Sean Connery passed away at the age of 90 – a great actor and the best of all who played James Bond.

The other films I knew him from were Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and The Untouchables – but growing up, I knew Connery best from the bit part he played at the end of Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves as King Richard. He was only on screen for a short time, but I watched that movie so often as teen, that was my first real exposure to him as an actor.

However, his portrayal of James Bond defined the 007 character and the film series like no one playing the part since has. Fans of the 007 series argue over which Bond films are the best, but there isn’t much of a debate over which actor played and defined the part best. It was Sean Connery without a doubt.

While the case can be made that Pierce Brosnan and the GoldenEye movie and video game took the popularity of the Bond franchise to new heights and brought in a whole new generation of younger fans (myself included), and while all the actors who have played 007 are celebrated for what they brought to the role, Connery remains untouchable in his portrayal of Bond, and probably always will be.

A legendary actor who will be missed.