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James Bond's 'Q' Dies 269

Posted by Roblimo from the it-only-looks-like-an-ordinary-cigarette-lighter dept.
Pzykotic writes "The great actor Desmond Llewelyn, who played Q in all but 2 Bond films died in a head-on car crash in England today at age 85. I loved that guy, he will be sorely missed." Here's the BBC story. 72 readers submitted this news before we got it posted, so obviously Mr. Llewelyn was a bit of a geek icon, eh? Update: 12/19 07:51 by CT : I just watched Thunderball last night. God he was cool.
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Q Actor in James Bond Films Dies More

Q Actor in James Bond Films Dies

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  • Don't touch that bond, its my Lunch :)
  • But he did not want to retire. During an interview on an Australian TV show not too long ago (October?), he mentioned that he would like to do some more Bond movies in the future, with John Cleese as his 'assistant'
  • He also mentioned that Pierce Brosnan was better then Sean Connery at playing Bond! :)
  • Damn fine bit of useless tech. The sheer dumbness was immortalised in Hitch Hikers when one of Arthur's arm comes adrift. This leaves him without the ability to tell the time.

    My favourite was the theft alarm installed on the Lotus !

    Vale Desmond....a part of my life for longer than I care to remember.



  • If you're driving a pickup truck, and they're driving a civic, you'll fair much better. In a head-on collision, the smaller car gets it worst.

  • It sounds like the other driver is at fault...

    he has requested that his (and the name of his, er, "female companion") not be released.

    The wrath of geeks aside, that is not the action of an innocent man.

    In these days when so many people seem to think it acceptable to vent their feelings without any attempt to discover the facts, any sane person who is in any way connected with the death of a celebrity will want their identity withheld from the masses. When you have been in a serious road accident, the last thing you need is to be inundated with hate mail. Considering the weather conditions in the UK this weekend, I would wait for some real evidence before pointing any fingers.

    Desmond Llewelyn will be missed by many, but perhaps we should also think of the other people who died in road accidents in the UK this weekend (BBC report [bbc.co.uk]).

  • Q (Score:1)

    by ConPHuze ( 93243 )
    Sure, he was the best !!! =]
  • Is that my wife asked me last night while watching Tomorrow Never Dies if he had died/retired.

    She's a little freaked out now...

  • I don't think the idea of deleting an offensive comment, even if generated by a computer application, violates our freedom of speech. However, it violates our freedom to choose what we think is appropriate in our own minds to view. We don't need Slashdot to choose what's unsuitable for our eyes. It's censorship, man- there's NO way we should allow that!

    On a sidenote, I must state that Mr. Llewelyn WILL be sorely missed, and any inane comments bashing his tragic death should be disregarded anyway... LOUSY PUNKS!

    Afro Ryan [aol.com]

  • If you're driving a pickup truck, and they're driving a civic, you'll fair much better. In a head-on collision, the smaller car gets it worst.

    Yup, I made the assumption that it was two somewhat equally sized cars. But of course, the heavier/bigger car always "wins". It's simple, it's just the rule of motion, mass, and impact.

    So if we want to make it really safe, everybody ought to drive pickup trucks...uh... I guess it's that screwed up logic that makes the use of pickup trucks in the US so high.

  • >You killed Q. May the good Lord have mercy upon you.

    Oh my God, I killed Q! Well, I'm sure he'll be back in the next film. In more than one way :)

    Chris.
  • Good point. In any way, I share the guilt of killing Q with the 200,000-odd people in my town who also didn't see the signing. Diffusion of responsibility makes me feel better ;)

    But still, it's true. An extra ten seconds talking to someone - anyone - probably would have saved his life. Man, now I *am* depressed.. *sighs*

    Merry Christmas etc, peeps.

    Chris.
  • Agreed. Trying to blame someone sets minds at rest a little, but I'm fairly sure that 'blame' can't be attributed in this case. It's been icy over here, hundreds of accidents, you get the idea. Just a bad throw of the random dice of life :(

    Chris.

  • I've actually seen it, but considering the way they have chopped and changed characters in the past, who knows what will happen!

    John will probably make a good Q, but I can see other actors that would be quite good in the part, expecially those who already have scientific bent, and a possible comedy angle.

    Possible scenario (whch could indeed start a whole new film) could have the science facility being destroyed by some terrorist group/whatever, and Bond goes out for revenge... "Q's Revenge".. who knows.. they've come out with some weirder stuff before! Anything is possible.

