Strange Behind-The-Scenes Details From 'Goldfinger' Are Causing Quite The Stir

Though James Bond has appeared in well over 20 on-screen adventures, for many fans' money, Goldfinger is the biggest and best of them all. Film buffs turn to the 1964 spy thriller again and again for its iconic action sequences, villains, and, of course, that Shirley Bassey theme song. But there are certain sides to the 007 movie that you won't notice even on your thousandth rewatch. These behind-the-scenes secrets were classified for years, but just like Goldfinger's evil plans, they had to come to light eventually.

1. Dressed to kill

Oddjob's hat only kills one character in the film — apologies to the decapitated statue — but that headwear caused Oddjob's actor some real pain. For the henchman's on-screen electrocution, Harold Sakata was instructed to grab the hat, which would shoot out sparks while stuck between metal bars. The filmmakers had him grasp it for several seconds, resulting in painful burns across his hand.

2. Aston Martins

Executives at Aston Martin initially hesitated to sell two DB5 models to the production, especially once they heard about the filmmakers' plan to cut up the cars and add in all kinds of gadgets. But the smash success of Goldfinger ensured that any Bond flick would get any future Aston Martins free of charge. Side note: while the revolving license plate was real, the ejector seat didn't actually work.

3. Out of breath

While Shirley Bassey was recording the theme song, filmmakers showed her a cut of the opening credits so she could synch her vocals with the visual cues. The only issue was that the last segment of the credits required her to hold a note for an incredibly long time. Bassey discreetly removed her bra to get more room to breathe, but even then, nearly passed out stretching her voice over the final blare of the horns.

4. "Do you expect me to talk?"

James Bond's near-bisection by laser is one of the most memorable scenes in the series, so it's a surprise that this sinister device doesn't actually appear in the Goldfinger novel. In that version, the villain comes close to cutting into 007 with a buzzsaw, but the film's producers thought he should use something more hi-tech. And that laser caused more than a few problems on set...

5. "No, Mr. Bond. I expect you to die!"

Producers tried to incorporate a real industrial laser into the scene — except that it didn't show up on camera. Unwilling to ditch their plan, they added the laser beam in post-production. But to make it appear dangerous, the crew pre-cut the metal slab that held Sean Connery and had special effects whiz Bert Luxford slowly move a blowtorch through the gap. "I was about three inches from his crotch when I stopped," he recalled.

6. Casting what-ifs

Orson Welles was actually the first choice to play Auric Goldfinger, but the budget couldn't accommodate his hefty salary. Gert Frobe nailed the part of the greedy and arrogant villain, but there was a major drawback to his performance. The German barely spoke English, so nearly all his lines had to be dubbed by another actor.

7. Box office gold

The Bond movie positively exploded into theaters. Worldwide, it made nearly $50 million upon its initial release alone, which set the Guinness World Record as the fastest-grossing film ever. To keep up with demand, some theaters showed it on a 24-hour loop! Despite Goldfinger's legions of fans, the cast and crew were saddened that one person never got to see it...

8. Gone too soon

Bond creator Ian Fleming was proud to see the first two cinematic adaptations, Dr. No and From Russia with Love, but he sadly passed away shortly before the release of Goldfinger. He was only 56. As a silver lining, Fleming did get to visit the set during production.

9. Under par

The movie's golf sequence was shot at Stoke Park Country Club, which has served as a location for many other films since then, including Bridget Jones's Diary. Sean Connery wasn't too familiar with the sport prior to that shoot, but it became a magical day for him. In his own words, the scene sparked his own "lifelong love affair with golf."

10. Skin suffocation

The plot point that a human could die from "skin suffocation" after being painted gold from head to toe is completely made up. After all, the body doesn't get oxygen through its pores. But actress Shirley Eaton's death-by-gold scene was striking enough to spread an urban legend that the stunt really did kill her. Luckily, body paint doesn't have a license to kill.

11. Caine's all ears

Though Michael Caine later refused the role of James Bond in 1967, his career did intersect in a small way with Goldfinger. The actor had to crash with his friend and composer John Barry after getting the boot from his own apartment. During his visit, Barry stayed up many nights writing the famous score, meaning that Caine was the first person to ever hear a version of it.

12. Q and Bond

Although Q briefly appeared in From Russia with Love, it was Goldfinger that established the gadget master's dysfunctional relationship with Bond. Desmond Llewelyn portrayed Q as a friendly colleague in the first take, but then director Guy Hamilton gave the actor his true motivation: "You hate the bugger [...] He comes down here, pays no attention to what you say, takes your props away, uses them in completely different ways than you intended, never returns them."

13. Censored name

Ian Fleming often had a bit of fun with his female characters' names, but Goldfinger's femme fatale plunged the movie into a world of controversy. Censors didn't know what to do about "Pussy Galore," and in countries like India, they simply bleeped out the name. There is speculation that the name isn't meant to be that suggestive, and is simply a tribute to Fleming's pet octopus, but we'll never know for sure.

14. Plot inspiration

The idea for Goldfinger came to Ian Fleming while he was on vacation. At a spa, he made small talk with a man who happened to be an expert in the gold trade, and that got the wheels in Fleming's head turning. The author borrowed a name from architect Erno Goldfinger, who then threatened him with a lawsuit. Once Fleming instead offered to call the project Goldprick, Erno dropped his complaint.

15. The Midas touch

In the book, Goldfinger merely seeks to rob the gold reserve at Fort Knox, but many critics bristled at the impossible idea of moving tons and tons of bullion out of a secure location. The film version tweaked this plot by having the villain plan to irradiate the United States' gold supply in order to increase the value of his own stash. And Fort Knox had a surprising reaction to the film.

