A Walther PP pistol used in the first-ever James Bond movie will go up for auction next month in Los Angeles.
Scottish acting great Sean Connery, who passed away last month at the age of 90 at his home in the Bahamas, wielded the gun in 1962’s Dr. No. It is estimated to fetch US$150,000 to 200,000 (HK$1.16 million to 1.55 million).
“The silhouette of 007 holding this gun would go on to become the James Bond franchise’s most iconic image and one of the most recognisable pop culture references of all time,” said Martin Nolan, executive director of Julien’s Auctions.
In Dr. No, James Bond is ordered by his British Secret Service bosses to reluctantly trade in his old, misfiring Beretta gun for the Walther, which has “a delivery like a brick through a plate glass window.”
“The American CIA swear by them,” Bond is informed.
Versions of the Walther remain 007’s signature firearm, some 25 films later. The deactivated handgun prop, one of two used in Connery’s debut film, was owned by the original movie’s armorer until it was sold off in a 2006 auction.
It will be one of more than 500 items in the “Icons & Idols Trilogy: Hollywood” auction held in Beverly Hills and online on December 3. Other notable memorabilia will include a pilot’s helmet worn by Tom Cruise in Top Gun and Arnold Schwarzenegger’s leather motorcycle jacket from Terminator 2: Judgment Day.
Bond’s next cinematic outing — believed to be the final movie for current 007 Daniel Craig — has been postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. No Time To Die is currently scheduled for an April release.
Connery earned lasting worldwide fame and adoration for his smooth, Scottish-accented portrayal of the suave licensed-to-kill spy over several films.
The first actor to utter the unforgettable “Bond, James Bond,” Connery is seen by many fans as giving the definitive portrayal of novelist Ian Fleming’s creation. He suffered from dementia in his final years, according to his widow Micheline Roquebrune.
(Main and featured image: Julien’s Auctions)
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