This article originally appeared on Complex.com
For a certain subset of males around the globe, James Bond is the pinnacle of masculinity. His style and swagger have long served as an exceedingly aspirational template since his creation in 1953 by novelist Ian Fleming. Fleming may have made Bond a household name, but Sir Thomas Sean Connery made Bond a legend.
Connery, who passed today at the age of 90, was everything you could want and imagine from a movie star. It’s overwhelmingly cliché to say that they don’t make movie stars like Connery anymore, but there’s often truth in well-worn phrases: Connery created the mold of a modern action star. His inherent magnetism, rugged bravado, effortless wit, endless sex appeal, and an overwhelming sense of style form a totality that’s hard to top—certainly by Bond standards, let alone by modern performers. Connery’s impact lingers in the edges of every action performance, whether intentional or otherwise, to this day.