Dinner Date With Sean Connery

“All people are capable of great things.” Grace Kelly

Dinner with Sean Connery at the L'Argentin restaurant in Monte Carlo

Set against the backdrop of medieval Italy amid the fierce conflict between the Guelphs and Ghibellines, The Tale of Two Friars is the gripping true story of Francesco Grimaldi, a noble warrior determined to reclaim his family's honor and secure a future for his people. After a devastating defeat forces the Guelphs to seek refuge atop the imposing Rock of Monaco, Francesco hatches an audacious plan to infiltrate the enemy stronghold.

Disguised as a humble Franciscan friar, Francesco and his loyal followers approach the castle with faith and determination. As tension mounts and the stakes rise, their daring struggle to overturn their oppressors succeeds. With courage in their hearts and a powerful legacy at risk, Francesco and his cousin Rainier I lead a stunning coup that forever changes the course of history.

A poignant tale of loyalty and sacrifice, the story of two friars is one of resilience, identity, and the extraordinary lengths one will go to for love and honor. The motto "Deo Juvante"—"With the Help of God"—rings true with the rise of the Grimaldi family and the enduring legacy that began on the Rock of Monaco.

This is the captivating true story of the Grimaldi family set in the Italian city states known today as the French Riveria or Côte d’ Azure. It offers a beautiful cinematic backdrop for a movie with the symbolism of their family coat of arms and the motto "Deo Juvante," offering a powerful visual and thematic anchor—if ever a film were made about this legacy-driven family whose dynasty has survived a seven century reign proving their resilience to the tides of war “ With the help of God”, and where they continue ruling today on The Rock of Monaco, where the    Palais Princier de Monaco sits high on a hill and once was a Genoese fortress said to be built in 1191.

1890 photo of the Prince’s Palace built as a fortress on the Rock of Monaco in 1191

Today, the House of Grimaldi is the ruling family of the Principality of Monaco. Founded in 1160 by Grimaldo Canella in Genoa, the house ascended to power in Monaco when Francesco Grimaldi seized control of the territory in 1297. The Grimaldi family has ruled the fairytale-like Principality for over 703 years. The current head is Prince Albert II (Albert Alexandre Louis Pierre Grimaldi), and he became Monaco’s ruler in 2005 following his predecessor and father, Prince Rainier, who stepped down due to illness.  Prince Albert’s life began at the Palace of Monaco on 14 March 1958, when Princess Grace (actress Grace Kelly) gave birth to the heir apparent to the throne. He was their second child following the birth of daughter Caroline. He was sandwiched between two sisters, with his younger sister Stéphanie born in 1965.

Princess Grace enriched Monaco with arts and culture throughout her reign while discreetly supporting numerous American performing, film, and TV artists. And in doing so, her influence turned Monaco into an elegant powerhouse through her fame. (I read somewhere that Marilyn Monroe was considered a suitress for the young visceral prince, but she didn’t pass muster when she believed Monaco was located on the continent of Africa.) As a Hollywood icon turned Princess of Monaco, Kelly’s grace and poise set a standard for elegance, which continues today as part of her legacy. Her journey began on the silver screen. Whereas a classy and refined film siren, her life took a significant trajectory detour when, while promoting the film To Catch A Thief at the Cannes Film Festival, she was scheduled to do a photoshoot in Monte Carlo when serendipitously she was introduced to Pierre Galante editor of Paris Match, and husband of Olivia De Havilland who together convinced her to meet the Prince and take a few photos. Theirs was a fairytale beginning. Ten months later, Prince Rainier lll and Grace Kelly were married.