  • How young is too young to post, jagoff?

    It sounds like the other driver is at fault...
    he has requested that his (and the name of his,
    er, "female companion") not be released.

    The wrath of geeks aside, that is not the
    action of an innocent man.

  • A shame he never got to use his new fishing boat.

    Seriously, he was a great contributor to the whole Bond mythos and will be missed.
  • Man, he was the best part of some of those movies. He will be missed sorely. I know he was retiring, but it's still tragic that he died, of course -- if he was anything at all like the character he played, he'd have been a great person to be around.
  • NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • Strangely prophetic... (Score:4)

    by Syberghost ( 10557 ) <syberghost@@@syberghost...com> on Sunday December 19, 1999 @01:44PM (#1460740)
    ...that they introduced his successor in the latest film.


    He will be missed.
  • That really stinks...I just Llewelyn in an interview with E just the other day about The World Is Not Enough.

    Rather stinks that he died in a car accident on the way home after a book signing (right?). Bet the person who got into the crash with him feels like a piece of crap now.

    Jazilla.org - the Java Mozilla [sourceforge.net]
  • No co-incidence that he was in Chitty - since Ian Fleming wrote that book - and it had Cubby Brocoli in the production staff.
  • It's sad, no doubt. But isn't it odd that they just introduced John Cleese as his successor? That, and the sly "getaway" as he descended from Bond's presence. Coincidence?

    (Planting the conspiracy theory seed early)
  • 'Now Bond, listen very carefully... this is the pen that goes "neee! neee! neee! ekkie ekkie ekkie ffffkang"'
  • But it looks like they picked the right time to bring in John Cleese as his replacement.

    Au revoir, Q!
  • and that the impression I certainly got from the last film was that it was his last as Q anyway. I'll certainly miss him.

    Rest in Peace Desmond.



    Gary

  • CNN too (Score:4)

    by raskolnik ( 101795 ) on Sunday December 19, 1999 @01:48PM (#1460748)
    Here's a CNN article on it as well [cnn.com]
    "You should never have your best trousers on when you turn
  • He was not at all technical, but with his influence and that of Dr. Who (I never got my Sonic Screwdriver for Xmas), I had to become a geek, and total gadget freak, and I'm sure I'm not the only one he influenced, I'll miss seeing him in Bond films, I hope they dedicate the next one too him.
  • supposedly made remarks that if he died on-stage that it was to be used as footage if possible.

    What were the odds? He shoots like 5 minutes every movie (1 every 2 years).

    Anyway.. Maybe some comunist captures him to find out about the technology that Bonds uses, and kills him (or Q takes one of those pils to die)..

    --

  • His other work (Score:3)

    by smartin ( 942 ) on Sunday December 19, 1999 @01:48PM (#1460751)
    I remember him from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

    Here's [imdb.com] a listing of what he did.
  • As others have said, Llewelyn was the constant in the series; everyone else has changed. I think the current M actress has had the part longer than any other, one Money Penny actress had a long run at it but there have been 3 different ones in the last four movies


    Judi Dench, the actress who played M in the past three films, held the part of Money Penny in every other film. This makes her the only actor to appear in all 19 Bond films. Also, Money Penny has been played by Samantha Bond since Dench moved to M, therefore, there has only been once since then.
  • I hope Cleese will be able to stay on as long as Llewelyn did, and I also hope the other actors (like the one that plays M) stick around for a long time.

    But not the Bond character - I like Brosnan as Bond, but I don't want another case of 'A View To A Kill', in which Roger Moore played Bond at a time when he was 58 (!).
  • M was played consistantly by Bernard Lee from Dr. No through Moonraker (11 times)

    And Lois Maxwell, not Dench, was Moneypenny through all the Connery's and Moore's (and the Lazenby)

    I was just going from memory; it didn't occur to me to pop over to IMD and check. But then again, I wasn't expecting my post to get uped to a score of 5. :-) :-)

    I guess the point I wanted to make is Bond's family (M, Monney Penny, Q) add a lot to the series and it helps if they keep the same actor in the role for a long period of time. I also like how M was one of the main charachters in TWINE instead of a beaurcrat behind a dsk.
  • But still, it's true. An extra ten seconds talking to someone - anyone - probably would have saved his life.
    Not necessarily. If he lost control of the car due to mechanical failure or driver error or fatigue, this probably would have happened the same way if he'd left a few seconds later; he would have just collided with a different car. Maybe more people would have died.

