while finishing his autobiography, I Just Can't Stop It (Omnibus Press). He passed away today at the young age of 56. Below: portrait by Jim Stokes, Dave Wakeling, the original band, Ranking Roger's upcoming book, live (Dance Craze/1981), and live 1980. More info at The Beat and The English Beat. Related posts: Laika Calypso, Spy Dust Calypso, James Bond Ska, Party The Selecter, Pussy Galore Calypso, Island UNCLE.






Selected Spy Vibe Posts: UFO PrimeSpaceship to MarsModesty Blaise CompanionSpy Vibe Radio: FantomasGeorge DayFantomas BluDark Shadows DocBedazzled Blu-rayMary Quant ExhibitLaika CalypsoLost in Space JapanSpy Dust CalypsoAtomic CafeJohn Barry MonoInterview: John Barry BookLand of the Giants ScoreSkyfall ConcertDearest EmmaSpy Vibe Radio: UppersevenOgilvy at ElstreeMabuse PropagandaBond Beatles DaySpy Vibe Radio: LiquidatorDiabolik LPFab DressesEurospy Music CollectionBeetle Bailey in West BerlinWhy Mort Walker?Spy Vibe radio: The Beatles Help!, Avengers Critical GuideThe SpotnicksBenny SpiesJames Pond 0017'Satire StonesAnnette Andre BookCat DaySpy Vibe Radio: Get SmartCaine: My GenerationInterview: Ian OgilvyHorror of Party BeachSylvie Vartan RenownRingo At 78Dark Shadows StripsSpy Vibe Radio: FlintArchie Batman 66Paul at 76Beatles Pac-ManSpy Vibe Radio: Jerry CottonThe Invaders007 Horowitz Book TourMcGoohan/Prisoner Event at ElstreeThe Prisoner Interviews Vol 1British Underground PressInterview: Fab4 ManiaBond Cocktail BookBond at BletchleySpy SmasherSpy Vibe Radio: Peter GunnAgent Zero MNew Prisoner ComicDr. No Villains Edition,  Spy Vibe Radio: Danger DiabolikDr. No 60thOy-Oy-SevenSpy Vibe Radio (UFO)Cold War Comic StripsThunderball EventMission to IndiaMort Walker Celebration,  Peter Wyngarde CelebrationBatman 66 ExhibitPrisoner Fifty EventIan Fleming Publications 2017-2018Interview: Ed Hulse PulpAvengers Audio DramaInterview: Callan At 50Interview: Playboys, Spies, Private EyesTWA ReturnsSpy Vibe Radio 8Interview: Ryan HeshkaMid-Century Modern SchulzAgent WerewolfMata Hair ExhibitJohnny Sokko 50thInterview: Trina RobbinsEddie IzzardThe Prisoner Capt Scarlet 50thHugh Hefner R.I.P.Jack Good R.I.P.Interview: Shaken Not StirredCallan 50thSpy Vibe Radio 7The Prisoner 50th EventSpy-Fi EventKaho Aso 007Two MillionBo DiddleyCarnaby PopLe Carre EventsBilly Bragg SkiffleElvis 68Jack Kirby The PrisonerCasino Royale ConcertReview: The Prisoner Vol 2Interview: The Prisoner Essential GuideMaud Russell MottisfontSpy Vibe Radio 4Batman GallantsAdam West R.I.P.Village TriangleRoger Moore R.I.P.Spy Vibe Radio 3Sgt Pepper 50thSatanik Kriminal OST60s OverdriveMake Love in LondonSpy Vibe Radio 2Spy Vibe Radio 1James Bond StripsPropaganda MabuseInterview: Police SurgeonXTC Avengers1966 Pep SpiesBatman Book InterviewExclusive Fleming InterviewAvengers Comic StripsRobert Vaughn RIPUNCLE FashionsThunderbirds Are Pop!, Interview: Spy Film GuideLost Avengers FoundThe Callan FileMission Impossible 50thGreen Hornet 50thStar Trek 50thPortmeirion Photography 1Filming the PrisonerGaiman McGinnins ProjectIan Fleming GraveRevolver at 50Karen Romanko InterviewMod Tales 2Umbrella Man: Patrick MacneeNew Beatles FilmThe Curious CameraEsterel Fashion 1966Exclusive Ian Ogilvy Interview007 Tribute CoversThe Phantom Avon novels returnIan Fleming FestivalArgoman DesignSylvia Anderson R.I.P.Ken Adam R.I.P.George Martin R.I.P.The New Avengers ComicsThe Phantom at 80007 MangaAvengerworld BookDiana Rigg Auto ShowThe Prisoner Audio Drama Review.