My Mom was in love with Grace Kelly. When I was six years old, I remember she wanted to name my youngest sibling Grace, whom she was pregnant with. She was hoping for a girl, and when my brother was born, she named him Kelly. She had a plan for if the baby were to be a boy after all, but until he was born, I always called her pregnant belly Grace. That was one of my introductions to Grace Kelly, the other being when my six-year-old self occasionally saw this stunning beauty on TV. Had it not been for my mother's admiration, she would have passed my attention. My Mom kept magazines with her as the featured story, and one photo similar to this one of her walking with Prince Rainier was her favorite. Some of the publications were next to that shiny brochure advertising the Grand Opening of The Folies Bergere Show at the Tropicana Casino in 1959, which my parents attended, and I write about HERE in this article and talk about the nostalgia on my radio show, Retro Vegas Nights. Just like when my parents went off to Las Vegas, a place held in my imagination and a place I never thought in the wildest of my dreams, I’d be sharing the stage with showgirls featured on the brochure and even some of the biggest legends in entertainment in my future. Likewise, I never thought OR dreamed I would perform in a storybook theater called The Princess Grace Theater, named after my mother’s favorite actress. But even dreams you don't have come true, and a few decades later, I would find myself performing on The Princess Grace Theater. Here’s my story.

My mother’s favorite photo of Princess Grace and Prince Rainier lll in Monaco

Interior of The Princess Grace Theater. Courtesy of the SBM

The Princess earned the right to have the theater named after her because she put her heart and soul into its change and rebranded it based on her theatrical experiences, where it was previously called Théâtre des Beaux-Art. In doing so, her delicate touches opened up career-changing opportunities for countless performing artists worldwide through her dedication and love for the arts. Princess Grace supervised and completely redesigned the theatre’s interior design, acoustics, and facilities for artists.

Most often, the glamour is seen from the audience's perspective when visiting theaters. Go backstage, and quite frequently,. The illusion is broken when unfunctional dressing rooms and greenrooms are noticed. Most are pretty plain without aesthetic appeal. For instance, the illustrious Dolby Theater in Hollywood’s backstage and dressing areas are practical and uninspiring. When I performed there, I felt I was backstage at a local auditorium. Las Vegas was an exception, where at Bally’s, I thought I could live in mine; that’s true of Bally’s in Reno, where we had inherited Frank Sinatra’s dressing room for a long-term contract. However, Frank demanded the best of everything in a well-appointed dressing room. The dresser rooms at the Princess Grace Theater were not of that level. However, they still offered the performer a home away from home, where a peek behind the scenes showed guests well-appointed dressing rooms and a green room, which were more than just practical; they offered a place of peaceful relaxation before and after the shows. They certainly didn't compare to the luxurious lobby and theater, but they were tasteful and well-appointed because of Princess Grace’s understanding and empathy for the artist. As a performing artist, this detail spoke most about her passion and love for theatrical arts and the performers themselves. A testament to her interior beauty. Together with her husband, Prince Rainier, they turned the 514-acre large Principality into a luxurious, alluring, and glamorous stronghold.

In comparison, Randy‘s father farmed 600 acres at one time. 500 to 600 acres is significant for a farm but minuscule for a country. They were true cultural ambassadors to a magical land as a team.

I had often worked in Monte Carlo exclusively at famous The Sporting Club for two to four week runs during summer, before being invited to perform at The Princess Grace Theater. In later years we performed an illusion with Princess Stéphanie for an ABC TV Special called Champions of Magic. You can read about it here, and watch our performance of Artists Dream. The princess beautifully sang a song dedicated to her mother to one of our magic performances, which I write about in this previous article. I recall flying in on a private helicopter from the airport in Nice to Monte Carlo for a private gala show for top executives of the Volvo automobile corporation. It was a chance in a lifetime to get a picturesque look at this enchanting realm known for its stunning views of the azure Mediterranean Sea with its crystal-clear turquoise waters juxtaposed against the golden sands of the French Riviera. The coastline was dotted with lovely seaside shops and cafes with narrow, winding cobblestone streets, giving me a sense of charming intimacy and warmth. Gazing upwards, my eyes were filled with colorful buildings clinging to the cliffs. We flew past the Prince’s Palace, luxurious villas, and historic estates. It was an otherworldly visual experience. It spoiled me a little bit because transportation for my future visits was riding in private coach automobiles, but that had its own pleasures and visual feasts. However, the most significant part of Monte Carlo is that it is a walking city. You can walk anywhere and walk. I did. A lot of walking when entertaining at the famous Sporting Club, recently rebranded Sporting Monte Carlo. It is an opulent venue; I’ll intimately write about some of those experiences one day. However, I will focus on my two-week-long engagement at The Princess Grace Theater for this article.

