1965 Retrospective

1965 cult classic Faster Pussycat, Kill Kill!

1965 Bond girl, Claudine Auger

Claudine Auger (born Claudine Oger on 26 April 1941) is a French actress best known for her role as Bond girl Dominique "Domino" Derval in the James Bond film Thunderball.   She earned the title of Miss France Monde and was also the first runner-up in the 1958 Miss World contest. When she was on holiday in Nassau, writer-producer Kevin McClory who was also on holiday there, saw her and recommended that she audition for his film Thunderball.  The role of Domino was originally to be an Italian woman: Dominetta Petacchi.  Auger impressed the producers so much that they re-wrote the part to that of a French woman to better suit Auger.  Although she took lessons to perfect her English, her voice was eventually dubbed by Nikki van der Zyl.  Auger would claim that she related to her character Domino, as she and Domino were involved with older men.

1965 fashion - beatnik in mini skirt & boots

Fashion designer Mary Quant ran a popular clothes shop in Kings Road, Chelsea, London, called Bazaar, from which she sold her own designs.  In the late 1950s she began experimenting with shorter skirts, culminating in the creation of the miniskirt in 1964 — one of the defining fashions of the decade.  Quant named the miniskirt after her favourite make of car, the Mini. Owing to Quant's position in the heart of fashionable Swinging London, the miniskirt was able to spread beyond a simple street fashion into a major international trend.  The style came into prominence when Jean Shrimpton wore a short white shift dress, made by Colin Rolfe, on 30 October 1965 at Derby Day, first day of the annual Melbourne Cup Carnival in Australia, where it caused a sensation. The miniskirt was further popularized by André Courrèges who developed it separately and incorporated it into his Mod look, for spring/summer 1965.  His miniskirts were less body-hugging, and worn with the white Courrèges boots that became a trademark.  By introducing the miniskirt into the haute couture of the fashion industry, Courrèges gave it a greater degree of respectability than might otherwise have been expected of a street fashion.  An even more prominent French fashion designer, Yves St. Laurent, began to show shorter skirts in his fall/winter 1965 collection, including his famous Mondrian dress (inspired by the work of painter Piet Mondrian), a trend that he continued with throughout the 1960's.

Diana Rigg as Emma Peel in the Avengers

In 1965 the British hit TV show The Avengers was sold to United States network TV, the American Broadcasting Company (ABC).  The Avengers became one of the first British series to be aired on prime time U.S. television.  The ABC network paid the then-unheard of sum of $2 million for the first 26 episodes. New female partner Mrs. Emma Peel (Diana Rigg), debuted in this series, in October 1965.  The name of the character derived from a comment by writers, during development, that they wanted a character with man appeal.  In an early attempt to incorporate this concept into the character's name, she was called Samantha Peel, shortened to the awkward Mantha Peel.  Eventually, the writers began referring to the idea by the verbal shorthand, M. Appeal, which gave rise to the character's ultimate name - Emma Peel.

Wanderin' Spirit
December, 2012
"1965 Retrospective"

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