The Essential Bond: The Authorized Guide to the World of 007 - Hardcover

Pfeiffer, Lee; Worrall, Dave

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0752224778 ISBN 13: 9780752224770

Publisher: Boxtree Ltd, 1999

Synopsis

This text is an in-depth guide to one of the most successful series of all time - James Bond. Since the 1962 premiere of the first 007 epic, "Dr No", five talented actors have brought James Bond to cinema screens: Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton and now Pierce Brosnan. Today, the 007 phenomenon is stronger than ever. In fact, it is estimated that over one quarter of the world's population has seen at least one James Bond film. Now fans can enter the world of 007 with this guide that examines the top secret details of each of the cinematic Bond missions. Inside this volume - which has been officially endorsed by the Bond film producers - you'll find facts and behind-the-scenes stories, as well as over 250 rare production photographs, cinema posters and product advertisements from the archives of Eon productions. It's all here: the missions, the gadgets, the vehicles, the legendary villains, the exotic locations and the even more exotic Bond girls who inhabit the James Bond universe. You can also meet the talented team of directors, writers, stunt men and technicians who have contributed to the success of the series. Additionally, in a chapter devoted to the legacy of James Bond, there is an overview of the thrillers and spoofs inspired by 007 over the years, as well as a fitting tribute to Mr Bond's literary father, Ian Fleming. With a critical overview of each of the films, as well as a wealth of rare archive material and information on international Bond collectables, this book is vital reading for armchair secret agents everywhere.

About this title

Product Description:

The authorised guide to the world of 007

Review:

For a crash course in Bondage from "No" to "Not Enough", there's no beating The Essential Bond. Almost 40 years of 'demoiselles and danger are brought together here in a 007 completists' dream that traces the films in chronological sequence from first to last through a critical introduction leading into descriptions of the assignment: The girls, the villains, the allies, the vehicles, the gadgets and weapons, the music, the marketing and merchandising and the box office.

Pfeiffer and Worrall have clearly done their homework. Bond fans will revel in the nostalgia of the early films, get blown away by the budgets and effects of the more recent outings and along the way, discover a few truths and dispel a few rumours about the cast and crew. The wealth of material is great. This is what makes the Bondophile tick; finding out where the name Kananga comes from, where the Diamonds Are Forever story involving Blofeld's kidnapping of Willard Whyte and hijacking of his empire was dreamt up (literally as it happens) and the truth about the Diana Rigg/George Lazenby feud as reported by the British press during filming of On Her Majesty's Secret Service which had Rigg intentionally eating garlic before their love scenes to irritate the new leading man.

The Essential Bond is beautifully presented and literally packed with rare stills and location shots--one of which settles the debate as to whether Ursula Andress was really naked in Dr No's shower. A final section presents Bond in a wider context with literary information, a discussion of the spy's effect on popular culture, an introduction to the Bond "family"--the Broccolis and other great names from the films--and a piece on the "other James Bonds" from cartoon and print. Readers will have to look elsewhere for material on Fleming's Bond--the complex and misunderstood agent of his original conception--but as a history of 007 on the silver screen, this leaves little to the imagination. In The Essential Bond, 007 is shaken, stirred and served up on a plate. --Iain Campbell

About this edition

• Publisher: Boxtree Ltd
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 0752224778
• ISBN 13: 9780752224770
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 204