March 22, 2019

SHATNER DAY

Happy Birthday to William Shatner! Born on this day in 1931, the actor made his way up through stage and radio in Montreal (starting at age 8!), eventually joining the Canadian National Repertory Theatre. He toured Canada performing Shakespeare and spent three years at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival. It was there, during his stint as understudy to Christopher Plummer, that he famously took the stage without rehearsal with great success. Early stage and screen gigs led to larger roles, including appearances in Alfred Hitchcock Presents and in The Brothers Karamazov with Yul Brynner. He returned to Broadway in 1959 for The World of Suzie Wong in the role of Lomax. Good reviews spawned more offers and Shatner's marathon career really picked up with roles in ThrillerThe Outer LimitsBurke's LawThe FugitiveDr. KildareRoute 66, and many others. Writer Richard Matheson once said: "He so often gets a bad rap for overacting, but I just don’t see that. When I lived in Brooklyn before moving to California, I used to go out of my way to watch Bill perform on TV in New York in the early part of his career. And he was fascinating to watch...very theatrical. Great actors, in my estimation, are actors as opposed to reactors. Too many of today’s “stars” are reactors. They can’t really act themselves so they let other character actors around them do the acting and then they react to that performance." Image: from the movie Incubus(1966) shot in Esperanto (It's like seeing Shatner in a spooky Bergman film!). More below. 


One of William Shatner's early cult-classic roles was "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet", a 1963 episode of The Twilight Zone written by Richard Matheson and directed by Richard Donner (Wanted Dead or Alive, The Rifleman, Have Gun Will Travel, The Man From UNCLE, Get Smart, The Wild Wild West, Superman, Superman II, Ladyhawke, The Goonies, Lethal Weapon). Perhaps Spy Vibers will know this period of the actor's resume best for his 1964 appearance with Leonard Nimoy inThe Man From U.N.C.L.E. "The Project Strigas Affair" (image below). He returned to the spy genre to appear in Mission: Impossible "Encore" (1971) and "Cocaine" (1972). Story continues. 


Shatner and Nimoy (born 4 days apart!) were reunited in 1966 to lead a new science fiction series called Star Trek, a groundbreaking show that lasted only three years- but became a 50+ year cultural phenomenon. Star Trek has continued to weave in and out of the actor's life, from feature films and an animated series to a number of recent (and great!) documentaries. These various docs (see my list below) reveal Shatner as an exuberant, driven, and ever-inspired creator. He seems to fill his life with acting, writing, producing, recording, and doing charity work. In the intimate discussion film Mind Meld, he told his life-long friend and collaborator, Leonard Nimoy, that he feels he still hasn't done enough and that he is constantly driven to work and to experience life. With no sign of slowing down in his later years, he once said, "I find age such a foreign concept. I have to be reminded. I still have the extraordinary feeling of adventure, striking out into unknown fields." He continues to keep his calendar booked with creative projects. Given Bill's beginnings, I'd like to see him return to Shakespeare in an older role. I had a nice (and brief) meeting with him a couple of years back and he was super gracious and sweet. Other notable credits include: Incubus (1966),The Hound of the Baskervilles (1972), Mission: Impossible (1971, 1972), T.J. Hooker (1982-1986), 3rd Rock from the Sun (1999-2000), The Practice (2004), and Boston Legal (2004-2008). See Spy Vibe's Essential Bill Shatner list below.


Learn more about William Shatner with Spy Vibe's Essential Bill. DOCS: Mind Meld(2001), The Captains (2001), William Shatner Biography (1998), At Home in the Universe (1997). EPISODES: Alfred Hitchcock Presents "The Glass Eye" (1957),Twilight Zone "Nick of Time" (1960) and "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" (1963),The Man From U.N.C.L.E. "The Project Strigas Affair" (1964), Star Trek (1966-1969) Where No Man Has Gone Before", "Space Seed", "The City on the Edge of Forever", "Mirror Mirror", "The Empath." FILM: Incubus (1966), Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982), Star Trek: The Voyage Home (1986), Star Trek Generations (1994). Honorable Mention: Check out the 1961 film, The Explosive Generation, to see Shatner portray an English teacher who gets in trouble when he broaches the theme of sex in class (cheesy at times, but a good time-capsule on the era. Watch for the mic boom in upper frame!). Below: Old friends (Shatner and Nimoy). Leonard Nimoy passed away recently at the age of 83. Related posts: Designer Gene WinfieldDressed For SpaceShakespeare SpiesShakespeare Spies: Diana Rigg


