LONDON, Oct 31 - Legendary award-winning Scottish star Sean Connery, who became a global sensation as the first James Bond and featured in a string of cult hits in his five-decade-long career, has died. He was 90. According to BBC, the actor passed away overnight in his sleep while in the Bahamas. He had been unwell for quite some time. He first played the role of James Bond in 1962�s Dr No, which he followed up with From Russia with Love (1963), Goldfinger (1964), Thunderball (1965), You Only Live Twice (1967), Diamonds Are Forever (1971) and Never Say Never Again (1983).
The actor, who has won Oscar, BAFTA and Golden Globe awards, also featured in many critically-acclaimed and commercial blockbusters such as The Hunt for Red October, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Murder on the Orient Express and The Rock. Connery was born on August 25, 1930, to a Catholic factory worker and a Protestant domestic cleaner. He left school at the age 13 with no qualifications and delivered milk, polished coffins and laid bricks, before joining the Royal Navy. But he was out of the service with stomach ulcers only three years later. He initially made a living by doing odd jobs like driving trucks, working as a lifeguard and posing as a model at the Edinburgh College of Art. The actor spent his spare time bodybuilding.
It was in 1956 that Connery landed his first acting job for BBC production of Requiem for a Heavyweight. Soon after, he made his film debut with No Road Back. The following year, he appeared in films like Hell Drivers, Action of the Tiger and Time Lock.
A major breakthrough in his career came when Connery, a relatively unknown actor, was cast as James Bond after an interview with producers Albert Broccoli and Harry Saltzman. It is said that author Ian Fleming was not fully convinced that Connery can pull off the part. However, the actor�s charismatic portrayal of the spy won over the critics and for many franchise fans, he is still the best James Bond.
Bond made a global star out of a relatively new Connery but it also pigeonholed him for a long time. The actor started challenging his image by shifting gears and taking up more dramatic movies such as John Huston�s The Man Who Would Be King, Richard Attenborough�s A Bridge Too Far, The Name of the Rose, which was a big international hit.
The actor had officially announced his retirement in 2006, when he received the American Film Institute�s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Connery was married to actor Diane Cilento from 1962-73. The couple divorced in 1973 and Cilento died in 2011. He is survived by his second wife, painter Micheline Roquebrune, whom he married in 1975 and his son Jason Connery. � PTI
