Childhood & Early Life
Roger Moore was born on 14 October 1927, in Stockwell, London, England, to George Alfred and Lillian Moore. His father was a policeman, while his mother was a housewife. Moore went to ‘Battersea Grammar School.’
During WWII, he was sent to Devon and was later enrolled at ‘Dr Challoner’s Grammar School’ in Amersham, Buckinghamshire. He then went to the ‘College of the Venerable Bede’ at the ‘University of Durham.’
Before joining the services, Moore worked briefly at the ‘Royal Academy of Dramatic Art’ and was used as an extra in Brian Desmond Hurst’s ‘Trottie True.’ He also made an appearance in the movie ‘Caesar and Cleopatra’ (1945).
When Moore turned 18, he was recruited to the national service and later commissioned into the ‘Royal Army Service Corps’ as a second lieutenant. He was eventually made a captain.
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Career
During the early-1950s, Moore worked as a print model for products like knitwear, toothpaste, etc. During this time, he also made a television appearance in the series ‘Drawing Room Detective.’
He signed a contract with ‘MGM’ and appeared in movies like ‘Interrupted Melody’ (1955), ‘The King’s Thief’ (1955), ‘Diane’ (1956), etc. He then signed a contract with ‘Warner Bros’ and appeared in TV programs, such as ‘The Third Man’ and ‘Alfred Hitchcock Presents.’
Moore gained popularity playing ‘Sir Wilfred of Ivanhoe’ in the series ‘Ivanhoe’ from 1958 to 1959. The show was aimed at younger audience.
He then landed an important role in ‘The Alaskans,’ which ran from 1959 to 1960. The show was aired for one season, which consisted of 37 episodes.
In 1959, Moore was cast as ‘Beau Maverick’ in a TV series titled ‘Maverick.’ The series ran for a season and Moore had to manage his time as he was working on ‘The Alaskans’ simultaneously.
Moore finally achieved his much-awaited stardom when he was cast in ‘The Saint’ in 1962, where he played the role of ‘Simon Templar.’ The show ran for six seasons and had 118 episodes; it was the longest-running series on British television.
Just after the series ended, Moore starred in two movies, ‘Crossplot’ (1969) and ‘The Man Who Haunted Himself’ (1970). With these two motion pictures, he proved to be a versatile actor.
In 1971, he appeared on the television series ‘The Persuaders!’ The series was not a success in America but did pretty well in Europe (especially in Germany and Australia).
When Sean Connery left the ‘James Bond’ franchise, Moore was approached to play ‘James Bond’ in ‘Live and Let Die’ (1973). It is said that Moore lost weight and went for a complete makeover in order to play the role.
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Moore played ‘James Bond’ for 12 years; he was the longest-serving ‘James Bond’ actor ever. He did movies like ‘The Man with the Golden Gun’ (1974), ‘The Spy Who Loved Me’ (1977), ‘Moonraker’ (1979), ‘For Your Eyes Only’ (1981), etc.
After he stopped playing ‘Bond’ in 1985, Moore did not appear on screen for the next five years. It was only in 1990 that he appeared on television, playing an important role in the series ‘My Riviera.’
During the 2000s, he continued to work in the industry sporadically—he played the role of a homosexual in ‘Boat Trip’ (2002), appeared in a commercial for London’s 2012 Olympic bid, and guest-hosted ‘Have I Got News for You’ (2012).
He made his last film appearance when he played a cameo in the espionage thriller film ‘The Saint.’ Filmed in 2013, ‘The Saint’ was released in 2017 in tribute to Moore following his death.
Awards & Achievements
Roger Moore was honored with awards like ‘Golden Globe’ (1980), ‘OTTO’ (1981), ‘Golden Camera’ (1992), ‘Tele Gatto’ (1995), ‘Monte Carlo TV Festival’ (2002), ‘Hollywood Walk of Fame’ (2007), ‘Commander of National Order of Arts and Letters’ (France) (2008), etc.
Personal Life & Legacy
Roger Moore left his first wife Doorn Van Steyn for singer Dorothy Squires, who was 12 years older than him. They lived together for some time before he left her for the Italian actress Luisa Mattioli.
He got married to Mattioli in 1969. The couple had a daughter and two sons. The marriage ran into trouble and they stopped living together in 1993. The same year, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer. Moore and Mattioli were eventually divorced in 2000.
In 2002, Moore got married to his former neighbor, a Danish-Swedish multi-millionaire named Kristina ‘Kiki’ Tholstrup. They remained married till Moore's death in 2017.
Roger Moore died of cancer on 23 May 2017, at the age of 89, in Switzerland.
