My Philly Daily On Crime: Through A Thriller Writer’s Eye: A Look Back At the Journalism Of Ian Fleming, The Creator Of James Bond

Philly Daily ran my On Crime Column today on the collected journalism of Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond.

You can read the column via the link below or the following text:

Paul Davis: Seeing through a thriller-writer’s eye – Philly Daily

I recently saw a film trailer for an upcoming film called Fortitude. In the WWII spy thriller, actor Art Malik portrays the late Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond, when the future thriller writer was a WWII naval intelligence officer. Commander Ian Fleming served as the personal assistant to the director of British Naval Intelligence, Admiral Godfrey.  

The film is about an actual WWII mission called Operation Fortitude, a deception campaign that convinced Nazi Germany that the D-Day invasion would target Pas-de-Calais rather than Normandy.

Nicolas Cage portrays Dusko Popov, a spy who claimed Ian Fleming based James Bond on him. But Fleming said James Bond was based on several military commandos and intelligence officers he knew during the war, with much of his own personality added to the fictional secret agent. Fleming also passed on to Bond his personal passions, women, fast cars, travel, adventure, fine dining, drinking, smoking, golf and card games.

This is the third wartime espionage film in recent years that has an actor portraying Commander Fleming. He was also portrayed in Operation Mincemeat and A Spy Among Friends.

Sans fist and gunfights, it seems to me that Ian Fleming was far more interesting than his world-famous fictional creation.  

As I’ve noted here before, I’ve been an Ian Fleming aficionado since I was a kid in the early 1960s and saw the first two James Bond films, Dr. No and From Russia With Love. I’ve read all of Ian Fleming’s novels and short stories, and much of his journalism.

In addition to the Bond thrillers, Ian Fleming also wrote a true crime book called The Diamond Smugglers, and he published a collection of his travel pieces that appeared in the London Sunday Times called Thrilling Cities. I carried the slim paperback book with me while serving in the U.S. Navy on an aircraft carrier during the Vietnam War, and later on a Navy tugboat at the U.S. nuclear submarine base at Holy Loch, Scotland. I visited many of the cities that Fleming covered a decade earlier in the book.

I have also read some of his re-published journalism pieces over the years, and I’ve always found them to be most interesting. Fleming said he always saw life through a thriller writer’s eyes, so I was pleased to read The Talk of the Devil: The Collected Writings of Ian Fleming.

“A fascinating anthology of rarely seen journalism and other writing by Ian Fleming. The collection includes articles spanning Fleming’s career as an author, encompassing reviews for the Sunday Times, Second World War documents, travel journalism, correspondence with Raymond Chandler and much more,” stated IanFleming.com. “The volume also includes two newly unearthed articles that have not been available for over half a century and two rarely published early works of fiction.”

HarperCollins called the book a fascinating literary collection of rarely seen journalism and other writings by Ian Fleming, author of the James Bond series.

“Ian Fleming was best known for bringing to life the legendary character of James Bond, one of the most beloved and enduring icons of our time, but he was perhaps even more interesting than his creation,” HarperCollins notes. “His career in Naval Intelligence and extensive travels around the world gave Fleming a keen eye and the authority to write on a wide range of topics beyond Bond’s adventures.

This collection contains a selection of journalism and other writings by Fleming, covering his wartime experiences, reflections on crime and espionage, and the process of writing his novels, among other topics. Readers will feel like they are right beside Fleming, immersed in his world as he works to meet the deadline for his next Bond novel, or participates in a mortifying golf tournament, or befriends an octopus in his beloved Jamaica. A black-and-white photo insert gives dimension to the man behind the myth, bringing life to his words and providing a unique glimpse into Fleming’s world.

This revealing collection of his own words paints a portrait of a man even more fascinating than his creation.

• Naval Intelligence Insights: Go beyond the fiction with Fleming’s own accounts of his career in intelligence, offering a glimpse into the real-world inspiration for 007.
• The Writing of James Bond: Learn about Fleming’s creative process as he works to meet a deadline for his next iconic novel from his beloved home in Jamaica.
• Wartime Journalism: Read firsthand accounts and sharp-eyed observations from Fleming’s extensive wartime experiences and global travels.
• A Life of Adventure: From mortifying golf tournaments to befriending an octopus, discover the personal stories and private moments of a truly remarkable life.”

The book offers Commander Ian Fleming’s memo to General William “Wild Bill” Donovan, who was the head of America’s WWII Office of Strategic Servies (OSS), the forerunner to the CIA. Fleming’s memo suggests how Donovan should establish an intelligence service based on British naval intelligence.   

