[James Bond's first scene in "Dr. No", winning a game of chemin-de-fer]
James Bond: "I admire your courage, Miss...? "
Sylvia Trench: "Trench. Sylvia Trench. I admire your luck, Mr...?"
James Bond: "Bond. James Bond."

James Bond has worn many hats. Literally. There’s been a whole Soccer team of actors playing the role (including the multiple Bond’s in the original 1967 Bond parody “Casino Royale”). But let’s face it. No one really has ever really filled the shoes of the original. Sean Connery. Ironically Roger Moore was author Ian Fleming's original choice for Bond, but he was committed to his British TV series, "The Saint". (And it ended up taking him almost twenty years to get his chance!)  In fact, one of the original choices for Bond was Cary Grant, but he would only commit to one film. David Niven, Trevor Howard, Rex Harrison, Patrick McGoohan, James Mason and even Richard Burton were all considered for the role. They even offered the role to award-winning Director John Frankenheimer (who really was "tall, dark and handsome, and had a real-life reputation for fast cars and even faster women!) And the strangest, was an offer to bodybuilder Steve Reeves who luckily was already committed to a series of Italian "Hercules" movies (the thought of Reeves as Bond is mind-boggling!). Finally, however, saner heads prevailed, and Sean Connery was chosen... but only after producer Albert R. Broccoli's wife saw him in the Disney family movie “Darby O'Gill and the Little People”!

The first in the series was “Dr. No”. At the time, it was considered a huge budget movie. A full one million dollars! In fact it actually went over budget by one hundred thousand, and United Artists threaten to pull the plug, afraid that they would never get their money back! Of course it went on to become the single most successful and longest running movie “series” in history (and is still going strong with a new James Bond still being made each year). “Dr. No” introduced us to so many of the traditions. The famous opening credits created by Maurice Binder, Monty Norman’s theme, the beloved characters of Miss Moneypenny and “M”, and of course Connery himself. All sadly gone in the newest versions, but forever etched in our memory, like a first kiss!

The Bond phenomena has weathered over fifty years of drastic global changes, and continues to adapt to the times, in style, politics, tastes, story and character. Many feel, it has morphed into a way too dark vision of the world. Yet, through it all, the sleek early 1960s British styling of the first films is what most of us remember, since that is where our love affair, if not the world's, began.

That is why we at Baron’s decided to create a hat that symbolizes the essence of the “Bond” style. A hat that transforms anyone who wears it into a suave “shaken but not stirred”, Walther PPK wearing gentleman of Class with a capital “C”. “The Bond” is such a hat inspired by the one Connery wore when we first saw him in his first outing in "Dr. No", and hearing for the first time, the most eloquent action hero you’d ever seen, say, to a ravishingly beautiful Ursula Andress, in a magnificent, confident slightly Scottish accent: “Bond… James Bond” (in fact that line has been chosen as one of the top twenty most famous movies quotes of all time by the American Film Institute).

We crafted a special block to create "The Bond’s" famous shape, and we use the original trademark “reflective cross-hatch” grosgrain ribbon for the hatband. It comes in the original color, but since all our hats are hand custom made to order, the hat, and the hatband can be made in virtually any color combination you wish. If you would like it in a different color, simply e-mail us.

You can order the hat in 100% Dress Weight Fur Felt, or our luxurious 200XXX 100% Beaver. Both come with our engraved leather sweatband, our silk-satin lining, our Lifetime Guarantee, and a signed and numbered personalized Certificate of Authenticity. And, for your extra convenience, we even have a special four month FlexPay payment plan at no extra cost (look below for order details).

This is a great gift hat for that “James Bond” in your life, or to give to yourself, since you know damn well you deserve it! For as James Bond himself would teach us over and over again: "live life with the best of everything, or nothing at all!"