    We can second-guess ourselves too the max, but a chaotic universe where a butterfly's flight can influence a hurricane days later is just too damn complicated for us to bear responsibilities for such "If only"s.

  • But not the Bond character - I like Brosnan as Bond, but I don't want another case of 'A View To A Kill', in which Roger Moore played Bond at a time when he was 58 (!).

    Probably should have mentioned that. IMHO, Bond should be played by someone in his late 30's or 40's, which is why you don't want to change the rest of the cast any more than you have to.
  • Mr Showbiz has some more interesting background information, including Llewelyn's opinion on the actors playing Bond:

    [go.com]
    http://mrshowbiz.go.com/news/Todays_Stories/9912 19/QDies121999.html
  • ...that is to say, that people can't reasonably be expected to be responsible for effects of chance (okay, not chance, but a sufficiently chaotic/unpredictable system). At least, this is my reading, and I consider it quite valid.

    So this post wasn't necessarily an attempt to be funny; Don't berate it for its failure to do so.
  • The thing that makes me mad is that all this crap appears to be put up by only one, two or possible three kiddies. Sad, really... but that's the price we pay for freedom of speech. I just wish we'd have a better way to cope with it.

    Now for my suggestion (listen up, Cmdr)... a kill button by each post, if a certain ratio of views/clicks is reached the post goes bye bye (or at least automatic -1).

    -----

  • Unfortunate they didn't let Dame Dench's "M" show a little more of the resourcefulness and tradecraft that she must have had as an agent before she got promoted to "M".

    But the exit scene for "Q" in the current Bond movie is one of the best parts of it, IMHO.

    Rest in peace, Desmond Llewelyn...

  • >Judi Dench, the actress who played M in the past three films, held the part of Money Penny in every other film.

    No she didn't. Judi Dench has only appeared in the Brosnan Bond films, and only in the role of 'M'.

    Moneypenny was played by Lois Maxwell in every (official) Bond film from 'Dr No' until 'A View to a Kill'; Bernard Lee played 'M' from 'Dr No' until 'Moonraker'.

    See IMDB [imdb.com].
  • Are you sure Judi Dench [imdb.com], who is one of the best Brit actor today, played Money Penny?!? She was really doing MGM favorite by appearing on those 3 awful spy/leg/gadgetry flicks. There are 5 actresses played Ms Moneypenny according to imdb.


    CY
  • Bzzzzzt - Dame Judi Dench was never Moneypenny - that role has belonged to Lois Maxwell since Dr No up to View to a Kill. M, currently played by Judi Dench, was originally played by Bernard Lee, who played M up to Moonraker.
  • I've seen his Heineken ads on TBS (TNT?) and thought they were a hoot.

    I've also thought that a special film that ONLY consisted of his briefings to the various incarnations (is he a Time Lord or WHAT) of James Bond would be wonderful- especially for techies to watch. His dry delivery was too good for words.

    I just hope that the other car wasn't driven by John Cleese, looking for a promotion :-) :-) :-)

    Hopefully Cleese will be able to carry the load in the future- but it can't help him that we've got such high expectations for subtle wit...

  • Re:How will the Bond films handle it?? (Score:3)

    by Phoenix ( 2762 ) on Sunday December 19, 1999 @06:57PM (#1460790)
    Well, admittedly no one can truely replace Desmond as Q, but John Cleese will make a wonderful successor. He has the wit, and the sarcasm to deal with the childish antics of 007. Oh well, Desmond is up in heaven right now...I can almost hear him saying "Now pay attention God. this here is standard mark 4 universe complete with the usuall refinements. Stars, planets, pulsars...DON'T TOUCH THAT! That's a black hole creator"
  • well hopefully it's up for a name change because "Escape 2000 [imdb.com]" has been used at least twice before, notably as one of the funnier MST3K Mike episodes......and starring Henry Silva [imdb.com]!

    you are ordered to LEAVE THE BRONX!!
  • Well, we will always have Alfred.
  • no it was not a joke about his death - it was a joke about his life and public persona. I was also having a little dig at the way BondJamesBond and Q would make extremely dry, understated remarks along these lines upon the demise of someone (or some piece of machinery).

    So, as the others have remarked, chill!

  • The films which have been done by United Artists (now MGM/UA) are considered the "Real" Bond series.

    Please don't use "real" where "official" would be better.

