UPDATE (8/3/08): THE BLURB ON AMAZON.CO.UK IS WRONG AND THERE IS NO INTRODUCTION BY LOIS CHILES, JUST THE ONE BY DAVID HEDISON. FLc APOLOGIZES FOR THE CONFUSION.
It has just come to my attention that the US edition of Titan Books’ The Paradise Plot will feature a brand new introduction by two-time Felix Leiter, David Hedison. It will not contain the introduction by Lois Chiles aka Dr. Holly Goodhead from Moonraker (1979) which was included in the UK edition released last month.
Due for release on Tuesday (July 8), the latest James Bond comic strip collection from Titan Books will contain The Paradise Plot as well as Deathmask. These stories haven’t been seen since their original publication in the Daily Star in the early 1980s.
The legend continues! Stand by for two more adventures with the world’s greatest and most famous secret agent, James Bond, as some of his most thrilling missions are collected for the first time ever in a deluxe collectors’ library edition! In this latest action-packed volume, Bond teams up with fellow 00 agent Suzi Kew once again on another sun-soaked escapade, The Paradise Plot. Not seen since its original publication in a British newspaper, this ultra rare adventure finally returns to print! This new, never-before-collected edition also features Lawrence and McLusky’s rarely seen story Deathmask! Plus a new introduction by David Hedison (Live and Let Die) and an exclusive feature on rare James Bond comics from around the world!
Visit Amazon.co.uk if you’re a hardcore collector that also wants the UK edition of The Paradise Plot for the region exclusive Lois Chiles introduction.
Discuss The Pardise Plot in thisthreadon the FelixLeiter.com Forums, the only place dedicated to the discussion of Felix Leiter on the Internet.
In the ’90’s, EON Productions’ political correctness deprived James Bond fans of seeing Pierce Brosnan’s 007 smoke a cigarette. In Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), Bond even described smoking as a “filthy habit,” a line that made Fleming purists shudder. Bond hasn’t smoked a cigarette onscreen since 1989’s Licence to Kill when we saw Timothy Dalton’s 007 light up a Lark.
Unfortunately, Daniel Craig’s 007 probably won’t light up in Quantum of Solace but it looks like Felix Leiter will! Take a look at the smoke coming from the bar counter in this screenshot that I extracted from the teaser trailer:
It’s unclear whether we’ll actually see Leiter (and/or Bond) puff on a cigarette in this scene or if we’ll just see smoke coming from an ash tray. Either way, I’m just happy for some implied smoking especially from Jeffrey Wright’s Felix Leiter, my personal favorite interpretation of the character!
Ian Fleming’s Commander James Bond and Captain Felix Leiter both smoked cigarettes. Bond preferred a blend of Balkan and Turkish tobacco made for him by Morlands of Grosvenor Street and Leiter preferred cigarettes made by the American company, Chesterfield.
Discuss this Quantum of Solace news in thisthreadon the FelixLeiter.com Forums, the only place dedicated to the discussion of Felix Leiter on the Internet.
As a veteran fan of Ian Fleming’s James Bond novels, I was enthralled to hear that Sebastian Faulks would be attempting to bring not only the literary Bond, but Fleming’s Bond back to life in Devil May Care, which was written and released to mark the centennial anniversary of Fleming’s birth. Fans had been promised the return of several memorable characters, including the SIS staff, René Mathis, and this site’s favorite, Felix Leiter. We’d also been promised a classic villain in the Fleming style, a luscious leading lady as only Fleming could conceive, and a lush travelogue full of suspense and excitement. The story would be taking place shortly after Fleming’s The Man with the Golden Gun in 1967. All was as it should be.
So, how was it?
While it is a good book overall, I’m afraid it isn’t the messianic continuation novel that many fans had built it up in their minds to be. Faulks (who has been given many well-deserved accolades for his work thus far) managed to reproduce Fleming’s writing style and tone quite well; however, the story feels like little more than a pastiche of former Fleming adventures. The plot centers on Dr. Julius (No?) Gorner and his plans to wreak havoc on Britain’s citizens by addicting as many as possible to heroin, thus discrediting England in the world community and plunging their culture into ruin. I liked the idea of the villain taking revenge on Britain for wronging him; I liked it better, though, when Hugo Drax did it in Moonraker. I also liked the tension-wracked tennis match in which Bond took on a cheating Gorner; I liked it better when it was the bridge match with Drax or the golf game with Goldfinger. Also, the ally in Tehran, Darius, was a rather obvious homage to Darko Kerim in almost every single way.
And the girl-she was an interesting character, with a name that played on the flower from which opium is derived (the Poppy); Again, a choice made with a good intention of giving tribute, but which came off as a lack of originality. What was original, though, was the full revelation of her role in the story. Well done.
One flaw that many Fleming fans have noted is that Faulks seemed to feel the need to hit all items on the “Fleming checklist”; that is, he had Bond in nearly every familiar situation previously introduced in the earlier novels (like placing hairs across doorways and taking hot/ice cold showers, or recalling situations in specific former adventures) as if to scream “It’s the same Bond! Honest!” Frankly, I believe he needed not been so heavy handed in his approach. Fleming fans will detect even more situations, characters, and places that obviously echo the original counterparts in the Fleming adventures.
Now, the question all Felix Leiter fans have been wondering…How was Felix handled?
