Sophia Myles

My next celebrity autograph blog is English actress Sophia Myles.

Born in 1980, Sophia's first big break was in the 2001 film From Hell, in which she played Victoria Abberline, the wife of Johnny Depp's character PC Abberline (if my brother reads this blog he'll probably go and watch the film right now).

She then played a vampiress in the 2003 film Underworld, starring Kate Beckinsale, and again in the film's 2006 sequel Underworld: Evolution.

In 2004, Sophia scored her major first supporting role, playing Lady Penelope in the film adaptation of the hit classic supermarionation tv series Thunderbirds.  The film was directed by former Star Trek: The Next Generation star Jonathan Frakes (he played Number One, by the way).  The film was geared towards children, with many of the classic characters from the tv show moved to the sidelines.  Fans and critics bagged it, and the film was a box office bomb.  On holiday in the UK, I remember reading the Metro newspapers scathing review of the movie in which they stated that not even Sophia Myles in the bath tub could rescue it from failure.  By the way, Sophia Myles does have a bubbly bath tub scene in the movie, quite fun (remember though, it's a kids film).

Moving on.  In 2006, Sophia appeared as Madame de Pompadour in the Doctor Who episode The Girl In The Fireplace, in which David Tennant's Tenth Doctor visits her through the fireplace in her bedroom, and rescues her from the Clockwork Men as well.

After Doctor Who, Sophia was cast as Beth Baily for the ninth series of the UK tv show Spooks, based on the counter-terrorism unit Mi5.

Now, onto the autograph.  Just after Sophia appeared in Thunderbirds I wrote a fanmail letter to her in the UK, and soon after received this terrific inscribed colour 8x10 photo of her as Lady Penelope!

Until next time!

Noel Neill

My next celebrity autograph blog is Noel Neill.

Best known for playing Lois Lane in the 1940's and 50's, Noel was originally a pinup model ranked 2nd behind Betty Grable.  Noel was also a professional singer and dancer.

In 1948, Noel appeared as Lois Lane for the first time in the Superman film serials, and again in 1951's Atom Man vs Superman, alongside Kirk Alyn as Clark Kent/Superman.  Then, from 1951 to 1958 she starred alongside George Reeves' Superman in the Adventures of Superman tv show.

After the show ended, Noel's career continued through the character.  She played Lois Lane's mother in one scene of 1978's Superman (when a young Lois notices Clark running alongside the train).  She also played the role of Gertrude Vanderworth in the 2006 film Superman Returns.

Now, onto the autograph!  In the early 2000's I wrote a fan letter to Noel, and shortly after I received this terrific, inscribed 8x10 colour photo of Noel as Lois Lane, alongside George Reeves' as Superman.

Gold!!!

Roger Moore

My next celebrity autograph blog is Roger Moore.

Born in London in 1927, Roger Moore was originally a male model, before moving into acting in the 1950's.  His first big role was the lead, Simon Templar, in the TV series The Saint, which ran from 1962 - 1970.  The series was a big success, but nearing the end of it's run Roger Moore became bored with the role and looked to move on.

After appearing in 2 movies, and 2 years working on The Persuaders! alongside Tony Curtis, Roger Moore took over the role of James Bond from Sean Connery, in 1973's Live And Let Die.  The movie was a direct move away from the franchise's tried and true method, with Roger Moore taking James Bond into Harlem, and (heaven forbid) making love to an African American woman, Rosie Carver (who, strangely enough, was cut from the film in many States of the USA during the film's original release).

The next Bond film, The Man With The Golden Gun, was released in 1974 to less than favourable reviews.  The film's location, however (Phang Nga Bay, Phuket, Thailand) remains a popular tourist attraction, and is still regarded as "James Bond Island".

On 7th July, 1977, Roger Moore starred in his third Bond film, The Spy Who Loved Me, which many (including myself) regard as his best.  Curt Jergens played the villainous Karl Stromberg, and the lovely Barbara Bach played Anya Amasova, also known as KGB Agent XXX.

2 years later, Roger Moore took James Bond to new heights (literally) in Moonraker.  The movie was a box office hit, but many critics (still to this day) felt that taking Bond into Outer Space was one step too far.  Therefore the 1981 release, For Your Eyes Only, was a deliberate step back for the franchise, which allowed Roger Moore to play a more ruthless 007.