The book also includes Fleming’s Royal Navy report of the Dieppe Raid. Stationed aboard a Royal Navy destroyer off the coast of France, Fleming watched the disastrous raid through binoculars in August of 1942. Called Operation Jubilee, the plan called for an amphibious landing at Dieppe. Commander Fleming’s account of the failed raid reads like a thriller.

Ian Fleming’s writing on crime, espionage, war and various other subjects makes for fascinating reading.

So, if one is a fan of the James Bond films and/or the Bond novels, one should read Talk of the Devil to learn more about Ian Fleming, Bond’s creator.

Paul Davis’s On Crime column appears here each week. He is also a contributor to Counterterrorism magazine. 

Note: You can also read my Counterterrorism magazine piece on Ian Fleming's wartime experience via the link below:

Paul Davis On Crime: My Piece On The 30 Assault Unit, The British WWII Commando Group Created By Ian Fleming, The Creator Of James Bond

A Look Back At The 30 Assault Unit, The British WWII Commando Group Created By Royal Navy Commander Ian Fleming, The Creator Of James Bond

Back in 2011 Counterterrorism magazine ran my piece on Ian Fleming and the British commando group he created in World War II.

Before he sat down at his desk at his Jamaican villa Goldeneye in 1952 and wrote the classic James Bond thrillers, Ian Fleming served as a Royal Navy intelligence officer during World War II.

Commander Fleming served as the personal assistant to the Director of British Royal Naval Intelligence and one of Fleming's accomplishments during the war was the creation of a naval intelligence-commando group called the 30 Assault Unit. 

You can read my piece above and below:

  

Note: You can click on the above to enlarge. 

On This Day In History Ian Fleming, The Creator Of James Bond, Was Born

On this day in history the late, great thriller writer Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond, the world’s most famous fictional spy, was born. 

He died of a heart attack at age 56 in 1964. 

I have been an Ian Fleming aficionado since I was a teenager. 

As History.com notes, Ian Lancaster Fleming was born into a well-to-do family in London on May 28, 1908.

"As an adult, he worked as a foreign correspondent, a stockbroker and a personal assistant to Britain’s director of naval intelligence during World War II–experiences that would all provide fodder for his Bond novels. The series of novels about the debonair Agent 007, based in part on their dashing author’s real-life experiences, spawned one of the most lucrative film franchises in history.  

"The first Bond book, Casino Royale, was published in 1953. In all, Fleming wrote 12 novels and two short story collections about Agent 007, which together sold more than 18 million copies. According to The New York Times: “Bond himself, Fleming said, was ‘a compound of all the secret agents and commandos I met during the war,’ but his tastes– in blondes, martinis ‘shaken, not stirred,’ expensively tailored suits, scrambled eggs, short-sleeved shirts and Rolex watches–were Fleming’s own. But not all the comparisons were ones the author liked to encourage. Bond, he said, had ‘more guts than I have’ as well as being ‘more handsome. 

"The first Bond film, Dr. No, was released in 1962; it starred the Scottish actor Sean Connery in the title role. Connery played Bond in six films altogether; From Russia With Love (1963) and Goldfinger (1964) were the only ones made during Fleming’s lifetime. Since that time, five other actors—George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig—have played the superspy in some two dozen films from EON Productions.

Note: You can read three of my online Crime Beat columns on Ian Fleming and my Counterterrorism magazine piece on Commander Fleming in WWII via the below links:  

Paul Davis On Crime: WWII's reat Deception Plan: My Crime Beat Column On Ian Fleming And 'Operation Mincemeat'

Paul Davis On Crime: My Crime Beat Column: The Ian Fleming and James Bond Phenomenon

Paul Davis On Crime: My Crime Beat Column: A Look Back At Ian Fleming's Iconic James Bond Character  

Paul Davis On Crime: My Piece On The 30 Assault Unit, The British WWII Commando Group Created By Ian Fleming, The Creator Of James Bond

                                                      

                      

On This Day In History Ian Fleming, Former WWII British Naval Intelligence Officer, Journalist And Author Of The James Bond Thrillers, Died

On this date in 1964 Ian Fleming, former WWII naval intelligence officer, journalist and author of the James Bond thrillers, died. He was 56.

I became an Ian Fleming aficionado when I was a pre-teen in the early 1960s after watching the late, great Scot actor Sean Connery portray Ian Fleming’s iconic character James Bond in the first two Bond films, Dr. No and From Russia With Love.

Watching the two great cinematic thrillers led me to join a book club and receive the introductory offer of a 9-volume set of Ian Fleming’s novels, which were the first nine books in my now quite extensive library. 