Selected Spy Vibe Posts: UFO PrimeSpaceship to MarsModesty Blaise CompanionSpy Vibe Radio: FantomasGeorge DayFantomas BluDark Shadows DocBedazzled Blu-rayMary Quant ExhibitLaika CalypsoLost in Space JapanSpy Dust CalypsoAtomic CafeJohn Barry MonoInterview: John Barry BookLand of the Giants ScoreSkyfall ConcertDearest EmmaSpy Vibe Radio: UppersevenOgilvy at ElstreeMabuse PropagandaBond Beatles DaySpy Vibe Radio: LiquidatorDiabolik LPFab DressesEurospy Music CollectionBeetle Bailey in West BerlinWhy Mort Walker?Spy Vibe radio: The Beatles Help!, Avengers Critical GuideThe SpotnicksBenny SpiesJames Pond 0017'Satire StonesAnnette Andre BookCat DaySpy Vibe Radio: Get SmartCaine: My GenerationInterview: Ian OgilvyHorror of Party BeachSylvie Vartan RenownRingo At 78Dark Shadows StripsSpy Vibe Radio: FlintArchie Batman 66Paul at 76Beatles Pac-ManSpy Vibe Radio: Jerry CottonThe Invaders007 Horowitz Book TourMcGoohan/Prisoner Event at ElstreeThe Prisoner Interviews Vol 1British Underground PressInterview: Fab4 ManiaBond Cocktail BookBond at BletchleySpy SmasherSpy Vibe Radio: Peter GunnAgent Zero MNew Prisoner ComicDr. No Villains Edition,  Spy Vibe Radio: Danger DiabolikDr. No 60thOy-Oy-SevenSpy Vibe Radio (UFO)Cold War Comic StripsThunderball EventMission to IndiaMort Walker Celebration,  Peter Wyngarde CelebrationBatman 66 ExhibitPrisoner Fifty EventIan Fleming Publications 2017-2018Interview: Ed Hulse PulpAvengers Audio DramaInterview: Callan At 50Interview: Playboys, Spies, Private EyesTWA ReturnsSpy Vibe Radio 8Interview: Ryan HeshkaMid-Century Modern SchulzAgent WerewolfMata Hair ExhibitJohnny Sokko 50thInterview: Trina RobbinsEddie IzzardThe Prisoner Capt Scarlet 50thHugh Hefner R.I.P.Jack Good R.I.P.Interview: Shaken Not StirredCallan 50thSpy Vibe Radio 7The Prisoner 50th EventSpy-Fi EventKaho Aso 007Two MillionBo DiddleyCarnaby PopLe Carre EventsBilly Bragg SkiffleElvis 68Jack Kirby The PrisonerCasino Royale ConcertReview: The Prisoner Vol 2Interview: The Prisoner Essential GuideMaud Russell MottisfontSpy Vibe Radio 4Batman GallantsAdam West R.I.P.Village TriangleRoger Moore R.I.P.Spy Vibe Radio 3Sgt Pepper 50thSatanik Kriminal OST60s OverdriveMake Love in LondonSpy Vibe Radio 2Spy Vibe Radio 1James Bond StripsPropaganda MabuseInterview: Police SurgeonXTC Avengers1966 Pep SpiesBatman Book InterviewExclusive Fleming InterviewAvengers Comic StripsRobert Vaughn RIPUNCLE FashionsThunderbirds Are Pop!, Interview: Spy Film GuideLost Avengers FoundThe Callan FileMission Impossible 50thGreen Hornet 50thStar Trek 50thPortmeirion Photography 1Filming the PrisonerGaiman McGinnins ProjectIan Fleming GraveRevolver at 50Karen Romanko InterviewMod Tales 2Umbrella Man: Patrick MacneeNew Beatles FilmThe Curious CameraEsterel Fashion 1966Exclusive Ian Ogilvy Interview007 Tribute CoversThe Phantom Avon novels returnIan Fleming FestivalArgoman DesignSylvia Anderson R.I.P.Ken Adam R.I.P.George Martin R.I.P.The New Avengers ComicsThe Phantom at 80007 MangaAvengerworld BookDiana Rigg Auto ShowThe Prisoner Audio Drama Review.