Roger Moore again played 007 in 1983's Octopussy, having beaten US Actor James Brolin for the role.  The film has a terrific pre-title sequence, with 007 flying an Acro-Jet, and the film remains popular in India, where it was set and filmed.

At the age of 57, Roger Moore appeared as 007 for the seventh (and final) time in 1985's A View To A Kill, which featured Christopher Walken as the villainous Max Zorin, and former Charlie's Angel Tanya Roberts as geologist Stacey Sutton.

After his work as James Bond, Roger Moore took a step back from acting and focussed on his humanitarian work for Unicef.  He has (however) appeared in numerous movies, such as The Quest (alongside Jean Claude Van Damme), Spice World, and Boat Trip, and cameoed in numerous tv shows, such as Alias.

Roger Moore also released an autobiography, My Word Is My Bond, in 2008, and appeared in Melbourne as part of his worldwide tour.  I was lucky enough to attend his Melbourne visit, and have a signed copy of his book to remember the occassion.

Now onto the autograph! In the early 2000's I wrote a fan letter to Roger Moore in the UK, and was lucky enough to receive this inscribed photo in the mail soon after.  Roger Moore is now contracted with an agency, and the profits for his autograph now go directly to Unicef.

Until next time!

Robert Brown

My next celebrity autograph is the late Robert Brown.

Robert Brown was born in Dorset, UK, in 1921, and had a varied film and television acting career in the UK.  Some of his roles were in the TV series Ivanhoe (alongside Roger Moore), The Saint (again alongside Roger Moore) and in The Avengers.  Robert Brown also had numerous roles in the movies Ben Hur, The 300 Spartans, and One Million Years B.C.

However it was his roles in the James Bond films for which he would be most known for.  His first Bond film was 1977's The Spy Who Loved Me, in which he played the role of Admiral Hargreaves.

Robert Brown missed the following 2 Bond films, Moonraker and For Your Eyes Only, but was cast as the new M in Octopussy (1983).  It's unclear whether Robert Brown's M is the same man as Bernard Lee's M, or if Admiral Hargreaves had been promoted to the position after Bernard Lee's death.

He also starred in Roger Moore's final outing as Bond in A View To A Kill (1985).  In 1987 he helped usher in a new Bond to the franchise in Timothy Dalton's The Living Daylights, and in 1989 he fired James Bond for his reckless pursuit of drug lord Franz Sanchez (Robert Davi) in Licence To Kill.

When the Bond films suffered from legal troubles in the early 1990's, Robert Brown's acting roles unfortunately dried up as a consequence.  When the franchise was re-ignited in 1995's Goldeneye, the producers introduced a new Bond (Pierce Brosnan) and a new M (Judy Dench).  Therefore Robert Brown's M was retired without explanation.

Now onto the autograph.  In the early 2000's I wrote to Robert Brown in the UK, and in early 2003 I received this wonderfully inscribed photo, with a handwritten apology for the delay in his reply on the reverse.

Until next time!

Don Adams

My next celebrity autograph is Don Adams.

Best known for playing Maxwell Smart in the TV series Get Smart, Don Adams was born in 1923 in Manhattan and began his entertaining career as a comedian.

In 1965, Mel Brooks and Buck Henry created the tv series Get Smart, which was a mix of James Bond and Inspector Closeau.  The show's central character, Maxwell Smart, was a secret agent for CONTROL, based out of Washington, whose sole purpose was to foil the plots of the evil organisation known as KAOS.  Whilst Adams was not immediately cast as Smart (see Tom Poston), when the show was picked up by NBC he was given the part, having already signed on with the network.

Don Adams played the role for 138 episodes from 1965-1970, and moved into a producing role throughout.  When CBS picked up the show for it's fifth season (1970) they then decided to cancel it, as the spy genre was becoming out of fashion, and the show running on it's old gags.

After the show was cancelled Don Adams used this as an opportunity to branch out into new roles, however due to the strength of Maxwell Smart's character he found it difficult to escape typecasting.  He had his own tv game show from 1975-1976 titles Don Adam's Screen Test, but this has not been seen on tv since it's original screening.

In 1980 Don Adams reprised his role of Maxwell Smart in the movie The Nude Bomb, which failed at the box office.

From 1983-1986 Don Adams voiced the titular character in the cartoon tv series Inspector Gadget, which was loosely based on his Maxwell Smart role.  The show was released on DVD in 2006, and spawned two live action feature films in 1999 starring Matthew Broderick as Gadget (with Don Adams providing the voice of Brain) and in 2003 starring French Stewart.

