Styles & Scenes

Buy Bond's, James Bond's, birthplace

Want a bit of Bond history?

We’re not talking Sir Sean Connery’s autograph or a Bond DVD box set. We’re talking a $1 million Beach Cottage - or maybe just a $700 grand Cove Hut - at Goldeneye, Ian Fleming’s private Jamaican hideaway where he wrote all his 007 spy thrillers.

Goldeneye - owned by legendary music industry empresario Chris Blackwell and his Island Outpost resort corporation - will evolve over the next two years from a small, reclusive resort property into a large exclusive resort village taking up a significant chunk of Jamaica's north shore.

Countless music, fashion and film stars are already frequent guests of Blackwell’s lush, laid-back Goldeneye resort. Johnny Depp is a regular. Scarlett Johansson and beau Josh Hartnett were just there. Naomi Campell even owns one of the Goldeneye villas  - the Royal Palm – that you can rent. Other visitors include Bono, Steve Winwood, Bob Marley, Sting (he wrote “Every Breath You Take” there), Harrison Ford, Cindy Crawford and Kate Moss. Two cinema Bonds – Sir Sean Connery and Pierce Brosnan - have also idled there. Connery, according to Roger Brown, Island Outpost developer, has even expressed an interest in the new Goldeye Resort property. No sign, so far, of the new 007 Daniel Craig whose “Casino Royale” is due out in November. 

But Blackwell was in LA this week looking for a few select Hollywood high rollers who might like to be residents of his revamped Goldeneye. At a party Monday in a Santa Monica home, an elite group including Angelica Huston, former Mamas and Papas singer Michelle Phillips, music industry honcho Peter Asher, Malcolm McLaren (c'mon, you remember the Sex Pistols) and record producer Richard Perry sampled Jamaican fare and fruity rum drinks while looking at plans for the new Goldeneye, scheduled for completion in Winter 2007.

As well as private homes of all sizes, the plans include a thalassotherapy spa, clubhouse, tennis courts, fitness centers, pools, restaurants and doctors offices. There will also be 30 ocean-front rental apartments, named for Bond characters like Q, Miss Moneypenny, Goldfinger, Pussy Galore, etc. “But the suites will be tastefully done,” points out Brown. “Not like Disneyland.” Darn. We were kinda hoping for a naked gold-painted blonde sprawled on the king bed. 

And, as the promo pamphlets point out, you could even retire there. But the price? Okay, it ain’t cheap. The tropical decored two-story Lagoon Villa (5230 sq ft) starts, we repeat, starts at $3 million. But chill, mon. The promo packet proposes music to play while reviewing the purchase documents included in the colorful tie-dyed gift bags given to each party guest.

Just a few ditties by Steve Winwood, Muddy Waters, Bill Withers, Neil Young, Prince, Traffic, Cat Stevens, Fleetwood Mac and The Wailers should make signing that hefty deposit check much easier.

A little Goldeneye history came to light throughout the evening...

Photo Credits: Goldeneye, Ian Fleming's Jamaican hideaway, is about to spawn an exclusive resort village. Courtesy of Island Outpost.

Sean Connery's Hollywood fans are shaken n' stirred

“If Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then flattered you must be,” AFI Chair Sir Howard Stringer told Sir Sean Connery, the iconic Scottish actor best known for being Bond, James Bond. “Because at any moment in time, people around the world are doing Sean Connery impersonations.”

That was certainly true at AFI’s Life Achievement Award dinner at the Kodak Theatre Thursday. Almost everyone paying homage to Connery -  Mike Myers, Tippi Hedren, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Harrison Ford, Andy Garcia, Craig Ferguson, “Deadwood’s” Ian McShane and Eddie Izzard - did their best (and often worst) Connery accent.

Connery’s “First Knight” costar Julia Ormond recalled that while the rest of the cast struggled in and out of period costumes, Connery had his fastened with Velcro so he could get to the golf course fast. And when she went to audition for Sabrina” with Harrison Ford, Connery gave her this advice: "Give him a Swiss kiss."

“What’s a Swiss kiss?" she asked. (Cue the accent) “It’s the same as a French kiss,” he replied. “Only you yodel.”

Pierce Brosnan recalled seeing “Goldfinger” at age 11 in London and finally meeting Connery after a dangerous fireball stunt in Brosnan’s first Bond flick. “We got the take and later on the lot, I ran into Sean who said (cue the accent),  “I saw what you did. Pretty good. Are they paying you enough money?”

His “Untouchables” costar Garcia recalled Connery impatiently watching director David Mamet try to get Garcia to turn towards the camera so they could see his face. Cut the accent. “C’mon kid. Its not Hamlet,” Connery groused from off-set. Several takes later, Mamet whined, 'We still can’t see both your eyes.' Connery rolled his eyes and said (accent, please), “You saw both his eyes. They’re just very close together.”

But it wasn’t all impersonations...

Photo Credit: Sir Sean Connery - better known as James Bond - still the actor that men want to be and women want to be with - at the American Film Institute 34th Life Achievement Award.
WireImage/Gregg DeGuire

It's Oscar time for Terrence Howard

If you thought the Screen Actors Guild Awards was star-jammed on Sunday, you should have snuck behind the scenes to Karen Wood’s Backstage Creations SAG Talent Retreat.

That’s the lavishly decorated celeb-only room where the stars gather before, during and after the show to chat, have a glass of bubbly or just relax from the awards pressure. Of course, another major reason to do the retreat is to get lots of free stuff from merchants displaying star swag in the room.

"Matador" star Pierce Brosnan admired Amouage fragrance from an Irish perfumer. The handmade bottles are so cool they’re the only perfume bottle in the Smithsonian. Marcia Cross and Eva Longoria (hanging on squeeze Tony Parker) loved Shu Uemura cosmetics, also used on the “Desperate Housewives” set. “Entourage” star Jeremy Piven picked up some Phyto hair product for his limping locks. “This is good stuff,” he pronounced. Yeah, baby. Hug it out.

