White bikini of Ursula Andress

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White bikini of Ursula Andress
Ursula Andress in Dr. No.jpg
Designer Ursula Andress, Tessa Prendergast [1]
Year1962 (1962)
TypeWhite cotton bikini

The white bikini worn by Ursula Andress as Honey Ryder in the 1962 James Bond film, Dr. No , is cited as the most famous bikini of all time and an iconic moment in cinematic and fashion history. [2] [3] [4] [5]

Contents

Andress's white bikini is regarded as monumental in the history of the bikini, and sales of the two-piece bikini rocketed after the appearance of Andress in Dr. No. [6] The lower part of the bikini features a wide white British Army belt with brass buckles and fittings, and a scabbard on the left side to hold a large knife.

History

The first bikini had been worn at a Paris fashion show in 1946, but in the 1950s, the bikini was still seen as something of a taboo. [7] Andress' bikini arrived at a key moment in the history of women's fashion, coming at the "birth of the sexual revolution": the 1960s. [8]

In the corresponding scene of the source novel, the character Honeychile Rider wears only a leather belt with a scabbard, and no bikini. [9]

Andress herself put the bikini up for sale in 2001, claiming to have found it in an attic. The suit fetched £41,125. The second time it was auctioned was in November 2020. While no sale price was given, the piece was expected to fetch about £500,000. [2] [7] [10] [11] [12]

Design

Andress designed the bikini along with Dr. No's costume designer Tessa Prendergast, whom she first met while living in Rome. [13] Andress reported that when she arrived in Jamaica for filming, no costumes were ready. Working with director Terence Young and Prendergast, Andress created a bikin that suited her 5′6″, 36-24-36 frame. [1] [14] It was made from ivory cotton and was the only one made and worn by her. [15] It is a white belted bikini. [2] [6]

Reception

The Dr. No bikini is regarded as the best known bikini of all time and an iconic moment in cinematic and fashion history. [3] [4] The moment in which Andress emerges from the sea in the white bikini has been cited amongst the greatest moments in film and one of its most erotic; in a 2003 UK Survey by Channel 4, it was voted number one in "the 100 Greatest Sexy Moments" of cinema. [16] [17] The scene has been widely emulated and parodied on screen since. [6] The white bikini is regarded as perhaps the most important in the history of the bikini and sales of the two-piece bikini rocketed after the appearance of Andress in Dr. No. [6] In a survey of 1000 women to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the bikini, Ursula Andress in her white bikini was voted "The Ultimate Bikini Goddess". [18] Andress said that she owed her career to that white bikini, remarking, "This bikini made me into a success. As a result of starring in Dr. No as the first Bond girl, I was given the freedom to take my pick of future roles and to become financially independent." [2] [19]

Homage

The bikini and scene in Dr. No of Andress emerging from the water was emulated by Heather Graham in a scene from Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me . [20] It has also been emulated by Halle Berry, who wore an orange bikini with a toolbelt in the 2002 James Bond film Die Another Day . [21]

When Daniel Craig took over the role of James Bond in the 2006 film Casino Royale , he appeared in a similar scene, emerging from the ocean wearing a pale blue pair of swim trunks. This thirteen-second shot, focused on Bond's body rather than that of a Bond Girl, was widely interpreted as a callback to Andress in Dr. No and featured heavily in the film's promotion, although Craig claims the resemblance did not occur to him until it was filmed. [22] [23]

In the episode "Bond", from the BBC Radio detective drama Trueman and Riley , the bikini is the prize possession of a collector and dealer in James Bond memorabilia at a hotel hosting a Bond convention, where another valuable item, the wedding ring from the film On Her Majesty's Secret Service , has apparently been stolen.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Ursula Andress. Dr. No audio commentary. Dr. No, Ultimate Edition: MGM Home Entertainment.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Former Bond girl to sell Dr No bikini". The Telegraph . 13 January 2011. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  3. 1 2 Porterfield, Sally F.; Polette, Keith; Baumlin, Tita French (2009). Perpetual adolescence: Jungian analyses of American media, literature, and pop culture. SUNY Press. p. 118. ISBN   978-1-4384-2799-7.
  4. 1 2 Bensimon, Kelly Killoren (5 June 2006). The bikini book. Thames & Hudson. ISBN   978-0-500-51316-3 . Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  5. ↑ Lindner, Christoph (4 August 2009). The James Bond Phenomenon: A Critical Reader. Manchester University Press. ISBN   978-0-7190-8095-1 . Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Pedersen, Stephanie (30 November 2004). Bra: a thousand years of style, support and seduction. David & Charles. p. 72. ISBN   978-0-7153-2067-9 . Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  7. 1 2 Steele, Valerie (2005). Encyclopedia of clothing and fashion. Charles Scribner's Sons. ISBN   978-0-684-31395-5.
  8. ↑ Jütting, Kerstin (November 2007). "Grow Up, 007!" - James Bond Over the Decades: Formula Vs. Innovation. GRIN Verlag. p. 59. ISBN   978-3-638-85372-9 . Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  9. ↑ "Dr. No by Ian Fleming, from Project Gutenberg Canada".
  10. ↑ Whittaker, Andrew (June 2009). Britain: be fluent in British life and culture. Thorogood Publishing. p. 241. ISBN   978-1-85418-627-0 . Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  11. ↑ "Ursula Andress' Iconic Ivory Bikini as Honey Ryder in Dr. No". April 2021.
  12. ↑ "Ursula Andress Dr. No bikini expected to fetch $500.000 on auction". 8 October 2020.
  13. ↑ Ursula Andress. Dr. No audio commentary . Dr. No, Ultimate Edition: MGM Home Entertainment.
  14. ↑ Lisanti, Tom; Paul, Louis (April 2002). Film fatales: women in espionage films and television, 1962–1973. McFarland. p. 36. ISBN   978-0-7864-1194-8 . Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  15. ↑ "Photos: On this day – July 5, 1946 – the first bikini goes on sale". New Haven Register. 5 July 2013. Retrieved 23 August 2013.
  16. ↑ Cork, John; D'Abo, Maryam (27 May 2003). Bond girls are forever: the women of James Bond. Harry N. Abrams. ISBN   9780810943025 . Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  17. ↑ "Andress scene voted 'most sexy'". BBC. 30 November 2003. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  18. ↑ "Ursula Andress voted ultimate 'bikini goddess". The Daily Telegraph . 20 August 2009. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  19. ↑ Weekes, Karen (2007). Women know everything!: 3,241 quips, quotes, & brilliant remarks. Quirk Books. p. 419. ISBN   978-1-59474-169-2.
  20. ↑ "Ursula Andress, Dr. No". PopSugar . Retrieved 23 November 2015.
  21. ↑ Rutherford, Paul (11 August 2007). A world made sexy: Freud to Madonna . University of Toronto Press. p.  167. ISBN   978-0-8020-9256-4 . Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  22. ↑ Gwynne Watkins (4 November 2015). "The Making of Daniel Craig's Eye-Poppingly Iconic 'Casino Royale' Swimsuit Scene". Yahoo! Movies. Retrieved 7 January 2016.
  23. ↑ Anita Singh (17 October 2008). "James Bond: Daniel Craig's most famous scene was 'an accident'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 7 January 2016.
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