Reading the first two Fleming novels, I was pleased to discover that the novels were darker and more complicated that the films.  

A short time later, I heard on the radio in my father's car that Ian Fleming had died.   

Years later, in the early 1980s, I was thrilled to spend a week with my wife at Fleming's villa Goldeneye in Jamaica, where he wrote all of the James Bond thrillers.   

As History.com notes, Ian Fleming led an interesting, if all too short, life: 

On August 12, 1964, the British author and journalist Ian Fleming, creator of James Bond, the world’s most famous fictional spy, dies of a heart attack at age 56 in Kent, England. 

Fleming’s series of novels about the debonair Agent 007, based in part on their dashing author’s real-life experiences, spawned one of the most lucrative film franchises in history. Ian Lancaster Fleming was born into a well-to-do family in London on May 29, 1908. As an adult, he worked as a foreign correspondent, a stockbroker and a personal assistant to Britain’s director of naval intelligence during World War II–experiences that would all provide fodder for his Bond novels. 

You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:

James Bond creator Ian Fleming dies - HISTORY 

You can also read my Counterterrorism magazine piece on Ian Fleming's war and two of my Crime Beat columns on Ian Fleming via the below links:

Paul Davis On Crime: My Piece On The 30 Assault Unit, The British WWII Commando Group Created By Ian Fleming, The Creator Of James Bond

Paul Davis On Crime: My Crime Beat Column: A Look Back At Ian Fleming's Iconic James Bond Character

Paul Davis On Crime: My Crime Beat Column: The Ian Fleming and James Bond Phenomenon

 

Revealed: Ian Fleming’s Orders To D-Day Spies

Jack Blackburn at The Times in London offer a piece that reveals the orders issued to the WWII British intelligence group 30 Assault Unit for the D- Day invasion by Royal Navy Commander Ian Fleming, the future creator of James Bond (seen in the above photo at Royal Naval Intelligence HQ). 

You can read the piece via the below link or the below text:

Revealed: Ian Fleming’s orders to D-Day spies (thetimes.com)  

When troops landed on D-Day, some had an ulterior mission. Most were aimed at liberating nearby settlements but GCHQ has uncovered orders issued by the creator of 007 to a covert commando.

The listening service’s historians have found and released the orders that Ian Fleming — who would go on to write the James Bond thrillers — signed and issued to 30 Assault Unit, the covert unit he established to conduct intelligence operations during the Second World War.

In a highly detailed briefing, Fleming directed the men to go to various locations in France and elsewhere to find “items of immediate operational importance in the prosecution of the war against Germany”. These items included material relating to the Enigma code.

 

There was also a note about “new weapons or devices” that the Germans might have been developing. The desired intelligence items are listed as sufficiently important that they justified special operations and casualties.

The documents are testament to the thoroughness of British intelligence-gathering. At some points, the men are directed to individual rooms or even objects where the sensitive material was expected to be found.

For instance, one document tells the men: “It is reported that the secret books are kept in a light metal chest in an office in the [U-boat] pens: the door is marked only with the name ‘Oberschreibersmaat Fritz Frank’ without reference to his employment.”

In the Second World War, the role of 30AU (or Number 30 Commando) was to go ahead of the Allied forces and then behind enemy lines. Throughout the conflict, they performed vital work in different theatres of war in securing Nazi codebooks, ciphers and battle orders.

On D-Day, they landed on Juno and Utah beaches and proceeded inland; five were killed and 20 were wounded near Sainte-Mère-Église. It had been known that one of their targets was a radar station at Douvres-la-Délivrande, which held out for 11 days. The commandos were also charged with examining suspected V1 rocket sites. However, it now appears that they may have had many more targets.

 

The documents, marked “Top Secret” and “Bigot” (British invasion of German occupied territories), say that the men are to gather “All code books, cyphers and documents relating to signals, radar and communications: the ‘spools’ [wheels], junction boxes and indications of settings used in connection with the German ‘ENIGMA’ cyphering machines.”

 

The targets are listed in numerous French sea and river ports, such as Nantes, Bordeaux, Boulogne and Dunkirk, as well as targets in other countries along the north European coast.  How far they got with this list is not clear. It is known that they took part in the liberation of Cherbourg in June before racing toward the ports at Rennes and Brest in August. They then executed a series of operations in Le Havre and Dieppe. All those places appear on the list, and perhaps yielded vital intelligence for later in the war.

Whether the intelligence was as pinpoint accurate as it appeared remains to be seen, and it seems that Fleming and his colleagues had their doubts. They said the intelligence should be graded no higher than C, making it fairly reliable. The report is dated April 15, 1944, but there was a hope that corroboration would occur during the invasion

“Interrogation of prisoners in the field and up-to-date aerial photographs will probably be the only reliable cross-checks,” it said.  

