Deeds: Lewiston man's jet boats get shaken and stirred in Bond films

The owner of Riddle Marine, Inc., in Lewiston has not started wearing suave dinner jackets to work at his custom boat shop.

Nor has he begun introducing himself to customers as, "Riddle, Doug Riddle."

But there's a good chance the 56-year-old husband and father of four will sip a vodka martini after celebrating tonight's premiere of "Quantum of Solace."

"Shaken, not stirred," he says coolly.

Idaho may seem like the last place to find 007's secret weapon, but for the second time, Riddle Marine is it. Riddle's company made 15 jet boats for 1999's James Bond film "The World is Not Enough." The company built six boats - four jet boats, two crew boats - for "Quantum."

Riddle got into the Bond business by chance. Another Lewiston boat manufacturer recommended his company back in '99. Riddle wound up spending five months in London training stunt men, repairing boats and exchanging pleasantries with actor Pierce Brosnan.

The honeymoon was over this time. For "Quantum," Riddle worked 33 days straight in Colon, "probably the worst city in Panama," he says with a laugh. "It's like slums. I think in our contract we weren't even allowed to go out into the city because we might not come back."

Riddle rubbed shoulders with actor Daniel Craig but didn't really meet him, he says. Mostly, Riddle spent 12 to 18 hours a day trying to keep the stunt crew from sinking his high-performance watercraft to the bottom of the ocean.

"On the very last day of filming, I was just praying they'd keep running," he says.

Riddle chuckles when he considers the meticulous care put into making the jet boats: "We're all worried about scratches and this and that." After the boats were shipped to Panama, Riddle was flown in - first-class - to find that the special effects department had bludgeoned them with hammers and bats for two days.

"They couldn't even hold their arms up anymore after beating those boats to pieces," he says.

Riddle says it was fascinating to see the different ways each Bond movie was filmed. The "Quantum" set was a breakneck-speed affair, much like the movie itself.

"It was kind of like nobody knew what was going on until the last second," he says, "and then all hell broke loose. Go, go go!

"These (boats) were destroyed a lot in this new movie - a lot more than the last movie, I'll tell you. This new movie, everything's totally realistic. There's no ramps. If they're going to drive one boat over the other one, they just aim at it and go. ... These guys are animals."

Riddle says he didn't cringe at the carnage.

"I want to see them destroy (the boats)," Riddle says. "It doesn't hurt a bit, as long as I get paid for them. And I want to see how tough they are, because they are amazingly resilient. It's amazing how they can take so much abuse and keep on going."

James Bond has attracted a higher-end clientele to Riddle Marine, which remains gratefully small and makes about 25 boats a year, Riddle says. He estimates nine jet boat makers are based in Lewiston, which, along with Medford, Ore., is the jet boat capital of the United States. Last summer, he says, Lewiston exported about $3 million in boats per month.

Riddle is paid "very well" for the Bond boats, he says. And even if it's "pretty cool" working on Bond movies, watching Craig hustled around the "Quantum" set helped temper any acting aspirations of his own. Still, there's a scene when 007 roars away from a pier without untying the rope. Riddle was driving that jet boat, he says, even if you don't actually see him.

"It's one second," Riddle says good-naturedly. "I don't think you could stop the DVD fast enough to get that part."

ENTERTAINMENT NOTES

Ex-Boisean John Nemeth keeps racking up blues accolades. After a recent appearance on "A Prairie Home Companion" with Elvin Bishop, Nemeth won Best New Artist Debut Recording and Sean Costello Rising Star Award at the Illinois Blues Blast Music Awards, which took place Nov. 2 at Buddy Guy's Legends in Chicago.

Finally, an excuse for an Idaho guy to watch "Ugly Betty" without fear of being caught: Boise producer Heather Rae's next film, "American Tragic," will feature "Betty" star America Ferrera.

It's rally time, country fan! Eagle singer-songwriter Kayleigh Jack has advanced to the third round, aka sweet 16, of Country Music Television's annual "Music City Madness" unsigned talent competition. It took 4.6 million online votes to narrow the field from 64 contestants; a wave of home-state love could keep the ball rolling for Jack. Link to the competition from www.KayleighJack.com, watch her home video for the song "Stuffed Animals," and vote.

Michael Deeds co-hosts "The Other Studio" at 9 p.m. Sundays on 94.9 FM "The River." This week: The best James Bond movie songs.