    The other Bond films have a character called James Bond and are substantially based on works by Ian Fleming, so they're as "real" as any other 007 movie. They just aren't part of the EON "official" continuity (such as it is).
    ----

  • No, no, no. (Score:3)

    by questor ( 960 ) on Sunday December 19, 1999 @07:23PM (#1460799)
    Both howardpj and scudsucker are incorrect.

    M was played consistantly by Bernard Lee from Dr. No through Moonraker (11 times); when Lee died in 1981, they filled in once (For Your Eyes Only) with a Minister of Defense (Geoffrey Keen), not an "M", then Robert Brown played M in Octopussy, View to a Kill, and Dalton's two (Living Daylights, License to Kill). Dame Judi Dench came aboard along with Brosnan (so she's been M less times than any one else who has been M, though she's been given more to do with the role than the others put together).

    And Lois Maxwell, not Dench, was Moneypenny through all the Connery's and Moore's (and the Lazenby); Caroline Bliss was in Dalton's two, and Samantha Bond has been in Brosnan's three.

    When in doubt, check with imdb. I did.
  • Unfortunate they didn't let Dame Dench's "M" show a little more of the resourcefulness and tradecraft that she must have had as an agent before she got promoted to "M".

    It was established on her entrance in _Goldeneye_ that she was a "bean-counter", possibly even from outside the intelligence community. She certainly wasn't ever a field agent.

    (I wish they'd give her a name; Benson's books call her Barbara Mawdsley.)
    ----
  • Somebody on alt.fan.james-bond said it best:

    God had a mission and needed his help.

    We'll miss you, Des. Without you, how will 007 ever grow up?
    ----
  • I actually consider Q a better job than 00? agent.

    Less violence. More technology. More luxurious deadlines. shorter commute. More comfortable cloths.

    The only downside is that you need to recreate female company while _foo_ duty ( as opposed to when Bond dose it ).

    Did I mention that I want to be 'Q' ? I have a thing for the technical genius in the background. Scotty or Laforge on Star Track and Forge in the X Men. You didn't think my name was original now ?

  • Am I a bad omen? I JUST saw The world is not enough yesterday afternoon. I loved Desmond and all, but this is just too freaky!
  • sorry... i mean his role as Q IN james bond
  • I caught an interview of him a couple years ago, and the funny thing that sticks out in my mind he said was something about how he actually didn't know a damn thing about gadgets, and hadn't ever really had that crazy an interest. He went on to say how he had no idea how most electronics worked, and I think thats why he liked to play the part.

    Now that's cool.

    commando...
  • Read the article, it says

    He was also taken to Eastbourne District General Hospital with his female companion, in her thirties, who suffered from minor injuries.


    WHAT A STUD!!! at least he went out in style!
  • I did NOT mean for "go out with a bang" to be a pun at all... It didn't even register that it could be interpreted that way, but now that I see it, I apologize. I meant that he wanted to end his life with some control, not just slowly dwindling in both popularity and will to live.
  • I was hoping that when he finally went, it would be peacefully in his sleep at 110. That he went in a car accident just makes this all the more sad. Q would have had an escape hatch or an ejection seat, y'know? Or he would have been faking his death in order for Bond to find out who was trying to kill him while the assasin had his guard down. . .but of course, reality isn't like that. We'll miss you, Mr. Llewelyn. You were easily full half of what made the Bond films worth watching.
  • The films which have been done by United Artists (now MGM/UA) [jamesbond.com] are considered the "Real" Bond series. There have been 19 of those films, starting with Doctor No in 1962.

    The two James Bond films which aren't part of that series are Casino Royale [imdb.com] (1967, Quite a number of people playing 007) and Never Say Never Again [imdb.com] (1983, Sean Connery as 007).

    Q appeared in all of the "real" series movies, except Doctor No (1962, Sean Connery as 007) and Live and Let Die (1973, Roger Moore as 007). He first appeared in From Russia with Love (1963, Sean Connery as 007).

    Probably my favorite Q device was "Little Nellie", the tiny killer gyrocopter 007 flies in You Only Live Twice.

    I mourn his passing greatly, and I extend sympathy to his family, friends and fans everywhere.

  • In ``Live and Let Die,'' they were trying to play down the gadgets, so they bumped him. They called him within days of the release for the next one since so many people complained. :)

    -Chris
  • I found the incident coincidental also. I thought he was old, but it was ironic that it was a car crash. Didn't he have some sort of air bag, or other nifty gadget? :)
  • Very sorry to see Q go....he was a gem in the Bond flicks, and many condolences to the family. But, anyone else wonder who was at fault in the crash? I've almost been taken out by an inordinate amount of "grey hairs" that should have been restricted to driving wheelchairs and instead of 3 ton vehicles (regardless of the gadget expertise). Just curious as to what the accident report concluded...

