On August 12, 1964, it was announced that James Bond creator Ian Fleming passed away at the age of 56.
Only 56 years old – reading it now over half a century later and it’s hard to comprehend his accomplishments and his overshadowing legacy.
Fleming was a giant. Even before he picked up a pen Ian Fleming had accomplished great things while serving England during WW2.
Eventually working for the Office of Naval Intelligence (as his alter ego James Bond would) Fleming was intimately involved in the espionage game during the height of the Second World War taking part in several operations from Spain to Greece – most notably Operation Mincemeat.
After the war Fleming would forge a very respectable career as a journalist, most notably for Reuters before his fateful vacation to Jamaica in 1952 (to take his mind off of his impending marriage) where he sat down to write the first of 13 Bond novels ‘Casino Royale’.
The literary and film world would never be the same again.
By 1961 Hollywood producers Albert R. “Cubby” Broccoli and Harry Saltzman had secured the rights to make the movies and had selected a young actor from Edinburg, Sean Connery, to play the part of 007.
Fleming would be closely involved with all three movie adaptations of his novels (Dr. No/From Russia With Love/Goldfinger) up until his tragically short life came to an end shortly before Goldfinger’s theatrical release.
Did you know at first Fleming felt Sean Connery was an overrated stuntman?
Did you also know after getting to know Connery, Fleming liked him so much he ended up putting Connery’s Scottish lineage and heritage into Bond’s actual back story in the novels?
Check out all the seasons of The Latch Key Kids Podcast especially, “Breaking Bond Episode I: My Two Dads” streaming now on Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, Stitcher, Audible, and Apple Podcasts.