Here we have Timothy Leonard Dalton Leggett, who appeared in just two films as James Bond, these being "The Living Daylights" (1987) and "Licence to Kill" (1989).
This is actually a very tangled tale, for when Roger Moore left, Timothy Dalton was the preferred replacement for the next James Bond film in line, "The Living Daylights" (1987), however he was not available when the time came.
His replacement was Pierce Brosnan, who signed the contract to play James Bond in 1986. The timing was perfect, because his long running television show, "Remington Steele", had just been cancelled. Then there was a change of heart, and it was decided to continue with the fifth season after all. And though the network were quite amenable to shoot round their star so that he could be James Bond too, the producers of James Bond were adamant in protesting. They also tried to get the show permanently cancelled, and, when this did not happen, Pierce Brosnan was ousted as James Bond.
The role of James Bond was then given to Timothy Dalton after all, who had suddenly become available.
Now Timothy Dalton was already a very well known actor on stage and television. He had joined The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in 1961 at the age of sixteen, but left in 1966 when he had the chance to join the Birmingham Repertory Theatre. From there he moved into television, and film.
His first film part was in the epic "The Lion In Winter" in 1968. After that had been in the cinemas for a little while he received an amazing offer from the makers of James Bond; they wanted him to replace Sean Connery in "On Her Majesty`s Secret Service". He considered it, but decided against it, reportedly because he felt he was too young and inexperienced to play a grizzled secret agent. The role would go to George Lazenby instead.
There is also some confusion about his first cartophilic appearance. This was definitely not as James Bond, and it is generally quoted to be card 6 of Topps "The Rocketeer", issued in 1991, on which he is shown as the dastardly Neville Sinclair.
This is incorrect.
His true "Rookie" cards show him in the film "Flash Gordon", released in 1980, in which he played Prince Barin, a kind of Robin Hood, who was King of Arboria, and one of Flash Gordon`s best friends, though the two are both in love with the same woman, Princess Aura - also known as the daughter of Ming the Merciless. However in the end, once Ming the Merciless is overthrown, Prince Barin becomes king and wins her hand.
We also know that he was on several of the FKS Stickers of the film, starting with No.8. These were released in January 1981, and were also available in French, Belgian, and Spanish versions. Each packet contained six stickers, but I am unsure if they included gum too. The set was of 280 stickers.
He is also on card 4 of the Weetabix 1981 set of eighteen "Flash Gordon Movie Cards" - right behind Flash Gordon as they walk through the crowds. He also appears on card 5. However the one that is most sought after is card 11 which shows him in an action scene on the front and has his portrait and a movie quote on the back.
Lastly there was a Panini set, of 240 stickers which was also issued in 1981.
This set is the first by Upper Deck to feature James Bond. As is usual, these days, there are many sub-sets and oddities to collect.
Even the base set is unusual as the second 100 cards, half the set, were only printed as short runs. As for the parallel cards, the first 100 can be found in silver foil, the next 50 in rainbow coloured foil, and the last 50 in gold acetate.
Then there is an archive, or legacy set, of 40 cards, a "Bond vs the Villains" set of 20 cards, a "Q" set showing some (15) of the gadgets that made Bond such fun, at least in the early days, and a set of 10 showing some of the places that James Bond regularly jets into.
There are also autographs, autographs with inscriptions as well in the same hand, but these were only available if you bought a whole box of cards at once.
And lastly there are also six cards which are made in real silver. Now in other sets these were given to employees for services rendered, but here they were available to collectors. However it seems that they were not blase enough to issue these in the packets, instead you got a redemption card which you sent up with your details on it - and it is true to say that in years to come these may well end up rarer than the cards for which they were exchanged, as they were not returned to the collector.