Ian Fleming created one of the most impactful and iconic figures of 20th-century popular culture in James Bond. Fleming’s novels served as inspiration for the Bond films, a franchise that has seen over twenty entries to this point. The newest one, Spectre, marks the return of Daniel Craig in the Bond role for the fourth time.
Here are 7 interesting facts about the man behind Bond…
1. Goldeneye was not only the name of Pierce Brosnan’s first Bond film, it was the name of the house in Jamaica where Ian Fleming went to write the Bond novels. For 50 years, Fleming spent two months at Goldeneye, working through Bond stories.
2. Fleming wasn’t a fan of America. Of course, Bond was a strong British agent, but Fleming also spoke out against the U.S. a number of times, calling it “a society that fails to establish a clear moral definition of right and wrong.”
3. Fleming also wrote the story that turned into the Dick Van Dyke classic Chitty Chitty, Bang Bang. The stories were published in three volumes.
4. Fleming was a noted bird watcher and named James Bond after an American ornithologist he respected greatly. So, even though Fleming wasn’t a fan of America, his greatest creation was named after an American scientist.
5. Fleming did not care for Sean Connery’s interpretation of his character in the first Bond film, Dr. No. Gradually, though, he began to appreciate the way Connery portrayed Bond so much that he decided to give Bond some Scottish heritage.
6. The Bond novels weren’t really big in America until it was discovered that John F. Kennedy liked the books. JFK noted that From Russia With Love was one of his 10 favorite novels.
7. Ian Fleming never owned a Bentley or an Aston Martin, common James Bond vehicles.