“Crash” star Terrence Howard, looking hot in his D&G duds, felt so at-home that he hung out in the retreat until his category was called. Then he ran out, helped picked up the award for best ensemble cast and returned with “Crash” costar Don Cheadle, who was limping from an unexplained foot injury. Cheadle took a seat on a cream colored sofa, holding the carved wooden cane he’d bought in Kenya.

After picking up a blue Le Vian watch to match his suit, Howard, nominated today for a best actor Oscar for his lead role in "Hustle & Flow," tried to buy the B&W photos by Wall Kandy for his new house. Then he got so excited about a free trip to the Starwood Resort — the St. Regis on Bora Bora — that he announced he was booking his trip the very next day. Better wait until after the Oscars on March 5, Terrence. Angela Bassett drooled over the Bora Bora beach trip too but Ed Harris and his wife Amy Madigan were the most enthusiastic. And impatient. Harris suggested, “Let’s leave tonight!”

Take me with you. Please.

Photo: Terrence Howard synchronizes his free watch and Angela Bassett plans her next vacation at the Backstage Creations SAG Talent Retreat.
(Jesse Grant / WireImage)

Let the party-planning begin!

The big Golden Globes after-parties, all to be held in the newly renovated Beverly Hilton, are now locked and loaded. Some 6,000 guests are expected to make the rounds of five bashes, right after the televised awards show wraps on Jan. 16, 2006. And here's where everyone's headed.

Universal, Focus Features and NBC will celebrate in high style with a party on the hotel's parking garage roof. And with 22 nominations — including "Pride & Prejudice," "King Kong," "Munich," "The Constant Gardener," "Brokeback Mountain" and "The Producers" — well, you do the star count. This see-and-be scene, held in a large but lavish outdoor tent, will definitely be a hot ticket. So plan your party-going carefully. As with most things in life, timing is everything.

"Last year the body count for that space was 800 and we'll stick close to that number this year," says Brian O'Connor, the Bev Hilton's PR director. When that roof gets full, fire marshals won't let anyone else up there. The same is true of all the parties, natch. And better bring a wrap too. There will be lots of heat lamps in the outdoor spaces but they don't really warm shivering shoulders. They just sizzle brainpans.

InStyle and Warner Bros. will celebrate in the newly renovated space called The Oasis, formerly the Palm Court, with a multilevel entertainment and seating area including tented outside space. This is officially the largest party of the night with 1,000 guests expected. Look out for George Clooney and Charlize Theron, neither of whom are very hard on the eyes.

HBO, with 17 nominations, will have their usual packed pool party at the newly renovated Aqua Star Pool. And, as in years past, the network bash will also take over Merv Griffin's restaurant. The night will also be a farewell party for the restaurant, which will be gutted immediately afterward to create an as-yet-unnamed new "fine dining experience" in the hotel.

Expect those adorable "Entourage" boys, "Curb Your Enthusiam" curmudgeon-creator-star Larry David, maybe "Warm Springs" stars Kenneth Branagh and Cynthia Nixon, "The Girl in the Café" cast, some "Rome" names and maybe even Paul Newman, who is nominated for "Empire Falls."

The Weinstein Co., as reported on "Styles and Scenes" on Nov. 2, are officially back in Harvey and Bob's former Miramax party spot, Trader Vic's. They will also have a tented outside space with seating, bars and plenty of room to mix and mingle, suck up and eat crow. Expect "Transamerica" switch-hitter Felicity Huffman, "Matador" leading man Pierce Brosnan and "Mrs. Henderson Presents" costars Judi Dench and Bob Hoskins.

Rumor was Showtime was going to take over the Stardust Room for their first very big Globes party. But at the last minute, Fox jumped in and made the eighth floor suite their den of festivities to celebrate potential wins (or mourn losses) for "Walk the Line" and "24." Keep an eye peeled for Kiefer Sutherland, Reese Witherspoon, and maybe even that toad-sprouting sweetie, Joaquin Phoenix.

Brosnan's bad boy Bond

In his new film, "Matador," a scruffy, puffy-eyed Pierce Brosnan curses a blue streak, boozes it up every night, kicks small dogs, is rude to children, regularly hires hookers, steals (and wears) one prostitute's silver nail polish, tries to pick up Mexican schoolgirls, and coldly kills complete strangers for a living.

And the audience still loves him.

"That's Pierce," says Hope Davis, the former James Bond's "Matador" costar, at the dark comedy's after-party in a Regent Beverly Wilshire penthouse, high above the holiday twinkle lights of Rodeo Drive. "He plays a real bad guy, a very raw and strange character but despite all his really horrible flaws, you still end up being charmed by him."

Well, not so much his other costar Greg Kinnear. "I had to suffer all his tantrums and erratic behavior, all the those things we know to be universally true about Pierce Brosnan," revealed the actor who plays a downtrodden businessman who befriends the lonely hit man in a Mexico City bar, altering both their lives.

Oh, darn. Turns out he was just kidding. Kinnear likes Brosnan too, and really liked working with him. "You throw a couple of Irish guys in Mexico City for a few months and it's a pretty good time."

Brosnan was beaming at the after-party for his new about-face independent film. He'd taken a break from filming "Seraphim Falls" in New Mexico with Liam Neeson to appear at the Westwood premiere of "Matador," (opens Dec. 30th). Some say Brosnan's role could snag him a best actor awards nod for his "Anti-Bond."

"I didn't do the film to be the anti-anything," said a bearded Brosnan, sitting on a couch with his wife Keely Shaye Smith. "But I had a great time playing a really cool character."