  • that they should have brough John De Lance in as his successor...

  • Quite True (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward
    The roads are pretty dangerous in the U.K. at the moment. Apparently the South is having the worst of it at the moment. Either you have snow or ice or even worse, snow melting and refreezing at -X degrees but X is unknown because it depends on how much ice your particlar piece of road has had lately. Basically the roads are dangerous because they are unpredictable at the moment. If my grandfather were still alive (R.I.P.) I would have personally driven out to the front of his drive to prevent him from venturing out on to the roads. It seems that, sadly, Q's lack of technical / scientific knowledge in real life could have contributed to his end. R.I.P.
  • I'm sure he was nothing like he was in his film. Otherwise he would have had an ejection seat and rocket boosters on his car. Although the articles don't sepcifically say it *doesn't* have rocket boosters...
    "You should never have your best trousers on when you turn
  • I got the news about 'Q' last night while at a party via the live CNN updates that are sent to my digital pager.

    Do you find it the slightest bit amusing that the old Bond and Trek technology is so funny now? Already?

    Did you notice that Trek communicators suck compared to a Nokia cell phone?

    Did you notice that in the original Trek, they had to swap those stupid disk things more than a Classic Mac with no hard drive?

    Isn't it amusing that my Palm computer is smaller than the Trek PADD?

    . . . Goodbye, Q. You will be missed greatly.

  • How will the Bond films handle it?? (Score:3)

    by Cef ( 28324 ) on Sunday December 19, 1999 @01:57PM (#1460823)

    It'll be interesting how the Bond series handles this. Desmond had previously stated that he wanted to do the part until he died, and had supposedly made remarks that if he died on-stage that it was to be used as footage if possible.

    So will it just be that Q retires, or that something happens to him in the next film? Only time, and his family, will tell I guess.

    It is of course possible that they filmed an ending scene for him already. Then of course there is all the technical trickery that can be done with computers and existing footage (some of which would probably be from the cutting room floor).

    Of course, no one will ever truely replace Q, but it will be a sought after role for many actors. So who should be the next Q? Slashdot poll anyone?

    Whatever happens, I think there should be some sort of dedication to him at the start of the next film, such as In the memory of Desmond Llewelyn, may he rest in peace.

  • let me guess. The reason he crashed is because he lost control becuase of extencive damage done to the vehicle. He should have known by now he should never drive the car after 007 has driven it!
  • A sad day. The underappreciated passes on, and will be sorely missed.

    Kudos to the man, and his memory.
  • His name is actually Major Boothroyd. "Q" is the name of the branch of HMSS (Her Majesty's Secret Service) that makes the gadgets and such and not actually a person. At least in the books. I guess in the movies with a character called "M" they decided to have one called "Q" as well. In the newer books they have a woman nicknamed "Q-ute" who is head of Q Branch.
  • Anyone else struck by the /. post right above the death of "Q" announcement? Just the kind of thing he would have come up with. (I can hear him now--"It's a sub-dermal implant that tracks your location via Global Positioning satellites. Do try not to break it.") *m*
  • It's a shame, i was really hoping that he would be back, at least in a cameo, for the next bond movie. Q was always one of the constants in the bond movies, even when they weren't so great(George Lazenby!). You could always count of Q for his pantented "Oh grow up 007!". Well, the bond movies surely will be lacking from now on, but his contribution is greatly appreciated. We will miss him
  • No.. but if you run backwards certain key explosions.. you hear "Q is dead".
  • If you're able to see the latest James Bond flick, then you'll see what happens to him. It's a fitting replacement, I think. I'm not gonna give it away here, but if someone else wants to spoil it, be my guest. :)

  • hearing the audience gasp with awestruck envy when he reached up with one hand -- to activate his DIGITAL WATCH

    A similar incident I remember was in Batman where the batmobile is shown to have a *gasp* CD PLAYER!

  • Monepeny is the "pretty but prudish" secretary ( a nice enough role model from a moral perspective, for young girls )

    Actually, my perception was that she was always trying to get him in bed, and he was always politely snubbing her. That was the whole dynamics of their on-screen relations: He may have been a player, but he was too smart to sleep with his own secretary--that would have ruined their professional relationship. At least, I thought that was the subtext. I thought theirs was the most interesting Bond relationship to watch: Every movie, you wondered if they would finally end up in the sack. Every movie, they didn't. But, just like Money herself, you kept on hoping. ;)

    And now for a bit of a rant...

