Entertainment For Lively Minds
This charming man
Posted by Harold Holt on 21 January 2010 - 11:58am.
Sorry. No Mozza references here. Spurred on by reading this... http://www.wordmagazine.co.uk/content/whos-gazza#comment-222616... recalling Barry Sheen and James Hunt, I was struck by the thought of who were/are the most charming men ever, and here I mean the ones of which I am eternally jealous....
Deceased :
Cary GrantBarry Sheen
James Hunt
Graham Hill
Active :
Sean ConneryGeorge Clooney
Honourable Mention :
George BestDefinite exclusions :
Brad PittNominations/arguments welcome of course. Not sure what the criteria are going to be, but class (as in 'classy') and talent appear to be features for me. And of course about 10 seconds after I post this I'll think of a dozen more....
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Graham Hill
Great shout.
There's an excellent clip of him speaking from his hospital bed via a video link-up to an award ceremony of some sort. He manages to get the whole room in the palm of his hand, despite not being there.
Damon is also quite the Bon Viveur
Even if his TV persona and interview skills don't always get this across.
Also wins the "Best George Harrison lookalike" award circa Traveling Wilbury's!
Jim Clark was a nice chap although his borders nature was
often misinterpreted as 'brusque'.
Stirling Moss is the nicest bloke in the world :-)
Agreed on both
I was up in the Borders recently and took the opportunity to vist Clark's grave in the sleepy village of Chirnside. His gravestone, as per his own request, lists him as 'Farmer' before 'World Champion Motor Racing Driver'. I think that just about sums up the man.
The little Jim Clark museum in Duns is an essential
visit for any motorsport fan. Small and unpreposessing but a touching little place
Stirling Moss - on a Good Day
Dear Stirling can be a charmer but...... when he looses it he swears a blue streak. I have seen him teaching some one to drive , his patience lasted one millisecond. Then all hell let loose. . There is no job for him at BSM.
Gap
Why Terry Thomas old boy.The rest are an absolute shower,a bunch of rotters.Pip Pip and Tally-Ho.
Hard Cheese...
I say, you just beat me to Terry Thomas you absolute bounder you.
Others:
David Niven
Leslie Phillips
Michael Palin, although he's not really the sauve end of charming.
George Best? Our survey says...
Eh-eh.
Alcohlolic wife-beater who drank a perfectly good doner liver into oblivion. He might have had talent, but I'd debate that he has 'class', whatever that is.
Still, he managed to get an airport named after himself.
I agree (to an extent)
I wouldn't put him down as a charmer. I think his success with the ladies was more to do with his looks, fame and talent. He always seemed quite a shy, insecure man to me, though admittedly his heyday was before my time so I might be talking rot.
Me too,
hence I don't think he quite makes the cut, but close.
A few
actors who oozed charm
James Stewart
John Mills
Robert Donat
Ronald Coleman
Claude Rains
William Powell
I would say this but...
A generous thumbs up for Ronald Coleman. If any evidence were needed:
I'd also offer a loud hurrah for Claude Rains.
What about Roger Livesey?
How about
Roger Livesey
Trevor Howard
My vote goes to…
John Le Mesurier
"Do you think that's wise sir?"
great choice!
A few more actors
Leslie Howard
Tom Hanks
Kenneth More
Fred Astaire
Ted Bundy
Oh, and Slobodan Milosevic.
Literally oozed charm.
Bill Clinton and Mikael Gorbachev
can supposedly work a room like no-one else in the grubby world of politics, even though it doesn't always come across on the telly.
My mum - who, like most ladies knew more about the arcane science of charm than any of us fellas - always used to be giddified by the charisma of Newcastle footballer Jackie Milburn, Middlesbrough footballer George Hardwick, Ronald Coleman, Robert Donat, that chubby chef from Whitby whose name escapes me, and above all others, the original brylcreem boy Denis Compton.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3055/3013597544_85c8bfe7d8.jpg
On the subject of Denis Compton, Sir Neville Cardus wrote:
"Never have I been so deeply touched on a cricket ground as I was in this heavenly summer of 1947 when I went to Lord's to see a pale-faced crowd, existing on rations, the rocket-bomb still in the ears of most folks - and see this worn, dowdy crowd raptly watching Compton.
The strain of long years of anxiety and affliction passed from all heads and shoulders at the sight of Compton in full sail, sending the ball here, there, and everywhere, each stroke a flick of delight, a propulsion of happy, sane, healthy life. There were no rations in an innings by Compton."
Now put that in your flippin' pipe and smoke it.
Chubby chef from Whitby
Not James Martin is it? Just seems out of place along with all those old-timers.
Good to see 'Gentleman' George Hardwick get a mention. I mean, when your nick-name is Gentleman George you just know there is old school charm in abundance.
That's him!
She made an exception to her "no chubbies" rule on account of his smile.
Surely
Roger Moore has to be up there somewhere?
Jackie Stewart?
Hmm...