16. Not fool's gold

Understandably, filmmakers were not allowed inside the real Fort Knox for their research, and yet government officials were astonished by the accuracy of the movie set. Everything from the layout of the stack of gold bars looked genuine. So the Fort Knox leadership sent a congratulatory letter to Goldfinger's production team for really doing their homework.

17. Across the pond

One reason why Goldfinger was a big deal to fans was because it was James Bond's first adventure in the United States. However, neither Connery nor the rest of the cast ever set foot in America during production. All Bond's scenes in Miami were shot in front of a green screen in England's Pinewood Studios.

18. Casting Oddjob

Oddjob — Goldfinger's massive, hat-hurling henchman — might have been an impossible role to cast, but luckily the director was in the right place at the right time. Guy Hamilton was channel surfing when he came across wrestler and weightlifter Harold Sakata. The moment the crowd booed the formidable athlete, Hamilton knew he had found his Oddjob.

19. The Avengers

Honor Blackman was a TV star on The Avengers in the early '60s, though she actually had to quit that show to accept the role of Pussy Galore. The Avengers didn't hold any grudges, fortunately. They explained Blackman's absence by having her character, Cathy Gale, send the protagonist John Steed a postcard from Fort Knox with her best wishes.

20. Hidden ring

Sean Connery didn't want to take off his wedding ring while filming Goldfinger, and producers worried that it would ruin Bond's image as a playboy. So if you look closely, you'll notice Connery is covering up his ring with a bandage in some shots. And that's not the only unusual thing the actor wore either.

21. Hollywood hairpieces

All those curls you see on Sean Connery's chest are real, but you might want to take a closer look at his head. With his hair thinning at a young age, the actor wore a hairpiece or toupee in every 007 appearance.

22. Skin suffocation

Understandably, Shirley Eaton was a little hesitant about being completely painted gold. Even if she didn't suffocate, there was a chance she'd have a bad reaction to it. The Goldfinger crew left a patch of skin on actress Shirley Eaton's back unpainted, just in case.

23. Casting controversy

Sean Connery's casting initially caused quite the controversy, especially since a Scot was coming on to play a suave Brit. However, Ian Fleming came to enjoy Connery's portrayal so much that he retroactively changed Bond's heritage to Scottish.

24. MI6 secrets

It doesn't take a license to kill to know that Bond works for MI6, Britain's intelligence service. Although the character has been around since 1953, the United Kingdom didn't officially disclose the existence of MI6 until 1994!

25. The real Bond

There was a real James Bond, but he was no secret agent. In actuality, he was a celebrated ornithologist. Ian Fleming thought his name was perfect for his superspy, as it was "brief, unromantic, Anglo-Saxon, and yet very masculine."

26. A big bite

Jaws, played by Richard Kiel, made history as the only henchman to appear in multiple 007 adventures. However, the actor's metal dentures were apparently quite uncomfortable. And remember that scene where he bites through a gondola wire? That's actually licorice.

27. License to drive

Timothy Dalton only made two 007 appearances, but it took a lot out of him. While shooting License to Kill, he was speeding through a closed mountain road — until another vehicle somehow made it onto the set. He nearly swerved off a cliff avoiding the collision.

28. Rejected spinoff

Jinx, Halle Berry's CIA character from Die Another Day, was intended to have her own spinoff movie in the 007 universe. But after an astronomical budget proposal and poor reviews for her first film appearance, that script got canned.

29. Age differences

Roger Moore took on the 007 mantle after Connery quit the role for a second time. Surprisingly, Moore was actually three years the Scot's senior! And that wasn't the only oddity about his age.

30. Feeling his age

Holding onto the part for over a decade, Moore was 57 years of age during his final appearance in A View to a Kill. Reportedly, he felt too old during production, especially when he learned that he was older than the mother of the movie's female lead.

31. Craig's deal

After Daniel Craig inked his Bond contract, rumors suggested he would get free Aston Martins for life. While he has gotten to test-drive a number of models, this deal sadly isn't true. But as Craig pointed out, London isn't the best place to own a luxury sports car.

32. Neeson turns down Bond

Liam Neeson, who had a career renaissance following the action hit Taken, turned down the role of James Bond in the early 1990s. At the time, Neeson claimed that he had "never been interested in starring in action movies."

33. A valuable swimsuit

Dr. No might be best remembered for actress Ursula Andress' iconic white bikini, which skyrocketed sales of two-piece swimwear. The original bikini went up for auction in 2001 and fetched over $50,000. Too bad the conch shell wasn't included.

34. The meaning of Goldeneye

Goldeneye wasn't just a 1995 Bond flick. It was also the name of author Ian Fleming's estate in Jamaica, where he did most of his writing. Today, the luxurious home functions as a resort.

35. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

Ian Fleming based his spy novels off of his work in naval intelligence during World War II. That's why it's puzzling that his other notable literary creation was Chitty Chitty Bang Bang — a flying car in a children's story.

36. The tuxedo rule

To prevent other franchises from ripping off the Bond image, 007 actors are forbidden from wearing tuxedos in other films. However, Pierce Brosnan technically got away with it in The Thomas Crown Affair by wearing an unbuttoned shirt and loose bowtie.

37. "Thunderball" recording

Most musical artists would give anything to perform a Bond theme; Tom Jones gave a few minutes of consciousness. During the final sustained note of "Thunderball," the singer actually passed out in the recording studio!

38. Real gadgets

Maybe they don't have wheelchairs that shoot rockets, but MI6 agents are sent out with special spy gadgets. Based on reports, however, they tend to malfunction far more often than Bond's arsenal.

39. The unknown Bond

In the late '60s, after Sean Connery stepped back from spy movies, an unknown talent was plucked from London's streets to play the new Bond in On Her Majesty's Secret Service. His name was George Lazenby. He was 30, and he'd met the film’s producer by accident in a barbershop.