    I don't think it's appropriate for you to dictate what should be the "morals" of "young girls", especially when you complain that (as Q) "you need to recreate female company while _foo_ duty" (sic) in your post below. When will the sexual double standard ever die? In America it's breathing its last, but perhaps in Jamaica it remains entrenched. It's interesting in this light that you refer to grown women as "girls", as that is the most patronizingly sexist term you could choose.

    Wake up. They're women, not girls. They are full adults in their own right, and they're competent to make their own decisions, about sexuality as about everything else. They don't need the likes of you showing them "role model[s] from a moral perspective," trying to keep them chaste while you "recreate female company" wherever you like.

    They can think for themselves. And they will. I hope they choose to give you the cold shoulder until you grow up in your attitudes,

  • Whoops... too late for that. ;)
  • He had the greatest geek job that there ever could be. All the funding he needed. No one looking over his shoulder because it was all in secret. I still remember the first time I saw a Bond movie as a little kid and when Q showed bond some contraption like a watch that shot poison darts that he made I just smiled and said "How cool is that guys job". :-) Godspeed Q

  • Really sad.. (Score:4)

    by ChrisUK ( 92178 ) on Sunday December 19, 1999 @02:07PM (#1460844) Homepage
    This is *really* sad. Just today, in our local mall, I noticed that he was signing books tonight, so I guess that Mr. Llewellyn must have been on his way back from the signing when he crashed the car. I was going to go to the event, but ended up seeing the new Arnie flick with some friends instead. Now I know what I *should* have done. He'll be missed, that's for sure. :(

    Chris.
  • Well acording to the movie R was ... clumbsy, it could add an interesting part.

    James closes in with the latest car hits the button for the rocket launcher and boom is ejected from the car.

    It could add an interesting twist. A bond movie where the toy's misfire.

    Cormac
  • Austin Martin, BMW, etc. Never, EVER french cars. Now we understand why. I think it's pretty odd.
  • > You've helped make Slashdot a place for obituaries.

    Well, If the person who died was of interest or relevance to Geeks and Nerds, why not? I doubt there would be an arguement to the Slashdot gang posting RMS's, ESR's, or Knuth's obit. if they happened to kick the bucket. I think the same should apply to Desmond Llewelyn, or DeForest Kelly.

    >If this IS news for nerds (by some twisted definition)

    While neither of them directly contributed to computing or the Open Source movement, they both had an impact on every Geek I know, and most that I don't know. I think the fact that 72 people sent this in before it was posted shows this. Hell, I'd go so far as to say Q has had as much of an influence on me being a Geek as Lego and computers. Just because this particular posting isn't interesting to *you*, it dosen't mean that it's irrelevant to *lots* of other people.

    "News for Nerds. Stuff that Matters." is not restricted to "News on Open Source. Stuff about Computers."

    Mike
  • There's nothing that says they can't have a different successor every film.

    John DeLancie would be a very good choice, puns aside.

    (For those who don't know, John played "Q" on every Star Trek series since "Next Generation".)

    Heck, maybe every person who plays his replacement could be an actor named John. :-)
  • I was looking at the filmograhpy that someone linked to above, and in one of his movies (From Russia with Love i think), he is listed as Q (Major Boothroyd). I've never heard this name - maybe it was mentioned once then dropped. Anyway, a little trivia for you...

    Personally, I don't think he will ever be replaced - I respect Cleese's work, and think he is a piss-funny comedian, but that's just not what Q was.

    "Oh, grow UP, 007!"
  • First of all, I know this is about as off-topic as they come, but hey, karma may be sacrificied to get Slashdot the help it needs.

    Now, I'm writing this as around 60 comments have been posted... of which nearly a fifth have been complete troll trash... and all apart from one of them has been an anonymous coward post.

    I like to read at -1 or 0 because then I can read the unmoderated comments that may not be abusive, but not good enough to be top rated.
    However, it gets to me the amount of sheer abuse and crap there is in this story.

    Sod the whole anonymous coward concept - make them register and then if they're abuse, report the ip and time/date to their isp... who have probably got stringent rules about such behaviour.

    Shame... 'Q' was my fave from the Bond films.
  • Of course he matters to us. 'Q' is the geak of the Bond mythology. Monepeny is the "pretty but prudish" secretary ( a nice enough role model from a moral perspective, for young girls ) and Bond himself is a civilized "Conan". ( think about that last one. It'll come to you :).