Photo I captured from a helicopter of Monte Carlo. The Prince’s Palace situated on the Rock of Monaco in the background.

The Princess Grace Theater located on a hillside.

I was a bit reluctant to accept the invitation to perform in the annual show named the Monte Carlo Grand Prix of Magic, the thought-child of Princess Stéphanie, who has supported and shown her love for the magical arts and the SBM (SBM —Société des Bains de Mer is one of the biggest gambling and casino business in Europe and manage the luxury tourism market in Monaco. The publicly traded company has exclusive casino rights in Monaco and owns and runs the Casino de Monte-Carlo, Casino Café de Paris and many numerous more Monte Carlo hotels and resorts, including the famed Sporting Monte Carlo, where we often performed). It was a contest featuring some of the finest magicians in the world and voted on by a group of judges, including Princess Stéphanie herself and stars like Sean Connery. In my career in the 90s, I didn’t believe my performance would merit winning a contest. Our manager then thought it would be detrimental to our career if we performed. There is a risk when losing. So we negotiated a contract where we would headline the show but not be a part of the competition.

During our two-week-long engagements, the SBM scheduled many social events, including lunch at the Palace with Prince Rainier, where all the Grimaldi royals were present except Princess Caroline. All the judges were there, including Sean Connery, who I shyly spoke with for a moment or two during the pre-lunch soirée. I was as giddy as could be, And he and Princess Stéphanie were the only two big-name judges familiar to me. The other judges weren’t famous to the mainstream public, but they were influential and prominent people in the Monaco art and performing art world. The movers and shakers that help make everything happen. And they had names I couldn’t pronounce and had never heard of. But they possibly were more influential than Connery. I knew about their prestige from visiting Monte Carlo, so I was mindful of this when talking to them. This applied not just to the judges but also to many of the guests. Several targeted me for a private conversation, and after a short introduction, I tried to remember their names. Still, they never entered my deeper memory bank, and most of the time, they were quickly forgotten. It was a strange experience having extremely wealthy socialites approach me like I was a Beatle, but that’s how it is when you perform in Monte Carlo. There isn’t a middle class. There isn’t even an affluent class. There is only a super-super influential, wealthy class. I felt like I was in a Hollywood movie with James Bond. Never Say Never Again Part 2. We were filming on The French Riviera, and I was a Bond Girl, Lol! I tried to wake myself from this lucid dream, but it was reality.

The SBM were fabulous hosts as we went to different functions and parties during the day and special ones with a private guide. This European gambling Mecca was far different than the one I knew at my home back in Las Vegas, where, at the time, old mob hotels were imploding, making room for new ones. Monte Carlo represented the old, and Las Vegas was president of the new. They were two different worlds, and I was spinning around in both of them.

So, while in Monte Carlo performing a production of a TV show scheduled to tape later in Japan, I was staying in nearby Nice and asked to attend our show. So we had expected him to be in the audience and meet him after the show before our final gala dinner. It was the final performance of our run, and the contest results were to be announced. I sighed in relief, knowing we were not part of the contest. But unbeknownst to me, a junior jury was chosen to vote on their favorite act. And because it was not part of the official contest, they could vote for any performer. We won! I had no idea what was happening because all of the dialogue was in French, and although I can read French, I can’t understand French when I hear it. So when our names were called out, I had no idea what was happening. “Les gagnants sont The Pendragons”! We had just been honored with the highest award of the Monte Carlo Grand Prix of Magic. For it, we received a little bunny statue from a top hat created by a famous Dutch sculptor. The original is located in a museum in Monte Carlo. It is so cute, but my ex-husband and stage partner, Jonathan, have had it since our divorce. But I got all the signed Christmas cards from the Clintons. I would’ve preferred the statue, but I didn’t care at the time.