Much as I admire JYS, I'd not describe him as charming. He is often Partridge-esque.
Hmm...
Much as I admire JYS, I'd not describe him as charming. He is often Partridge-esque.
I did a 'charridy' event with JYS many years ago
and he seems a nice chap but, he's *so* professional in his attitude to his sponsors that I always felt I was being 'sold to'.
As an example, we briefly discussed his long association with Ford and he was always used the name "The Ford Motor Company" - never just Ford.
That confims my own impressions
The post-racing career part of his autobiography reads like one of those 'how to succeed in business' manuals.
I suppose
I was thinking unflappable carry on regardless stiff upper lipped response to near death motor racing experience while sporting trendy 70s style image sort of thing.
How about Charlie Watts - a gent, holding on to dignity, happily long time married, dapper dresser, remaining top of tree rock drummer with odd droll remark and giving Jagger a punch for calling him 'his drummer'?
JYS - near death experiences
He famously never drew blood in a racing car throughout his career.
But
he was once trapped in a car whose cockpit was filling up with petrol.
What about
the current Word darling?
Mr. David Essex
I can vouch for Mr Essex
In my student days, we used to frequent the top floor bar of the Royal Hotel in Nottingham. One busy evening, my friend Michelle was patiently queueing at the bar. When the barman finally came over to her, he looked stright over her shoulder at the person behind to ask for his order. Michelle was about to remonstrate when the person behind said to the barman 'I think this young lady was here before me'. Michelle turned to thank this well-mannered stranger only to discover that it was Mr Essex, who was in a show at the nearby theatre at the time. I've always considered him a thoroughly decent chap ever since.
Charmer
Nigel Havers was in a series called Charmer so he's got to have a shout.
George Hamilton
Clark Gable
Sean Connery? Screen persona yes but real life reputation does not back that up.
Warren Beatty must have something about him if recent statistics are to be believed.
since someone's already pointed out Connery's failings...
I'll change my comment and offer you... Daniel Craig.
Too
brutish to be a charmer I reckon.
admittedly
was thinking more of him being self-deprecating on chat shows than, uh, killing people on screen...
This suave individual doesn't strictly qualify as a man...
but he is a charmer.
Yes but...
..wasn't Fancy the charming one?
Sadly the voice of TC died a few weeks ago.
Why so
anti-Brad Pitt? He's charmed Jen, Ange and around 50% of the western world, so can't be all that bad.
I would also venture Hugh Grant, the charming old fop.
I've always thought
Stephen Fry qualified as a charmer.
George Thomas
Lord Tonypandy - Speaker of the House Of Commons and a decent chap to boot. He was great friends with my grandfather and as a kid we just knew him as "Uncle George". As a so-called grown up I visited him several times at the House Of Lords for tea and he was an absolute delight.
Two Faves
Lord Charles
Paul Whitehouse 'The Chocolatier'
Talking of PW
surely this chap qualifies:
Very
long neck...
(poignant silence....)
How could I forget ...
...Steve McQueen. I'm thinking 'cool' comes into the equation somewhere.
And I'll go along with Stirling Moss (since I am a bit of a petrol head).
I was thinking of putting Hugh Grant in the exclusions section along with Brad Pitt. Grant seems to be a one-trick pony, and can't even do that one consistently. Pitt always comes off as a bit of a thug to me. I can see why the ladies might go for that, but it ain't an aspect of charm I'm particularly envious of.
Can't think why anyone had Hugh Grant as a worthy successor to Cary Grant.
Steve McQueen?
It was all about the watch - that Heuer Monaco
JYS - Great driver, useless pedestrian
My late Mother-in-Law claimed she managed to draw JYS's blood many years ago by running him over in the car park of the Gleneagles Hotel. Apparently he survived by leaping onto the bonnet and hanging onto the wipers. The tartan trewed one escaped with a minor scrape to the shin apparently...
I suppose those hair-trigger reactions had to help him somehow.
Heh... Maybe that's why he's always very careful to say
that he "never drew blood in a racing car". :-)
From the Music world
Leonard Cohen oozes charm and has a reputation with the ladies that we would all be envious of.
Recently I saw Ray LaMontagne and there were middle aged women in the audience acting like they were at a Bay City Rollers gig.
From the world of film I always thought Roger Moore was sickly so definitely wouldnt put him on the list. John Mills always had a lot of class as does Anthony Hopkins.
And then there's Errol Flynn
another famous pants man and charisma by the bucket. World's most (only?) famous Tasmanian. Ricky Ponting doesn't count.
Crown Princess Mary of Denmark
Really?
Does anyone know who she is outside of Australia and Denmark? I was kind of assuming you wouldn't be world famous just for being a royal, and there seem to be plenty of them round europe who I defy anyone to name. It's like naming the seven dwarfs. I'd have thought Ricky Ponting would be known by more people than 'our Mary' (i.e. Indian sub continent). I wouldn't have known who Prince Fred was if she hadn't married him.