    Q will be surely missed. I will be wearing a black arm band to see "The world is not enough" in memory of him. If anyone else cares to pay his/her respects in this way go right ahead.

    The whole Bond thing is woven into Jamaican culture since Ian Fleming lived here when he wrote the early stories. At least 2 of the movies were set here ( in part ). "James Bond" ( the name ) was the author of a book on Caribbean birds. Mr. Fleming stole his name because "It was the most boring name I could find". He was more than a little surprised when at the opening of one of the 1st 007 flicks Mr. Bond walked up to him and introduced himself just like the goy in the movie. Except with ID to prove it.

    Q. Of course was a key character in all of this. Without him, there would be no way to know before hand what kind of arsenal 007 carried and that would just make his antics seam a little lame.

  • Q helped hold the franchise together (Score:5)

    by Scudsucker ( 17617 ) on Sunday December 19, 1999 @03:14PM (#1460905) Homepage Journal
    As others have said, Llewelyn was the constant in the series; everyone else has changed. I think the current M actress has had the part longer than any other, one Money Penny actress had a long run at it but there have been 3 different ones in the last four movies, and everbody knows how many different Bond actors we've had. Hell, Bond's friend in the CIA, Feilix Lighter (sp) even managed to change races between movies.

    How fortunate (for the Bond fans anyway) that they set up Q's succession in The World Is Not Enough. Cleese is a good choice, not only because he's a good actor but because he wont try to be like Llewelyn's Q. He'll be geeky and techy, but it looks like he has a low opinion of Bond and I look forward to watching them quibble in furture movies.

    I hope Cleese will be able to stay on as long as Llewelyn did, and I also hope the other actors (like the one that plays M) stick around for a long time. I think it adds a lot to a running series if you keep the same people or objects around, like Llewelyn as Q or the Tardis in Dr. Who. Now they just need to find some Sophia Loren type chick (one that still looks great in her 60's) at the age of 18 to play Money Penny. :-)

    Goodbye Desmond, thanks for helping to make Bond into what he his today. You will be missed as one of the great geek heroes of this century.
  • it was ironic that it was a car crash. Didn't he have some sort of air bag, or other nifty gadget? :)

    According to what he repeated many times in several interviews, he didn't really like any technical gadgets at all in the real life (tm). In his experience [gamespot.co.uk], all gadgets almost magically ceased to work at his presence.

    So if we suppose that the airbag in his car didn't function correctly, this malfunction hardly came as a surprise to him! :-I

  • Not only did Q have the ultimate job, but he was a constant. Be it Brosnan, Connery, or Moore (argh...Moonraker!...twitch...scream...) playing Bond, there was always Q. Good old Q. Good old "You must be kidding about the third nipple, Bond" Q.
    If you can't be a 00agent, Q is the next best job. Fake fingerprints, exploding pens, third nipples, grappling hook watches, laser rifles, explosive bolas....that's the life.
    Well, Q, you've given us words to live by.
    "Don't let them see you bleed.
    Always have an escape route."
    You won't be forgotten. As long as ballpoint pens sprout needles, speedboats navigate the streets of London, and wrist dart launchers blow out centrafuges, we'll remember you.
    ===
    -Ravagin

  • Re:Death icon. DEATH ICON!!!!! (Score:3)

    by uh ( 127786 ) on Sunday December 19, 1999 @03:23PM (#1460914)
    Although I'm indifferent, I do think there is some validity in the original posters argument. If 70 friends of mine and I get together and submit stories about who won the Superbowl, it doesn't mean /. should post it as news. I mean look at the physics involved in football, projectile motion, action/reaction forces, etc., etc. etc. The point the original commentor was making was the fact that as /.'s audience grows, its loosening its standards -- its integrity -- and coming up with extremely weak justifications (the mere fact that he attempted to justify is proof in itself of the merit of the story) for posting stories which really don't belong. Why you say is this happening? Why everything happens in our society? Money. Of course you can only prostitute yourself for so long. Prostitutes do loose their looks after a while, and no one wants to be with an ugly and old prostitute. As /. heads more towards the mainstream, its original audience -- the people who told their friends and reload 100 times a day -- are going to leave. Once there exodus is complete don't be surprised when slashdot looks more like zdnet.com than a geek/nerd/unix oriented site.. Of course at this point, they will just be another whore on the street, and eventually will be lost in the crowd... Going with the general ideas in my post and the fact that people don't like the truth, I expect this comment to be moderated into oblivion quite quickly. Moderators, don't let me down!
  • As a member of the Slashdot community, I would like to take the time to offer my condolences to Desmond Llewelyn's family. I and many others in the Slashdot community are fans of his work, and he has also earned our respect for his longevity in Bond movies. Actors for the role of James Bond come and go, but Desmond as 'Q' has been with us almost forever. It is tragic that he has been taken from us in the prime of his life (he would have insisted on that, I'm sure). He will be sadly missed by all who have grown to love his role as 'Q' in James Bond movies, as well as his other acting roles.

