Even the most die-hard 007 fans know thatJames Bondmovies dont always hit.
Theres the yellow face ofYou Only Live Twice, the pigeon double-take inMoonraker, the surfing inDie Another Day.
Yes, Im talking about Sheriff J.W.
Modern viewers meeting the character for the first time today will likely be confused by Peppers shtick.
Yall Drive Safe Now, Heah?
Before he hassled Roger MooresJames Bond, the character thatinspired Sheriff J.W.hocked Dodge cars in American TV commercials.
The clip was a hit, so Dodge kept bringing back Higgins for more ads.
In later clips, the Sheriff gained the name J.W.
Higgins (named for the actor) and a sidekick in the form of Deputy Buford.
Even after the campaign ended, Sheriff Higgins remained in the public consciousness.
But none of that really explains howSheriff J.W.
Pepper, played byCool Hand Lukeactor Clifton James, ended up in Bond movies.
Pepper inLive and Let Die, which feels a lot like something J.W.
Big (Yaphet Kotto).
If theys yours that is, he says to the Black man.
It doesnt stop there, with more racist insults, including calling Adam boy.
Pepper and his gaggle of Southern fried buffoons in blue do.
Why did Pepper decide to vacation in Thailand?
Why does he decide to go car shopping while on his vacation?
I love writing dumb sheriffs, Mankiewicz explained in a bonus feature on theLive and Let DieDVD.
When youre writing a screenplay, sometimes characters just take off with you.
Pepper even followed Mankiewicz to hisSuperman IIscript, in which Clifton James plays an unnamed bumpkin sheriff.
Be that as it may, the popularity of J.W.
Higgins points to another reason for Peppers appearances, an issue that has dogged the franchise for decades.
Thats just as bad as listening tothe Beatleswithout earmuffs!
But this cultural faux-pas is a good indication of how Bond usually treats trends.
It always arrives too late, emulating something made popular elsewhere.
At the start ofGoldenEye, Pierce Brosnans Bond engages in that 90s craze of bungee jumping.
At the start of the grittyCasino Royale, Daniel Craigs Bond shows off his parkour skills.
As these examples show, the Bond franchise isnt an innovator.
After all, sometimes this copying results in fantastic sequences, like the beginning ofCasino Royale.
And sometimes it gives us goofier moments, like when Moores Bond battles hockey players inFor Your Eyes Only.
