By Charly SHELTON

Bond. James Bond. Two words that conjure to mind adventure, espionage, gadgets, guns and girls. The quintessential series of spy films is celebrating its 50th anniversary and what better way to do so than by screening some of the best Bond films made? The Alex Theatre in Glendale is doing just that.

Every Tuesday in April, the Alex will be showing a different Bond film on the big screen with a Q & A before the show featuring some stars of each film telling anecdotes about their time on set and what it is like to be part of the most popular film franchise in history.

Tuesday’s screening was “License to Kill” starring Timothy Dalton. Actor David Hedison was on hand to recount stories of his time playing Felix Lighter in this film as well as in “Live and Let Die.” The screening was an old film print of the movie, which added to the experience. It was nice to hear the projector clicking away in back of the soundtrack of the film as the cells were advanced from frame to frame. That is a sound rarely heard anymore thanks to digital.

And Hedison, as well as some other surprise guests, was on hand to delight the crowd and answer questions from the audience. This is a great way to get a new sense of what was going on during filming, adding another layer of depth to what many already knew of “License to Kill.” And for those who, like myself, had never seen the film before, the big screen is the best way to go. It’s really an experience and is the way the film was meant to be seen.

Tickets can be purchased online or at the Alex box office for $15 each. Next week’s screening in the 50th anniversary series is “Octopussy,” and scheduled to appear for the Q & A are actresses Kristina Wayborn (Magda) and Octopussy herself, Maud Adams. Definitely not one to miss.

The Alex Theatre is located at 216 N. Band Blvd. in Glendale.

  Charly Shelton