Smernov

"I did not come here to be devoured by symbols of monarchy."

― Smernov^[src]

Smernov or Smirnov (Russian: Смирнов) was the fictional Head of the Soviet Secret Service, the "KGB". Portrayed by actor Kurt Kasznar, the character appeared in the 1967 parody spy film, Casino Royale.

Biography[]

We see Smernov and some other heads of intelligence in cars approaching a mansion. The park around it has lions, which Smernov baulks at.

Smernov appears at Sir James Bond's residence along with the heads of several major intelligence agencies - M of the British MI6, French Deuxième Bureau representative LeGrand, and American CIA representative Ransome. The Red Chinese are not at the meeting, although they feature later. Sir James was a legendary spy, who has been retired for some fifty years. All of the visitors implore Bond to come out of retirement to deal with SMERSH who have been eliminating agents: Bond spurns all their pleas.

When Bond continues to stand firm, his mansion is destroyed by a mortar attack at the orders of M, who himself is killed in the explosion, possibly with Smernov and LeGrand himself. His mansion destroyed, Bond has little choice but to take on the mission.

Trivia[]

Smirnoff is the name of a popular brand of vodka and possibly an injoke.
SMERSH has nothing to do with the KGB in this version and is in fact assassinating its agents, hence Smernov's visit to Bond.
The '67 Casino Royale here anticipates the east-west co-operation of later EON films. Smernov is clearly ideologically Communist, but he is willing to work with the west under certain conditions, much like the Soviets in The Spy who Loved Me, or the General Gogol character who heads up the KGB in several Bond films.
His hangdog expression is send up of Leonid Brezhnev who was running the Soviet Union at the time. A version of Brezhnev appeared in Octopussy.

Smernov

Contents

Biography[]

Trivia[]

Gallery[]

References[]

Fan Feed