# Has There Ever Been a Real-Life James-Bond-Style Villain? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 6, 2006, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-real-life-james-bond-style-villain/379304 "2006-11-06T16:13:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2006, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-real-life-james-bond-style-villain/379304/1 "2006-11-06T16:13:49Z")
If we define a “James-Bond-Style Villain” as someone who; [ul] [li]Has access to a means of intimidating and/or extorting governments, world bodies (the U.N., for example), banks and/or finanical institutions, etc. OR who _purports_ to have access to such a means and does so as a means of intimidating and/or extorting.[/li][li]As examples, such means could include military weapons, potentially devastating technology, and chemical/biological agents.[/li][li]Acts on his own. IOW, is not a member of a government or extra-governmental body (or IS such a member but is doing his business without mandate from the body of which he’s a member); nor is he acting by commanding, or because he is commanded by, a government’s military.[/li][li]Attempts to extort money or gain power through his means.[/li][/ul] If this is how we define our terms, then has there ever been such a person in recent, say post WWII, history? ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2006, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-real-life-james-bond-style-villain/379304/2 "2006-11-06T16:21:12Z")
I think we should also specify that the villain has to attempt to extort on a somewhat large scale. Someone simply taking a hostage, or hijacking a plane, in exchange for ransom or whatever, doesn’t cut it. ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2006, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-real-life-james-bond-style-villain/379304/3 "2006-11-06T16:23:39Z")
Osama bin Laden and Bill Gates comes to mind. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2006, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-real-life-james-bond-style-villain/379304/4 "2006-11-06T16:27:00Z")
Saddam Hussein also probably fulfills (fulfilled) the given criteria. ---
**Author:** ![muttrox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a8b319/32.png) [@muttrox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muttrox)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2006, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-real-life-james-bond-style-villain/379304/5 "2006-11-06T16:28:46Z")
Hussein is obviously a member of a government. Bin Laden does not act on his own, he is one part of a large global movement. I assume Bill Gates was tongue-in-cheek. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2006, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-real-life-james-bond-style-villain/379304/6 "2006-11-06T16:50:25Z")
The history of Piracy is full of examples of Pirate Fleets growing in poer to the point where they threaten legitimate governments. Ditto with large-scale bandit gangs. China has had a particularly bad problem with this, as I recall. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2006, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-real-life-james-bond-style-villain/379304/7 "2006-11-06T16:55:03Z")
[A.Q. Khan](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdul_Qadeer_Khan). > [@](#): > > In January 2004, he confessed to having been involved in a clandestine international network of nuclear weapons technology proliferation from Pakistan to Libya, Iran and North Korea. On February 5, 2004, the President of Pakistan, General Pervez Musharraf, announced that he had pardoned Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan. The man is a national hero in Pakistan. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2006, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-real-life-james-bond-style-villain/379304/8 "2006-11-06T17:02:19Z")
The resources needed for those kinds of activities are only available to governments (well, if Bill Gates went nuts he could probably pull it off, or a couple of oil-rich Middle-East princes). If there had been someone like that since WWII you would have heard of him. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Who](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Doctor\_Who](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Who)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2006, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-real-life-james-bond-style-villain/379304/9 "2006-11-06T17:11:55Z")
[QUOTE=muttrox] Bin Laden does not act on his own, he is one part of a large global movement. [/QUOTE] I wouldn’t think this is a disqualifier from being a Bond villian. See [SPECTRE.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SPECTRE) I would agree that Obl is a good choice. Also, maybe A.Q. Khan, who led a global network of nuclear proliferation. And there you go - on preview, spoke- beat me to it. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2006, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-real-life-james-bond-style-villain/379304/10 "2006-11-06T17:24:53Z")
OOOH! The Colombian Cartels seriously threatened the governments of Colombia & several other nations by subversion from within. The possibility of a Government-In-Hiding was occasionally refered-to as a possibility. Very Bond-Villain-ish. ---
**Author:** ![lexan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/73ab20/32.png) [@lexan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lexan)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2006, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-real-life-james-bond-style-villain/379304/11 "2006-11-06T18:31:09Z")
Do zany accoutrements count toward Bond villain status? Because I’ve always felt that living in a giant tent and having an elite corps of sexy female bodyguards qualified Gaddafi as the most Bond villainesque of contemporary dictators. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2006, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-real-life-james-bond-style-villain/379304/12 "2006-11-06T19:32:30Z")
[Mad Scientist thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=388391&highlight=mad+scientist) My topic was a bit more narrowly focused: O.B.L. isn’t a scientist by any stretch (he is probably mad tho) but otherwise he fits the Bond villiain trope. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2006, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-real-life-james-bond-style-villain/379304/13 "2006-11-06T19:35:50Z")
[QUOTE=muttrox] Hussein is obviously a member of a government. Bin Laden does not act on his own, he is one part of a large global movement. I assume Bill Gates was tongue-in-cheek. [/QUOTE] I was going to say that Hussen still qualified because I don’t believe he was acting on a mandate from the people when he used artillery on them, but upon re-reading the OP, I saw the bit about not being a military leader, so he doesn’t really qualify as a villain, I guess. ---
**Author:** ![wevets](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9a140/32.png) [@wevets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wevets)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2006, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-real-life-james-bond-style-villain/379304/14 "2006-11-06T22:51:02Z")
What about large corporate entities that threaten/intimidate/replace governments? United Fruit, IT & T, Hearst and some other corporations have wielded such power that they were able to topple third-world governments, especially Latin American ones, and/or heavily influence the actions of the U.S. This may not fit in well with the OP since the examples are often pre-WWII, and these corporations often used the military power and technology of governments to achieve their aims, rather than going it on their own. Seems like it’s easier to say “Hey, it’d be a good idea for the government to fight _him_” rather than to build up your own private army and secret weapons to fight _him_. ---
**Author:** ![Valgard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/7feea3/32.png) [@Valgard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Valgard)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2006, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-real-life-james-bond-style-villain/379304/15 "2006-11-06T23:45:35Z")
[QUOTE=wevets] United Fruit, IT & T, Hearst and some other corporations have wielded such power that they were able to topple third-world governments, especially Latin American ones, and/or heavily influence the actions of the U.S. [/QUOTE] The idea of “James Bond Vs. United Fruit” just about makes me wet my pants laughing. ---
**Author:** ![ambushed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3bc359/32.png) [@ambushed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ambushed)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2006, 9:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-real-life-james-bond-style-villain/379304/16 "2006-11-07T09:10:33Z")
[QUOTE=spoke-] [A.Q. Khan](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdul_Qadeer_Khan). [/QUOTE] [Jon Stewart][J. T. Kirk] **Khan!! Khan!!** [/J. T. Kirk][/Jon Stewart]