Literary Bond Shoes Image References?

superado

Hello all,

Can anyone shed some light on how Bond's moccassins actually looked like? Some images would be appreciated. The reason I ask is that I initially assumed that they were similar to penny loafers (I'm wearing a pair as I type). However, someone informed me that British moccassins from the 1950's and 60's were altogether different.

delon64

the pair connery wears on the turkish ferry in from russia with love are the right type but brown

superado

Thanks delon64, I will pull out the old video tape to check it out!

delon64

better still superado check out the famous publicity shots of connery and bianchi laughing sat on a wall...you see the shoes very clearly along with connerys too short socks...cheers

superado

Cool! I have that picture in a book somewhere too. So that's what 60's moccasins look like, thanks again!

Bill Tanner

Superado,

I'm glad you asked the question because it's something I've been meaning to look into for a long time. I've checked back over my notes and cuttings and have come up with the following: Delon is right in his assertion that the American Penny Loafer design isn't correct. I've looked at a number of Fleming's photographs and I can't see any in which he's wearing shoes with laces. Unfortunately the quality of the photographs is usually too poor for reproduction but you can just about make out that he wears a number of different styles. I've come to the conclusion that he used 'Moccassin' as a generic term for any shoes without laces - his were very often suede and are invariably plain (without buckles etc) as far as I can tell from the fuzzy images.

The shoes worn by Connery, most noticeably in those publicity stills from FRWL could also be classified as a Moccassin but they're very much a sixties (Italian-influenced) style and much more fashionable than anything I imagine the literary Bond wearing. You pays your money and takes your choice. If you want to find something authentic looking you'll either have to take a stroll up Jermyn St (impractical given your location) or you could try Church's range which I think is available on-line. They were featuring a number of '50s-looking designs a couple of years back and of course there is a contemporary link with the current Bond.

superado

Indy Magnoli, who makes Bond passports (available for both literary and EON/Connery Bond) and tailors replicas of some early Connery suits, also makes moccasins based on vintage advertisements. The white stitching threw me off, but if these are an approximation of Bond's moccasins, I'd assume that his were all black since he did not like correspondent shoes(for looking too overt?)

[img=https://host385.ipowerweb.com/~indyprop/osCommerce/catalog/images/clothiers/mc-loafer-main.jpg]More details can be found here:[/img]https://host385.ipowerweb.com/~indyprop/osCommerce/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=28&products_id=93&osCsid=d0450f903d8429cabeac894b125f8344

Bill Tanner

But why bother to buy them mail order? Surely moccasin-style shoes or loafers are pretty easy to come by. I once bought a pair of shoes mail order and they were terrible in fit and quality; always try before you buy.

Besides, from the wrinkling in that photo I'm not convinced that Indy is using the best quality leathers.

As an alternative, I turned these up with a very quick Google search:

http://www.eshopone.com/smx/mens-shoes/moccasin-milano/

Or if you want a guarantee of top quality construction, you could try the Church's Bristol loafer shown here:

http://www.ajb007.co.uk/articles/007/jamesbondclothing4/

superado

Actually by coincidence, I have a pair of extremely inexpensive shoes that I bought from a discount chain (Ross, for those living in the US) that look very similar, but with rubber soles that I use for wet days. I just thought that Indy's rendition might have caught whatever nuances in these kinds of shoes of that period that no longer exist today.

Silhouette Man

I can't remember Bond wearing moccasins but I do remember him wearing them in the Gardner books and coming up against real water mocassin snakes in the end of Scorpius (1988).

CmdrAtticus

Fleming had his loafers custom made by Lobbs which were of high quality black leather. If you see any old images of him in his suits and bow tie he would be wearing these. If Fleming ever wore suede, he would have only worn them when he was relaxing in the country, never with a formal suit in the city. I've attached photos of Fleming with the second being a close up of his Lobb loafers (which is correctly stated he referred to as moccasins). Fleming preferred them because he was not a fussy dresser. He preferred comfort and ease of dress over anything, which is why he disliked anything that slowed down the act of dressing and undressing - cufflinks, buttons, laces, etc. Hence his preference for short sleeve shirts, pants sans belts or braces (though there are photos of him with a belt sometimes) and even polos without buttons, as well as the slip on loafers. Lobb still carries a version of Fleming's loafer. Just go to http://www.johnlobbltd.co.uk and go to the area that has Mens shoes, then go to the Elastic on instep Shoes.

superado

CmdrAtticus wrote:

Fleming had his loafers custom made by Lobbs which were of high quality black leather. If you see any old images of him in his suits and bow tie he would be wearing these. If Fleming ever wore suede, he would have only worn them when he was relaxing in the country, never with a formal suit in the city. I've attached photos of Fleming with the second being a close up of his Lobb loafers (which is correctly stated he referred to as moccasins). Fleming preferred them because he was not a fussy dresser. He preferred comfort and ease of dress over anything, which is why he disliked anything that slowed down the act of dressing and undressing - cufflinks, buttons, laces, etc. Hence his preference for short sleeve shirts, pants sans belts or braces (though there are photos of him with a belt sometimes) and even polos without buttons, as well as the slip on loafers. Lobb still carries a version of Fleming's loafer. Just go to http://www.johnlobbltd.co.uk and go to the area that has Mens shoes, then go to the Elastic on instep Shoes.

Thank you for posting, CmdrAtticus! Much appreciate the "rare" Fleming photo and the link to Lobb's.