The show ended with Jonathan and me standing on stage holding our awards, and the judges behind us applauded our show and acclaim. I still wasn’t quite sure what was going on until it was explained to me later. Although I did not want to be part of the competition, it was an honor and an unexpected, delightful surprise to be given the award, especially with the producer of the Japanese TV show sitting in the audience.

After every show, there is a flurry of fast packing and organized chaos to get out of the theater. This was especially true following our last show at The Princess Grace Theater because we were expected to have dinner for one final celebration. So quickly, we got out of there to meet the TV producer. We couldn’t locate him; this was the analog age so that we couldn’t find him speedily with cell phones. But when we did, we discovered he had been refused entrance to our show because he wasn’t on a prominent list of guests. It was a mistake and mixup, and we felt terrible about it. But in the producer’s mind, we became somewhat more critical because of that weird denial by these elite billionaires. Due to our search for him, we arrived late for an elegant dinner at the famous L’Argentin restaurant at the Leows Hotel and Resort overlooking the Mediterranean Sea.

L’ Argentin Restaurant Monte Carlo, where I had dinner with Sean Connery

We raced to the restaurant and arrived winded and out of breath. Common to European dining traditions, mainly formal ones, couples are separated and seated with other partners. Hosts generally opt to mix seating so that each individual is paired with a partner who is not their significant other. This arrangement considers social dynamics, placing guests of varying backgrounds and interests together. This seating arrangement helps break down barriers and can lead to unexpected friendships or dialogues. So when the maître d’ separated as expected and I was still breathing hard from the run, I followed him to my seat, worrying about the producer. Imagine my shock when I was seated next to Sean Connery?!? I was thinking, “Holy Something!” Lol! There’s always that nervousness that builds up under your armpits in such situations. This was my dinner partner for the night. I felt like I was in that James Bond movie e, Part Two. My surprise must have registered with Sir Sean Connery because he quickly defused my nervousness by greeting me and pouring a glass of champagne for me. He said a toast to me and congratulated me on our show. Then I looked up, and seated right across from Sean Connery was Prince Albert ll, now the current ruler of Monaco. Although I was introduced to a man and the lady directly across from him on my ride, I don’t remember their names. My only concentration was not to choke on food or do something stupid. And the meaning was delicious if you are a steak lover like me. Some of the very best food I’ve enjoyed in my life. Lol! But then, after our toast, Connery turned to me, and we mostly talked about fitness and bodybuilding throughout dinner. He was mainly fascinated by that subculture rather than magic. I did tell him I felt like I was in a James Bond movie. His response to me is I should be in a James Bond movie. I loosened up after my glass of champagne and a few glasses of wine. Later, during the dinner, Prince Albert and those around us joined our conversation, which centered around world events. Dinner in Europe can last until well after midnight; this one was no different. So, there was plenty of time for Sean Connery to make a lasting impression on me. Towards the end of dinner, Sean Connery left for the men’s room, and when he got back, he described how he’d almost gotten into a scuffle with a guy aggressively confronting him about his Bond role. He said it happened often because strangers recognized him and saw him as James Bond instead of just an actor out for the evening.

Every good time comes to a close, and Jonathan fetched me when Sean Connery’s wife Micheline Roquebrune retrieved him. I was introduced to her and thanked her for a lovely evening with her husband. She was an enjoyable lady with a great sense of humor who acted as his protector. After being thanked by me, she said, “When I first met Sean, I didn't know how big of a star he was but immediately felt an affinity with him.” I, of course, knew he was a big star when I sat next to him, but my starstruck self quickly dissipated when he presented himself as a regular dude. Anyone could feel comfortable in his presence. Jonathan and I walked out with them. We had it to our hotel room at the Loews and held hands. We watched them go…taking their own fairy tale legacy to shine bright in another place.

VIRTUAL TOUR OF MONTE CARLO

Levitating backstage with other performers