In 1989 Don Adams once again reprised his role of Maxwell Smart in the TV series Get Smart, Again! with Barbara Feldon returning as 99, and Andy Dick as their son, Zach.  The show rated poorly and was promptly cancelled.

In 2005 Don Adams passed away from a lung infection.  Amongst the eulogists at his funeral were Barbara Feldon, Don Rickles (both of whom appeared alonside Don Adams in Get Smart) and former Superman contender James Caan.

Now, onto the autograph!  In the early 2000's I wrote a fan letter to Don Adams, and after a long wait I received this wonderful b&w 8x10" photo in the mail:

Until next time!

Kylie Minogue

My next celebrity autograph is Kylie Minogue.

Kylie started her career on Australian TV, making a name for herself in the mid-1980's playing Charlene Mitchell in the soapie Neighbours.  Her character married Scott Robinson in 1987, an episode watched by 20 million British viewers. To put that into perspective, the wedding of Princes Charles and Lady Diana Spencer had 28.4 million British viewers, and the 1998 World Cup match between England and Argentina had 23.78 million Britsh viewers (for the record, the most watched show in British TV history is the 1966 World Cup final between England and West Germany with 32.3 million British viewers).

With the success of her single "Locomotion" in 1987, Kylie released her debut CD the following year entitled "Kylie".  Her success in the UK was highlighted when her first 13 singles reached the UK Top Ten charts.  In 1988 her song "I Should Be So Lucky" was number 1 in the UK charts for 5 weeks, along with 18 other songs including Belinda Carlisle's "Heaven Is A Place On Earth" and the Timelords' "Doctorin' The Tardis".

Her next CD "Enjoy Yourself" in 1989 also reached Number 1 in the UK, but her follow up CDs "Rhythm Of Love" (1990), "Let's Get To It" (1991), "Kylie Minogue" (1994) and "Impossible Princess" (1997) didn't bother the scorers too much.

Her 2000 CD "Light Years" regained Kylie's Number 1 status in Australia, bouyed by the successful singles "On A Night Like This", "Kids" (a duet with Robbie Williams), and "Spinning Around" featuring her now famous golden hotpants.

In 2001, Kylie's CD "Fever" reached Number 1 in Australia, the UK, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, and Austria (bless them).  The CD has to date sold over 8 million copies worldwide, and her single "Come Into My World" earned Kylie a Grammy award.

Her 2003 CD "Body Language" failed to reach Number 1, but her follow up CDs "X" (2007) and "Aphrodite" (2010) achieved this in Australia and the UK respectively.

Now onto the autograph.  After her Fever CD was released, I wrote a number of fan letters to Kylie in the UK (where she now resides).  I'm unsure which one was successful in reaching her, or if perhaps she just wanted me to stop bugging her, but I eventually received this signed postcard in the mail:

Until next time!

Toby Stephens

Next in my list of celebrity autographs is Toby Stephens.

Born in 1969, British actor Toby Stephens is best known for playing villainous Sir Gustav Graves in the 2002 Bond movie Die Another Day, starring Pierce Brosnan and Halle Berry.

Predominately a stage actor, Toby Stephens has had numerous TV and movie roles, including a part in the 2000 movie Space Cowboys, and in Series 3 of the TV show Robin Hood (playing Prince John of England).

Going back to Toby's role in Die Another Day, the movie celebrated the Bond franchise's 40th anniversary (Dr. No having premiered in 1962), and included many tie-ins to the previous movies, including the storyline.  Toby played the role of Sir Gustav Graves (loosely based on previous Bond villain Sir Hugo Drax in Moonraker), who used his fortune in diamonds to create Icarus, an Earth satellite used to re-create the Sun's rays, in an attempt to take control of North Korea for his own personal means.

Good thing Bond stopped him in time.

Since his time as megavillain Sir Gustav Graves, Toby's work on TV and in movies has increased, and he has also returned to the stage, and has completed numerous audio plays for BBC radio.  He's also my tip to play the next Doctor Who.  Good luck with that.

Now onto the autograph, about a year after Die Another Day was released I wrote a fan letter to Toby Stephens, and in April 2004 I received a signed postcard and letter from Toby apologising for the delay.  Unfortunately he signed the back of the card in blue ballpoint pen, which didn't scan very well (so I haven't included this in my post).

Until next time!