  • Re:Q was going to stay (Score:3)

    by znark ( 77857 ) on Sunday December 19, 1999 @03:28PM (#1460923) Homepage
    he already announced his retirment, hence the introduction.

    This is not true. See this article [ianfleming.org] for further information.

  • Well, you could get that from the trailor. ;-)

  • He built all of the cool stuff that the hero couldn't live without. Underappreciated, but never expendable.
    85 in a head on car crash. Looks like he didn't stop living 'til his heart stopped.

  • Barbra Bach's character calls Q Major Boothroyd in "The Spy Who Loved Me".
  • If you have 70 friends, then what are you doing on Slashdot?

    Maybe we should have a requirement that people get a certain score on the nerd test in order to post. :b

  • Re:Amazing Coincidence (Score:3)

    by ralphclark ( 11346 ) on Sunday December 19, 1999 @04:34PM (#1460931) Journal
    I saw "The World is Not Enough" on Saturday, and when I saw Q's final scene I thought it was a little sad.

    They'd just introduced his replacement which under other circumstances would have been OK, but Llewellyn was looking fragile with age (his speech had become rather slurred too). So much so that it was almost shocking to see him like that. It struck me even then that it was unlikely he'd live long enough to appear in another film.

    As he descended through the trap door, his witty line about "always having an escape route" seemed like a half-hearted attempt to inject humour into a literally very morbid scene. which was really about a admission about something that was happening in real life.

    Ironic indeed that an accident should claim him before natural causes. Of course it's not beyond credibility that his condition might have contributed to the accident in some way.

    Consciousness is not what it thinks it is
    Thought exists only as an abstraction
  • I can remember seeing my first Bond flick in a theatre (Octopussy I belive, so this will date me pretty well.) I remember what an impression Q made on me during that film. I mean Bond can go out and risk his life and all that, but Q had the best job. Make cool gadgets, and being during the cold war, you can be sure he didn't have to worry about budgetary constraints. Add to this his disdain for Bond who invariably loses or breaks his cool gadgets and you can see the parallels with the hard working coders who must eventually release their much slaved over code and give it to ungrateful users who will then break it....

    Hell, he even helps have the day in that movie and is swarmed over by a bunch of numble young circus performers....
  • ...But I was absolutely certain that I had read an obituary and/or article about the death of Desmond Llewelyn (complete with his amazing military history) shortly before Tomorrow Never Dies was released. I was surprised when it came out and there was no "in memory of..." for him. Then I saw a trailer for TWINE and he was in it. I figured, "gee, either some newspaper severely fucked up, or he's CG."

    The fact that he actally DOES die after TWINE is released and in the movie he "retires" seems odd. Very odd.

    Did anyone else see the obituary/article two years ago? Where was it? I seem to recall it being an NYT thing.

    -Chris

  • Let Me Die A Youngman's Death (Score:4)

    by Paul Crowley ( 837 ) on Sunday December 19, 1999 @10:19PM (#1460966) Homepage Journal
    Let me die a youngman's death
    not a clean & in between
    the sheets holy water death
    not a famous-last-words
    peaceful out of breath death

    When I'm 73
    & in constant good tumour
    may I be mown down at dawn
    by a bright red sports car
    on my way home
    from an all night party

    Or when I'm 91
    with silver hair
    & sitting in a barber's chair
    may rival gangsters
    with ham fisted tommy guns burst in
    & give me a short back and insides

    Or when I'm 104
    & banned from the Cavern
    may my mistress
    catch me in bed with her daughter
    & fearing for her son
    cut me up into little pieces
    & throw away every piece but one

    Let me die a youngman's death
    not a free from sin tiptoe in
    candle wax and waning death
    not a curtains drawn by angels borne
    what a nice way to go death

    (Roger McGough)
    --

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