Bonhams
Los 41
A double-breasted mohair dinner suit reputedly by Angelo Roma and believed to have been made for Sir Roger Moore in The Spy Who Loved Me1977Comprising a bespoke dinner jacket with wide silk peaked satin lapels, six silk satin buttons, jetted pockets, three cuff buttons and no vents, the flared trousers with silk trim, a single jetted pocket to the back right, both unlabelled, in midnight blue; identical to the suit worn by James Bond in the Eon Production The Spy Who Loved Me, at the Mojaba Club and the following day during the cat-and-mouse sequence with Jaws at the Karnak temple complex at Luxor,Footnotes:'The lady will have a Bacardi, on the rocks''For the gentleman, a vodka martini: shaken, not stirred''Touché'James Bond [Sir Roger Moore] and Anya Amasova [Barbara Bach] in The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)James Bond wears an identical costume to the present Lot throughout the Mojaba club scene in Cairo with Max Kalba, and where he shows his hand to Bond girl Anya Amasova, played by Barbara Bach, by identifying her as Major XXX. The suit is further visible in the following scenes, shot in broad daylight, where the pair are transported to an Egyptian Temple in the back of Jaw's Telephone Service van. It is at the temple that the nerve-wrenching, and sometimes comical cat-and-mouse scene unravels between the three characters.Italian designer and Roger's personal tailor Angelo Vitucci, of Angelo Roma, was hired to design Rogers' bespoke suits for The Spy Who Loved Me and Moonraker following on from Cyril Castle and elaborating on his classic Bond looks. Vitucci's goal was to modernise James Bond's wardrobe by giving the character a quintessentially 1970s style. It is understood that in both films Vitucci designed for, James Bond is seen in near identically styled dinner suits. A distinguishing feature between them being the jetted back pocket on the dinner suit for The Spy Who Loved Me, as noted in 'From Tailors With Love: An Evolution of Menswear Through the Bond Films' by Peter Brooker and Matt Spaiser (2021). More obviously the dinner suit in Moonraker - which is worn during the cable-car scene with Jaws and Doctor Holly Godhead - appears to be black, in contrast to the midnight blue suit visible in the day scenes in The Spy Who Loved Me. It is interesting to note that Barbara Bach's navy silk evening gown worn in The Spy Who Loved Me compliments Bond's suit, as does the black Givenchy jumpsuit worn by Lois Chiles in Moonraker while filming the cable car action scene. For the production more than one suit was made for use during filming. It is widely known that Sir Roger would keep some of his James Bond suits from the productions and re-wear them. John Glen, the Editor of The Spy Who Loved Me has recalled 'I had to go on one occasion [to Moore's house in Denham] to get a suit to take out to Egypt. I spoke to him on the phone and he said 'If you go up the stairs and there's a special room which has got some suits in it.'' According to the family all the suits worn by Sir Roger Moore to the films' premieres were production made and from the set. This suit is identical to the one he is seen wearing at the Royal Charity Premiere for The Spy Who Loved Me screened at the Odeon Cinema Leicester Square, London on the 7th July 1977. He was accompanied by his wife at the time, Luisa Mattioli and two of their children, Deborah and Geoffrey. Princess Anne was in attendance that evening along with a host of celebrities including Sir Michael Caine, Nanette Newman, Barbara Bach, Cubby Broccoli and Lord Mountbatten.Please note that the shirt and bow tie are for illustrative purposes only and are not included in the lot.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