While the characterization was done respectfully and brought back warm memories of Fleming’s lanky Texan, the details regarding Leiter’s maiming in Live and Let Die were completely wrong (I assume Faulks felt the need to recall these details for the benefit of readers who had never read Fleming). First, he said it was a hammerhead that maimed him. Fleming never alluded to the possibility of it having been a hammerhead, and even suggested that it might be a much more deadly species (EON Productions’ Licence To Kill conjectures a Great White shark). Second, Faulks says that it was the right arm and leg. With all due respect to Mr. Faulks, this is simply bad research. Fleming clearly stated in Diamonds Are Forever that it was the right arm and left leg. Third, Faulks gives the location as having been Miami. This isn’t even close. It had been in St. Petersburg, which is nowhere near Miami by any estimation. I was shocked to see such obvious discrepancies here, especially because this was intended to be the definitive continuation novel, set specifically in Fleming’s universe and told through his own voice.
While I was disappointed with this misstep, I was satisfied overall with Felix’s role in the story and his relationship with Bond. Much like the end of The Man with the Golden Gun, the reader gets the sense that these men are like brothers. I am thankful that Faulks chose to include him in the story.
All in all, Devil May Care left me feeling mostly satisfied. While I do wish he had chosen not to pay as much homage to Fleming’s characters and plots, I thoroughly enjoyed the story and found it to be the most satisfying continuation Bond novel I’ve read yet. Most readers will not have as many gripes about the lack of original details as the hardcore Fleming readers, and even the veteran literary fans will get swept up in the action whether they have reservations about the details or not. I would recommend to all fans to go ahead and purchase this one. And my advice to you readers out there-like Fleming’s stories, Devil May Care is best to read while either traveling or in the comfort of one’s own bed.
The Quantum of Solace teaser trailer is finally here! The following links will only have the trailer available for a few hours so watch it ASAP! Want to download the trailer to your computer? Click here.
Discuss the Quantum of Solace teaser in thisthreadon the FelixLeiter.com Forums, the only place dedicated to the discussion of Felix Leiter on the Internet.
Our friends at CommanderBond.net posted this YouTube video yesterday. It originally aired on the Dailies show on ReelzChannel and features new clips of James Bond (Daniel Craig), M (Judi Dench) and Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright)!
In the new footage, Leiter can be seen talking with Bond at a bar (possibly in Haiti). This “bar scene” isn’t news because FelixLeiter.com posted a video with a brief glimpse of the scene in March, however, this footage is from a different and much closer view.
Discuss this Quantum of Solace news in thisthreadon the FelixLeiter.com Forums, the only place dedicated to the discussion of Felix Leiter on the Internet.
Take a look at this Dr. No spoof ad John McCain’s campaign just put out. It doesn’t reference Felix Leiter but Jack Lord played Leiter in the 1962 film!
Discuss this Dr. No spoof in this thread on the FelixLeiter.com Forums, the only place dedicated to the discussion of Felix Leiter on the Internet.
Here’s a list of Raymond Benson’s upcoming appearances. Who is he? Well, from 1997 to 2002, Mr. Benson penned six James Bond novels, three novelizations, and three short stories including The Facts of Death and Doubleshot which feature Felix Leiter.
According to European Business Air News, Ocean Sky provided the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency jet featured in Quantum of Solace after resolving a few issues such as insurance.
Niki Rokni, director of sales and marketing for Ocean Sky, had convinced EON Productions at a series of meetings that the company would be the ideal partner but then, she says, the hard work began. “One of the major issues for us was insurance,” explained Rokni. “The value of the aircraft we provided was in excess of $190 million, more than the budget for the film. EON said they’d never dealt with a company whose products were worth more than their entire budget. It took a lot of working out, but we got there with just a few days before filming was due.”
Rokni has no doubts about the benefits of Ocean Sky being placed visibly in Quantum of Solace. “We are in an age when it is estimated that more than half the world’s population has seen a James Bond film,” she points out. “It’s the perfect association for us. We pride ourselves on offering elegance and cutting edge excellence, and this is all evident in the film. We could not be happier.”
In April, FelixLeiter.com confirmed that Quantum of Solace contains a scene featuring a CIA jet on a tarmac in Haiti with Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright) and a character called Gregg Beam (possibly played by an actor named David Harbour). Now we know that Ocean Sky is providing the jet seen in the following screenshot:
Discuss this Quantum of Solace news in this threadon the FelixLeiter.com Forums, the only place dedicated to the discussion of Felix Leiter on the Internet. Thanks to FLc Forums member ‘Felixdaman’ for the tip-off!
Two-time Felix Leiter, David Hedison, will be attending the Boston SuperMegafest 2008 on November 22-23, 2008. Richard Kiel aka Jaws from The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) and Moonraker (1979) will also be in attendance. For more information, visit the event’s official website or DavidHedison.com.
Boston Super Megafest 2008
Sheraton Framingham Hotel
1657 Worcester Rd.
Framingham, MA 01701
According to our friends at CommanderBond.net, 1971’s Diamonds Are Forever will be screened at the Billy Wilder Theater in Los Angeles, California on July 18, 2008 at 7:00 PM. There’s no cost to attend the screening, however, tickets are required and are available at the Billy Wilder Theater box office one hour prior to start time. Limit one ticket per person on a first come, first served basis and members receive priority seating (subject to availability).
Diamonds Are Forever, Sean Connery’s final official James Bond film, features Norman Burton as Felix Leiter and Jill St. John as Tiffany Case. It’s not Connery’s best Bond film but it features Felix Leiter so it gets respect in my book. Make sure to mark your calendar if you’re going to be in LA next month!
For further information, call 310-206-FILM (3456) or visit the official website.
Here’s a sexy picture of Tiffany Case (Jill St. John) for your viewing pleasure.
