Sir Roger Moore, born in Stockwell, London on October 14, 1927, is one of the most recognizable movie stars of the last 60 years. He is also known for his successful roles on British and American TV. Recognized with a number of accolades for his work as an actor, he has also been an active UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador since 1991.
The below biography is only a short and general overview of Sir Roger Moore's work. For detailed information we recommend Sir Roger's memoirs My Word is My Bond, released in 2008, or one of the latest biographies Roger Moore: His Films and Career by Gareth Owen and Oliver Bayan.
The early years
In mid 1940s Moore took his first steps in film business by taking a job as an extra in a couple of movies. It soon led him to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts and an engagement at Arts Theatre in Cambridge. In 1946 he was mobilized and it wasn’t until 1948 that he pursued his further acting career. Aside from more work on films as an extra, stage appearances at the Intimate Theatre and playing minor roles on TV, Moore was often hired as a model, work that earned him a living for the next couple of years.
The MGM years
In 1953 Moore went to America where his career soon accelerated. After a number of TV appearances in the prestigious shows like Hallmark Hall of Fame and Robert Montgomery Presents and a failure of a Broadway debut he was offered contract with MGM which gave him opportunity to work with the likes of Elizabeth Taylor, Van Johnson, Lana Turner and Glenn Ford. However, after four movies, MGM decided not to prolong collaboration with Moore.
The Ivanhoe years
After splitting with MGM Moore resumed his work on TV, dividing his time between England and America. He appeared in a number of live TV dramas (Matinee Theatre, Lux Video Theatre, Goodyear Playhouse) and a successful TV performance of This Happy Breed. He also returned to theatre with a leading role in The Family Play at Connaught Theatre. In 1957 he was filming Columbia’s new adventure series Ivanhoe which brought him popularity when aired on English TV in 1958.
The Warner years
In 1959 Moore was back on the big screen in a Warner Bros. melodrama The Miracle. His collaboration with the company lasted until 1961. In a short period of time he did two more feature films (The Sins of Rachel Cade, Gold of the Seven Saints) and appeared in two TV series (The Alaskans, Maverick). He also managed to guest on other popular TV series, such as Alfred Hitchcock Presents and The Roaring 20's. However, his career in Hollywood was becoming stagnant and thus he decided to try something new. The same year he went to Italy where he was set to play leading roles in two feature films (Il ratto delle Sabine, Un branco di vigliacchi).
The Saint years
The breakthrough came in 1961 when back in England Moore accepted the title role in the forthcoming TV series The Saint based on the character created by Leslie Charteris, whose work Moore had already been a fan of. For the next seven years Moore starred in a 118 50-minute episodes of the series. After successful black and white seasons the series was aired worldwide and produced new episodes in colour. Moore became not only one of the most popular TV actors in the world, but also a true icon of the sixties. Apart from acting, he also directed a number of episodes and co-produced the colour series.
The pre-Bond years
After eight years of hard work for television, Moore was keen to return to the big screen for good. The attempt came to fruition after launching a new production company with the fellow producer of The Saint, Robert S. Baker. However, the two only managed to produce two films together, both starring Moore - Crossplot and The Man Who Haunted Himself, of which the latter is often regarded as one of the best in the actor's career. In 1970 Moore was lured back to television by Sir Lew Grade who offered him a co-starring role alongside Tony Curtis in an action comedy series The Persuaders!, one of the most popular and most expensive shows in Europe in early 70s.
The Bond years
In 1972 Moore agreed to take over from Sean Connery and become the new James Bond (he had already been considered for the role a couple of times before). Over twelve years he has starred in seven succesful Bond pictures, bringing new life to the franchise. His portrayal of agent 007 may have been further from the literary original, but it presented a more humorous and lightweight character the audience needed.
The films in-between
The role of James Bond finally marked Moore's return to the big screen and enabled him to take part in other interesting film projects, such as two adaptations of Wilbur Smith's highly popular novels Gold and Shout at the Devil, both set in Africa; American Tv adaptation of Sherlock Holmes in New York, in which Moore played the title role; and a starr-studded big budget adveture productions - The Wild Geese, Escape to Athena and The Sea Wolves. He was also able to try himself in roles againts his emploi in such films as North Sea Hijack or The Naked Face.
Semi-retirement
Although Moore stated once that an actor's never retired as long as he's able to remember the lines, after quitting Bond in 1985 he decided to take some rest and reduce the number of films he'd be inolved in. It wasn't until 1989/1990 that he appeared on the set of two new productions - Bullseye!, action comedy co-starring Michael Caine, and Bed & Breakfast, a romance drama, one of the finest films in Moore's career. In the meantime Moore became involved heavily in work for television hosting a number of specials on various topics. In mid 90s he co-produced and co-starred in a TV murder mystery The Man Who Wouldn't Die and played in Jean-Claude Van Damme's directional debut The Quest, which brought him back to wider audience.
UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador
Since 1991 Moore has been focused mainly on his work as Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF. It became his priority after he had been introduced to UNICEF by the late Audrey Hepburn. Moore is an active campaigner and one of the busiest representatives known for his visits in the most needing places, such as the Third World. In 2003 he was recognized by HM the Queen for his tireless work for UNICEF when he recieved a knighthood. Other recognitions presented to Moore for his charity work include a Goodwill Laureate Award, Audrey Hepburn Humanitarian Award, Dag Hammarskjouml;ld Inspiration Award and the French Order of Arts and Letters.
Latest projects
Aside from his busy UNICEF schedule, Moore manages to continue work as host and narrator of various TV specials, produced mainly by the Associated Television International, as well as an actor in films and TV. He also returned briefly to theatre in 2002/2003 as a guest performer in The Play What I Wrote directed by Kenneth Branagh. Lately he also enjoys playing voice-roles in animated feature films, such as Here Comes Peter Cottontail: The Movie (2005) and Agent Crush (2008). In October 2008 the long-awaited autobiography My Word is My Bond was published to a wide interest.
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