Biography
Youth and early career
Born in Colwyn Bay to an English father and an American mother, Timothy Dalton is of mixed English and Italian-Irish ancestry. Before he was born, his family moved to Wales; where his father was stationed during World War II. During the late 1940's when he was reaching four years old, the family moved to Belper, Derbyshire, England. He became interested in acting in his teenage years, and left school in 1964 to enroll in the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and tour with the National Youth Theatre in the summer. He did not complete his RADA studies, leaving the academy in 1966 to join the ensemble of the Birmingham Repertory Theatre. He quickly moved to television, working mainly with BBC, and in 1968 made his film debut in ''The Lion in Winter'', the first of several period dramas.After a few more films, Dalton took a break in 1971 to concentrate on the theatre, performing with the Royal Shakespeare Company and other troupes throughout the world. With the exception of the 1975 film ''Permission to Kill'', he remained a theatre actor until 1978. That year he starred in ''Sextette'', hailing his return to cinema and the beginning of his American career. While in the United States, Dalton worked mainly in television, although he starred in several European films and gave notable performances for the BBC.
James Bond
In 1986, after Roger Moore's retirement from the James Bond role, the lean, 6'2" green eyed Dalton was approached to replace him, but obligations to the film ''Brenda Starr'' and the stage productions of ''Antony & Cleopatra '' and ''The Taming of The Shrew'' kept him from accepting the role. Sam Neill was then screen-tested for the part of Bond but was ultimately rejected by Cubby Broccoli. Pierce Brosnan was then approached for the role, but was forced by NBC to turn it down (after initially accepting it) because of his commitment to the television revival of ''Remington Steele''. In the ensuing time, Dalton had completed the filming of ''Brenda Starr'' and was now able to accept the role of Bond.Previously, Dalton had been offered the role of James Bond twice. In 1968, He was asked to replace Sean Connery; who declared that he would not do another James Bond movie after ''You Only Live Twice'' (1967), in the next movie ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'' (1969). Dalton turned the offer down; feeling he was too young for the role and because of what he felt was an imposing legacy left behind by Connery. The role finally went to George Lazenby. During the late 1970's, he was approached again, but he did not favour the direction the movies were taking. As he explained; his idea of Bond was different.. Work commitments made him again refuse the role in 1986, but when asked a fourth time, he agreed to appear in three James Bond films. The first, ''The Living Daylights'' (1987) was successful and grossed more than the previous two Roger Moore Bond films as well as contemporary box office rivals such as ''Die Hard'' and ''Lethal Weapon''.
The second film, ''Licence to Kill'' (1989) did not perform as well at the U.S. box office, in large part due to a lackluster marketing campaign after the title of the film was abruptly changed from ''Licence Revoked''. MGM reported a net profit of $28.2 million for the film, since it did well overseas, and a sequel was in the works.
Dalton's third Bond film (rumoured to be called ''The Property of a Lady'', though no script actually carried this title) was due for a 1991 release but its production was scuttled by internecine corporate litigation between Danjaq, LLC, the copyright holder of James Bond on screen and MGM/United Artists (Giancarlo Parretti), the financier and distributor of the series.. In 1994, Dalton officially dropped the James Bond role, re-opening the door for Pierce Brosnan.
Dalton's portrayal of Bond - darker, more grittily realistic and truer to the original character as portrayed in Fleming's novels - was something of a double-edged sword. Critics and fans of Fleming's original novels welcomed a more serious interpretation after more than a decade of Roger Moore's lighthearted approach. However, the reaction of Moore aficionados and those who had grown up with Moore as their Bond during his 12 year tenure as well as Sean Connery before was mixed, as most of them were generally unfamiliar with Ian Fleming's original novels.
After his Bond films, Dalton's career entered an uncertain period. Successes on stage and television were balanced by indifferent films. He also played Rhett Butler in ''Scarlett''; the television mini-series sequel to ''Gone with the Wind''. In 2003, he played a parody of James Bond named Damian Drake in the film ''''.