Note: You can also read my Counterterrorism magazine piece on Ian Fleming and the 30 Assault Unit via the below link: 

Paul Davis On Crime: My Piece On The 30 Assault Unit, The British WWII Commando Group Created By Ian Fleming, The Creator Of James Bond

And you can read my Washington Times On Crime column on the new Ian Fleming biography via the below link:

Paul Davis On Crime: Ian Fleming: The Complete Man: My Washington Times 'On Crime' Column On Nicholas Shakespeare, The Author Of The New Biography Of The Creator Of James Bond 

On This Day In History Ian Fleming, The Creator Of James Bond, Was Born

 Yesterday was the birthday of the late, great thriller writer Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond, the world’s most famous fictional spy.

He died of a heart attack at age 56 in 1964. 

As History.com notes, Ian Lancaster Fleming was born into a well-to-do family in London on May 28, 1908.

"As an adult, he worked as a foreign correspondent, a stockbroker and a personal assistant to Britain’s director of naval intelligence during World War II–experiences that would all provide fodder for his Bond novels. The series of novels about the debonair Agent 007, based in part on their dashing author’s real-life experiences, spawned one of the most lucrative film franchises in history.  

"The first Bond book, Casino Royale, was published in 1953. In all, Fleming wrote 12 novels and two short story collections about Agent 007, which together sold more than 18 million copies. According to The New York Times: “Bond himself, Fleming said, was ‘a compound of all the secret agents and commandos I met during the war,’ but his tastes– in blondes, martinis ‘shaken, not stirred,’ expensively tailored suits, scrambled eggs, short-sleeved shirts and Rolex watches–were Fleming’s own. But not all the comparisons were ones the author liked to encourage. Bond, he said, had ‘more guts than I have’ as well as being ‘more handsome. 

"The first Bond film, Dr. No, was released in 1962; it starred the Scottish actor Sean Connery in the title role. Connery played Bond in six films altogether; From Russia With Love (1963) and Goldfinger (1964) were the only ones made during Fleming’s lifetime. Since that time, five other actors—George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig—have played the superspy in some two dozen films from EON Productions."

You can read three of my Crime Beat columns on Ian Fleming via the below links:  

Paul Davis On Crime: WWII's Great Deception Plan: My Crime Beat Column On Ian Fleming And 'Operation Mincemeat'

Paul Davis On Crime: My Crime Beat Column: The Ian Fleming and James Bond Phenomenon

Paul Davis On Crime: My Crime Beat Column: A Look Back At Ian Fleming's Iconic James Bond Character

Rare Ian Fleming Story Features A Londoner Named Bone, Caffery Bone

Hillel Italie at the Associated Press offers a piece on the publication of a rare story by Ian Fleming:

NEW YORK (AP) — “James Bond” creator Ian Fleming didn’t need to write about Cold War intrigue to consider the ways people scheme against each other. “The Shameful Dream,” a rare Fleming work published this week, is a short story about a Londoner named Bone, Caffery Bone.

Fleming’s protagonist is the literary editor of Our World, a periodical “designed to bring power and social advancement to Lord Ower,” its owner. Bone has been summoned to spend Saturday evening with Lord and Lady Ower, transported to them in a chauffeur-driven Rolls-Royce. Bone suspects, with a feeling of “inevitable doom,” that he is to meet the same fate of so many employed by Lord Ower — removed from his job and soon forgotten.

“For Lord Ower sacked everyone sooner or later, harshly if they belonged to no union or with a fat check if they did and were in a position to hit back,” Fleming writes. “If one worked for Lord Ower one was expendable and one just spent oneself until one had gone over the cliff edge and disappeared beneath the waves with a fat splash.”

 “The Shameful Dream” appears in this week’s Strand Magazine along with another obscure work from a master of intrigue, Graham Greene’s “Reading at Night,” a brief ghost story in which the contents of a paperback anthology become frighteningly real. Greene scholars believe that the author of “Our Man in Havana,” “The End of the Affair” and other classics dashed off “Reading at Night” in the early 1960s when he found himself struggling to write a longer narrative.

You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:

Rare Ian Fleming story features a Londoner named Bone, Caffery Bone | AP News

You can also read two of my Crime Beat columns on Ian Fleming and James Bond via the below links:

Paul Davis On Crime: My Crime Beat Column: A Look Back At Ian Fleming's Iconic James Bond Character

Paul Davis On Crime: My Crime Beat Column: The Ian Fleming and James Bond Phenomenon