James Bond is not a romance hero. He is disqualified on soooo many levels, but primarily because of his utter disinterest in monogamy. I know, I know….he was married for about ten minutes to Diana Rigg in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, and he was faithful during those ten minutes before she went to her ultimate doom…..but I am skeptical his self-restraint would have lasted much longer.
Nevertheless, the men who have been cast as James Bond are truly noteworthy. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve used one of them as a mental image for a hero when I’m writing a book. I am partial to the current Bond, Daniel Craig…..who sometimes stepped up to the plate for me when I was writing Michael Dobrescu in The Rose of Winslow Street. I have heard that blond men have a harder time breaking into movie star status because they don’t seem “manly” enough. Not true with Daniel Craig! That man looks like he could kill you just by thinking about it. My runner-up Bond is Timothy Dalton, probably because of my residual affection for him playing Mr. Rochester in Jane Eyre. He was my mental image for Daniel in The Lady of Bolton Hill.
As I said….. these guys look terrific, but that is where James Bond’s inspiration for my characters end!