In the early days of live television drama, a program called "Climax" produced a one-hour drama of Ian Fleming's first novel, Casino Royale.  It starred Barry Nelson as a crew-cut American James Bond, Linda Christian as the "Bond Girl" Valerie Mathis, Peter Lorre as Le Chiffre, a burly character actor Gene Roth as one of Le Chiffre's thugs, and an Australian actor, Michael Pate as Leiter.  It would be unfair to compare it to the current spectacular film, Casino Royale; it is corny by any analysis.  But as a bit of 007 lore, it's an interesting artifact in a long line of James Bond history.

The program opened with the announcement "LIVE! From TV City in Hollywood" and ran the credits including Climax, the title "Casino Royale," and the three major stars.  It begins with a doorman opening the door to the casino for a couple.  A dark hand holding a gun enters the frame and trains on a young man in a white dinner jacket approaching the door.  A shot is fired and the man, James Bond, ducks behind a pillar.  Three more shots chip away at the pillar. The doorman rushes Bond into the casino.  The interior décor is early Hollywood with draperies,  baroque and rococo architecture…only smaller.  You expect Fred and Ginger to dance across the screen!

Inside a suave-looking man asks as suave-looking woman, "What was all the racket?  Someone taking potshots?"  The woman disclaims any knowledge of it and moves away.  Bond approaches a table and begins to bet.  The suave man strikes up a conversation asking about the bets, how much the money is worth.  He has a (sort-of) British accent.  (He is Michael Pate, the Australian actor.)  Bond explains the dollar amount in British pounds.  "Are you the man who was shot?"  And we get the earliest dose of Bond humor, "No, I am the man who was missed."  He compliments Bond calling him "Card-Sense Jimmy Bond" and introduces himself as Clarence Leiter.  (Yes, as Clarence.)  He asks Bond to teach him how to play the game, "Give me the lowdown."  Dialogue wasn't the strong suit of the program.  They retire to a private table with a deck of cards.

LeChiffre, played by Peter Lorre, is talking to the woman Leiter had questioned.  She is actress Linda Christian, a vision in 1950's chiffon, otherwise pretty.  He says that Bond is a handsome man and asks if Bond has changed giving us the clue that she and Bond may have been friends.  (I'd say lovers but this is very early TV.)    She says he still looks the same.

At the table, Bond and Leiter light up cigarettes (Lord, the smoking that went on in this production!) and they do some kind of thing breaking the matches and laying them down on the table in a pattern. A code.  Leiter, it seems, works for MI6 and as Bond instructs him on the card game, Leiter is telling American Bond his assignment.

Le Chiffre has been gambling with Russian money and is 80 million francs down.  (Bond explained the dollar bets earlier but somehow they have shifted to francs.)  He only has 26 million francs left to regain his losses.  If not, the French Communist party will lose face (They apparently bankrolled Le Chiffre with Russian money) and Le Chiffre will lose his life.  Bond will be supplied 26 million to match Le Chiffre and take it all in a game of baccarat the next night.  Leiter warns Bond that Le Chiffre is dangerous with a gun and carries three razors, one in his hat band, one in his shoe, and one in his cigarette case.  And he has three armed goons, a big blond man Basil (played by Gene Roth, the character actor many people would recognize), Zoltan, and Zorof.

Valerie stops at the table and Bond introduces her as an old friend (see?  A friend.)  Valerie and Bond go to an elevator and he offers to escort her to her room; she says she would rather go to his.  He takes her to his room, opens a door (to the bathroom?) to check that it is safe in the room.  He turns on a radio playing loud music.  He kisses her for old time's sake and a second time for now's sake.  (There goes the old friend thing, right out the window.  Bond is Bond.)   He tells her he knows that Le Chiffre sent her, that there is a hidden microphone in the fireplace with a wire to the room above where le Chiffre is.  She says she didn't know that and Bond says he did it to get information and because "he doesn't trust you."  He turns the radio down and takes her next to the fireplace.  "You were saying, Valerie…"

Upstairs, Le Chiffre and the thugs are listening as she tells him not to play cards the next night because Le Chiffre plans to kill him.  "Go to Paris if you ever loved me."  Instead, Bond takes her to the elevator and asks, "What part of what you were saying is true.  "That he will kill you."  And she admits to still loving him.

She goes to Le Chiffre's room and he tells her that he does trust her now.  Still listening, they hear Bond on the telephone ask for police protection the next night.  (At one point, whatever Peter Lorre is saying is dead until a microphone swings over to him…this is live television!)  

Leiter is on the phone talking to a Mr. Rudy saying "the story will be ready" and hangs up when a man comes up and demands the 26 million he is carrying.  He has a gun under a coat.  Just then the phone rings and a page comes to answer fit.  Leiter says, "It will be for me…Oh, will you take this 26 million francs to the cashier.  It is for Mr. Bond.  He will pick it up later."  (Never asked for a receipt from the page…trust!) The thug walked away disgusted.  

The next few minutes were taken up by the card game.  It was pretty dull.  Bond gets a phone call that if he wins, Valerie will be killed.  All through the game, everyone smokes like a California forest fire!  And Bond looks more and more worried as Le Chiffre looks more and more confident.  Bond has about ten chips in front of him at all times; the stakes go from 2 million, francs, to four, to eight…up to 32 million when Bond loses it all.  A page delivers a package with money and a note, "Here are 35 million fancs - you have to win."  Of course, in the next hand he wipes out Le Ciffre.

Before Bond leaves the table, a man with a gun disguised as a can tries to take the money but Bond rolls aside and knocks the cane away.  The man runs off.  Bond and Leiter search the crowd for Valerie but can't find her.  Bond returns to his hotel room.  Leiter, after some telephone frustration trying to get through, reaches Bond and warns him to hide the check of the money he won.  Bond takes the room number plate from the outside of the door and hides it behind the plate screwing it in place again just as Valerie arrives…with Le Chffre behind her.  Bond finds out that Valerie is really working for the French secret police; it was they who supplied the 35 million francs.

Peter Lorre as Le Chiffre is a marvelous villain.  It is hard to take him seriously and he is totally unflappable.  He demands to know where the check it and tells Basil, the big thug, to "hurt him…only a little bit at a time."  He continues, "We are serious people and your health is of no concern to us."    They tie up Valerie and put Bond in a bathtub, dressed but with bare feet tied to the faucets.  Le Chiffre bends over his feet with the pliers and Bond screams but still won't tell.  "Killing is my business."  "Mine too," Le Chiffre responds.  Valerie says that she saw him with a screwdriver when she first came through the door.  Le Chiffre says they will take the room apart with the screwdriver and if they don't find it, they will take Bond apart with it.

As the search his room, Valerie says she told them about the screwdriver because they were hurting him so badly.  She knocks Le Chiffre's cigarette case into the tub and Bond (apparently) uses the blade inside to cut himself free.  When Basil comes back, he knocks him out and gets his gun.  Le Chffre walks into the bathroom and we hear two shots; a third as Basil tries to get up.  Le Chiffre staggers back to a chair and begins to toy with his hat on the table in front of him (remember?  The blade?).  Valerie helps a weak Bond to a chair opposite Le Chiffre, his gun trained on Le Chiffre.  "Are you going to kill him?"  

The program must have run out of time.  Bond answers "Call the police." And it went into the black.  They never used the term "007."

Not much of a production compared to the weakest of the EON productions, but considering the time, space, and budget limitations and that it was done live in front of the rolling cameras, it was a remarkable show for its time and ought to be forgiven for its shortcomings.  Jimmy Bond, indeed.

Copyright ©2006 Ray Dempsey