Sean Connery returned to the role of James Bond in 1971 in "Diamonds Are Forever" after George Lazenby filled the role in 1969. Roger Moore succeeded Connery in 1973 with an adaptation of Ian Fleming's "Live and Let Die" which was the most successful of his Bond films in terms of admissions. "Live and Let Die" was followed by an adaptation of "The Man with the Golden Gun" in 1974, which at the time garnered the lowest box office taking of any Bond film before it. After its release Harry Saltzman co-owner of Danjaq with Albert R. Broccoli sold his half to United Artists causing a three-year gap until the next Bond film, the longest gap since the start of the franchise in 1962. The series picked up again in 1977 with "The Spy Who Loved Me" and ended the decade with "Moonraker" in 1979, which was the highest grossing Bond film (not adjusting for inflation) of all time until "GoldenEye" in 1995.