Shirley Bassey leads Oscars 50th birthday tribute to James Bond

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><img alt="Dame Shirley Bassey arrives at the 85th Academy Awards in Hollywood, California February 24, 2013. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson" height="400" src="http://s1.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20130225&t=2&i=707143608&w=320&fh=&fw=&ll=&pl=&r=CBRE91O09SO00" width="273" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.6;">By Piya Sinha-Roy and Tim Reid</span><br /><div id="articleInfo" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans; margin-bottom: 10px;"><div style="color: #666666; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.6; padding: 0px;"><span class="location" style="font-weight: bold;">LOS ANGELES</span> | <span class="timestamp" style="font-size: 11px; margin: 0px;">Mon Feb 25, 2013 12:04am EST</span></div></div><span id="midArticle_0" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><span class="focusParagraph" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"><div style="font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">(Reuters) - Dame Shirley Bassey earned a standing ovation at the Oscars on Sunday when she lead a tribute to James Bond's 50th birthday by singing "Goldfinger," the 1964 Bond theme song that launched her international <span style="line-height: 1.5;">career.</span></div></span><span id="midArticle_1" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><div style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.6; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">Bassey, 76, wearing a gold dress, gold necklace and gold earrings, appeared on stage following a film and music tribute to the Bond movie franchise, which began in 1962 with the first Bond film "Dr. No," starring Sir Sean Connery.</div><span id="midArticle_2" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><div style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.6; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">Last year, "<span class="mandelbrot_refrag"><a class="mandelbrot_refrag" href="http://www.reuters.com/video/2012/10/23/craig-bardem-premiere-skyfall?videoId=238639320&videoChannel=3&lc=int_mb_1001" style="color: #006e97; cursor: pointer; outline: none; text-decoration: none;">Skyfall</a></span>," the 23rd installment of the Bond series - the longest-running motion picture franchise in history - was released and became the highest-grossing Bond film, crossing the $1 billion mark at the global box office.</div><span id="midArticle_3" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><div style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.6; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">British singer Adele, 24, who swept the Grammys last year with her soulful heartbreak album "21," continued the Bond theme in Sunday's Oscar ceremony with her rendition of the Bond theme "<span class="mandelbrot_refrag"><a class="mandelbrot_refrag" href="http://www.reuters.com/video/2012/10/23/craig-bardem-premiere-skyfall?videoId=238639320&videoChannel=3&lc=int_mb_1001" style="color: #006e97; cursor: pointer; outline: none; text-decoration: none;">Skyfall</a></span>," which later won an Oscar for Best original Song. "This is amazing," a tearful Adele told the Oscar crowd.</div><span id="midArticle_4" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><div style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.6; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">Bassey has become synonymous with the Bond franchise, singing the theme songs not only for "Goldfinger," but 1971's "Diamonds are Forever" and 1979's "Moonraker."</div><span id="midArticle_5" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><div style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.6; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">The Welsh diva was preceded on the Oscars stage by actress Halle Berry, who appeared as Bond girl Jinx in the 2002 movie "Die Another Day," starring Pierce Brosnan as Bond.</div><span id="midArticle_6" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><div style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.6; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">"Tonight, we celebrate the 50th anniversary of <span class="mandelbrot_refrag"><a class="mandelbrot_refrag" href="http://www.reuters.com/video/2012/10/23/craig-bardem-premiere-skyfall?videoId=238639320&videoChannel=3&lc=int_mb_1001" style="color: #006e97; cursor: pointer; outline: none; text-decoration: none;">James Bond</a></span> in motion pictures," Berry said, adding that the music of the films "is as inextricably linked to Bond as the martini, exotic cars and Pussy Galore."</div><span id="midArticle_7" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><div style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.6; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">Halle, who won a Best Actress Oscar for "Monster's Ball" in 2001, was asked about her role as a Bond girl on the red carpet before Sunday's Oscars ceremony.</div><span id="midArticle_8" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><div style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.6; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">"I've not been more proud to be part of a franchise than that one," Berry said.</div><span id="midArticle_9" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><div style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.6; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">Connery went on to play the British secret service agent five more times after "Dr. No" until 1971's "Diamonds Are Forever."</div><span id="midArticle_10" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><div style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.6; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">English actor Sir Roger Moore embodied Bond seven times, including 1973's "Live and Let Die," 1983's "Octopussy" and 1985's "A View to Kill."</div><span id="midArticle_11" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><div style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.6; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">Actors George Lazenby, Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan also played the lead role.</div><span id="midArticle_12" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><div style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.6; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">Bond films have historically received only a handful of Oscar nominations, mainly within the technical or music categories.</div><span id="midArticle_13" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><div style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.6; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">This year, "Skyfall," starring <span class="mandelbrot_refrag"><a class="mandelbrot_refrag" href="http://www.reuters.com/video/2012/10/23/craig-bardem-premiere-skyfall?videoId=238639320&videoChannel=3&lc=int_mb_1001" style="color: #006e97; cursor: pointer; outline: none; text-decoration: none;">Daniel Craig</a></span> in his third appearance as Bond, landed five nominations including Best Cinematography, Best Original Song and Best Original Score.</div><span id="midArticle_14" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><div style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.6; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">(Editing by Sandra Maler and Mary Milliken)</div></div>

2013 Oscar Shirley Bassey Shirley Bassey leads Oscars 50th birthday tribute to James Bond

By Piya Sinha-Roy and Tim Reid LOS ANGELES  |  Mon Feb 25, 2013 12:04am EST (Reuters) - Dame Shirley Bassey earned a standing ovation at the...

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