Selected filmography
* ''Hot Fuzz (2007) .... Simon Skinner* ''Marple: The Sittaford Mystery'' (TV) (2006) .... Clive Trevelyan
* ''Hercules'' (TV miniseries) (2005) .... Amphitryon
* ''Dunkirk'' (TV) (2004) .... Narrator
* '''' (2003) .... Damien Drake
* ''American Outlaws'' (2001) .... Allan Pinkerton
* ''Possessed'' (TV) (2000) .... Fr. Willam Bowden
* ''Time Share'' (2000) .... Matt
* ''The Reef (aka Passion's Way)'' (1999) .... Charles Darrow
* ''Made Men'' (1999) .... Sheriff Dex Drier
* ''Cleopatra'' (TV) (1999) .... Julius Caesar
* ''Stories from My Childhood'' (TV) (1998) (voice) .... Prince Guidon
* ''The Informant'' (1997) .... DCI Rennie
* ''The Beautician and the Beast'' (1997) .... Boris Pochenko
* ''Salt Water Moose'' (1996) .... Lester Parnell
* ''Scarlett'' (TV miniseries) (1994) .... Rhett Butler
* ''Lie Down with Lions (aka Red Eagle)'' (TV) (1994) .... Jack Carver
* ''Last Action Hero'', cameo role (1993)
* ''Naked in New York'' (1993) .... Elliot Price
* ''Framed'' (TV) (1992) .... Eddie Myers
* ''Tales from the Crypt: Werewolf Concerto'' (TV) (1992) .... Lokai
* ''The Rocketeer'' (1991) .... Neville Sinclair
* ''Putain du roi, La (aka The King's Whore)'' (1990) .... Le Roi Vittorio Amadeo
* ''Brenda Starr'' (1989) .... Basil St. John
* ''Licence to Kill (aka License to Kill)'' (1989) .... James Bond
* ''Hawks'' (1988) .... Bancroft
* ''The Living Daylights'' (1987) .... James Bond
* ''Sins'' (TV miniseries) (1986) .... Edmund Junot
* ''Faerie Tale Theatre: The Emperor's New Clothes'' (TV) (1985) (voice) .... Narrator
* ''The Doctor and the Devils'' (1985) .... Doctor Thomas Rock
* ''Florence Nightingale'' (TV) (1985) .... Richard Milnes
* ''The Master of Ballantrae'' (TV) (1984) .... Col. Francis Burke
* ''Mistral's Daughter'' (TV miniseries) (1984) .... Perry Kilkullen
* ''Jane Eyre'' (TV miniseries) (1983) .... Edward Fairfax Rochester
* ''Antony and Cleopatra'' (TV) (1983) .... Marc Antony
* ''Chanel Solitaire'' (1981) .... Boy Capel
* ''Flash Gordon'' (1980) .... Prince Barin
* ''Charlie's Angels: Fallen Angel'' (TV) (1979) .... Damien Roth
* ''The Flame Is Love'' (TV) (1979) .... Marquis de Guaita
* ''Agatha'' (1979) .... Col. Archibald Christie
* ''Centennial'' (TV miniseries) (1978) .... Oliver Seccombe
* ''Hombre que supo amar, El'' (1978) .... Juan de Dios
* ''Sextette (1978) .... Sir Michael Barrington
* ''Permission to Kill (aka The Executioner)'' (1975) .... Charles Lord
* ''Play of the Month: Candida'' (TV) (1971)
* ''Play of the Month: Five Finger Exercise'' (TV) (1970)
* ''Mary, Queen of Scots'' (1971) .... Lord Henry Darnley
* ''Cromwell'' (1970) .... Prince Rupert
* ''Wuthering Heights'' (1970) .... Heathcliff
* ''Giochi particolari'' (1970) .... Mark
* ''Judge Dee: A Place of Great Evil'' (TV) (1969)
* ''The Three Princes'' (TV) (1968)
* ''The Lion in Winter'' (1968) .... King Philip of France
* ''Sat'day While Sunday'' (TV series) (1967) .... Peter
Selected stage career
* ''His Dark Materials'' (2003-2004)* ''Star Crossed Lovers'' (1998)
* ''Love Letters'' (1991)
* ''A Touch of the Poet'' (1988)
* ''The Taming of the Shrew'' (1986)
* ''Antony and Cleopatra'' (1986)
* ''Henry IV, Part 2'' (1982)
* ''Henry IV, Part 1'' (1982)
* ''The Romans'' (1977)
* ''The Lunatic, the Lover and Poet'' (1977)
* ''The Vortex'' (1976)
* ''White Lies'' (1975)
* ''Black Comedy'' (1975)
* ''The Samaritan'' (1975)
* ''Henry IV, Part 2'' (1974)
* ''Henry IV, Part 1'' (1974)
* ''Romeo and Juliet'' (1972-1973)
* ''Henry V'' (1972)
* ''Love's Labour's Lost'' (1972)
* ''King Lear'' (1972)
* ''Macbeth'' (1971)
* ''St. Joan'' (1966)
* ''The Doctor's Dilemma'' (1966)
* ''Love's Labour's Lost'' (1966)
* ''As You Like It'' (1966)
* ''Richard III'' (1966)
* ''The Merchant of Venice'' (1966)
* ''Little Malcolm and his Struggle Against the Eunochs'' (1966)
* ''A Game Called Arthur'' (1966)
References
External links
* Timothy Dalton's Authorised Website
* The Timothy Dalton Chat Group
* Biography on BBC site
* Timothy Dalton-A Polish Fan Site
* Timothy Dalton Absolutely Unofficial Page
* Timothy Dalton's short biography at screenonline
*Poetic Licence: An interview with Timothy Dalton in 007 Magazine
* Timothy Dalton Videos
Biography courtesy of the brilliant Wikipedia!
