Beyond Bond
007 creator Ian Fleming passes a century:
Ruwini Jayawardana
You can hardly find a person who had
not heard of the evergreen character of James Bond. So timeless is the
007 detective created by Ian Fleming that it had become every actor’s
dream to portray the role and every actress’s wish to become a ‘Bond
Girl’ today.
Fleming, the father of Bond, turned 102 this year. He was a British
author and journalist who was also employed as a detective for a span.
He won fame after chronicling the adventures of James Bond in 12 novels
and nine short stories. Having sold millions of copies worldwide, the
James Bond series tops the list as one of the best sellers of all time.
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Ian Fleming |
Having turned a new page in the genre of the detective stories,
Fleming’s success roots from his plots and characters which he developed
thinking out of the box.
A student of Durnford School in Dorset and several other schools in
the country, Fleming also attended the Royal Military Academy in
Sandhurst.
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The stamps launched to mark Ian’s 100th birth anniversary |
After an attempt to study languages at several universities, he
finally settled on joining the Reuters news agency as a sub editor. His
move to take on the position of an intelligence officer at the Naval
Intelligence Division (NID) changed his life. His work fueled the
background for his spy novels.
Initially Fleming’s novels were not popular in the US but tables
turned when President J F Kennedy included From Russia with Love in his
favourite book list. Sales shot up and James Bond became a household
name.
The first in the series in the Bond novel named Casino Royal which
was penned in 1953. Doctor No was the first to be made into a film which
hit the screens in 1962. So 20 Bond movies have seen the light of day
and many actors like Sean Connery, Roger Moore, Pierce Brosnan and
Daniel Craig had their breakthrough in 007’s role.
In 1961 Fleming, a heavy smoker and heavy drinker, suffered a heart
attack. He died at the age of 56 after another heart attack on the
morning of August 12, 1964. He was buried in the churchyard of
Sevenhampton village, near Swindon.
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The James Bond actors: Sean Connery, Roger Moore, Pierce Brosnan
and Daniel Craig |
Fleming’s 100th birth anniversary fell on May 28, 2008. Six British
stamps were launched by the UK postal department to mark this special
occasion. Images from book covers from Doctor No to From Russia with
Love were used for the stamps. These can be used in mail circulating
around the country as well as for air mail.
The Times also included Fleming in 14th place in their ranking of
‘The 50 greatest British writers since 1945’.
The latest ‘Bond’ news is that another Bond novel will be on the
shelves soon. Ian Fleming Publications had handed over this task to
Jeffery Denver. The book is yet to be titled but is referred to under
the code name Porject X. They hope to launch the book on Fleming’s birth
anniversary in 2011. |
