Tuesday, September 29, 2015

James Bond as Code Name: The Evidence for and Against Part 1



A popular theory out there is that in the official movies, not only 007 but even the name James Bond are codes for various secret agents as they are killed or incapacitated, or simply leave Her Majesty’s Secret Service. This series looks at the evidence from the various Eon Productions movies.

First off, a word about five key non-canonical Bond series and why they aren’t examined more closely. The big reason is they’re not part of the official series. Beyond that: The Casino Royale episode of Climax! treated Bond as an American secret agent. The original Casino Royale big screen movie, while it fits in nicely with the pro-code name side is a comedy that isn’t easily integrated into the core series, especially the ending. Never Say Never Again, while featuring former official Bond Sean Connery, is a remake of Thunderball. The cartoon series James Bond Jr. focuses on his nephew and not on Bond himself. And the GoldenEye TV movie is set in a pseudo real world where Bond is an ornithologist, not a spy.

Proponents of this theory believe that every time a new actor is cast as Bond, it’s a different character. If casting is that important an element to the theory, I think it’s also worth looking at all instances where an actor has been recast, not just Bond himself.

Dr. No (1962)

Casting:

For this movie there are six recurring characters (in one case just barely so): James Bond (Sean Connery), Felix Leiter (Jack Lord), M (Bernard Lee), Sylvia Trench (Eunice Gayson, voices by Nikki Van der Zyl), Miss Moneypenny (Lois Maxwell), and Major Boothroyd (Peter Burton). As this is the first appearance of all in the Eon series, there is no actor switch to consider at this early stage.

Other Evidence:

Bond right from his first scene throws out the name James Bond. As he does throughout the series, he is already pretty free with using this name publicly given his profession. Given that this is more or less a constant, it will not be examined further unless there is new information to examine.

The James Bond as code name theory raises the issue of why whoever is using the James Bond code name also consistently used then 007 code name and vice versa. Again, both names are used throughout the series so this also won’t be discussed unless there is new information.

Bond continues to use the name James Bond even when not in the field. While the obvious implication is that Bond therefore is his real name, it could also be the case that MI6 is particularly tight with security. Once again he is referred to as both Bond and 007 throughout the series during mission briefings.

From Russia with Love (1963)

Casting:

The characters mentioned above reappear except Leiter (though he returns later). However, Sylvia, again played by Gayson/Van der Zyl disappears from the movies after this movie. Therefore, while not a bad character, she’s of no consequence to this particular debate. Connery, Lee, Maxwell also reprise their roles. While Dr. No is referenced, he does not actually appear. Two new recurring characters debuts here: an as yet identified man (played by Anthony Dawson and voiced by Eric Pohlmann) stroking a white cat, and the cat itself. Casting information on the cat is not readily available and for the most part thus will not be examined in this series except in one instance where the passage of time makes it certain that it was a different cat. It is probable however that many cats were used in the series.

Anthony Dawson is an interesting case as he played a different character in the first Bond movie. Normally the logical extreme conclusion of the James Bond as code name theory would be that different characters played by the same actor are in fact the same person. However, since Dawson is only partly seen, we can make allowances as we would for stunt doubles.

Desmond Llewellyn becomes the first instance of a character being recast, taking over from Peter Burton. While he would be known as Q in most of his appearances, in this film he is referred to as Major Boothroyd as per the first film. So if James Bond is a code name, it stands to reason that Major Boothroyd is also a second code name. This raises the question as to why someone who is rarely in the field (Boothroyd being the man who equips Bond with vehicles and gadgets) would need two code names.

Goldfinger (1964)

Casting:
Connery, Lee, Maxwell, and Llewellyn all return, with Llewellyn now credited as Q, the code name of Major Boothroyd. Taking the Bond as code name theory to its extreme, this is the first time that Bond's gadget man took on a second code name.

Cec Linder takes over as Felix Leiter, Bond’s main American ally from Jack Lord. Taking the Bond as code name theory to its logical conclusion suggests that Felix Leiter is also a code name. However, after Dr. No, Bond seems to have familiarity with one another. If Bond and Leiter are in fact code names, people taking on the two code names seem to have a fairly easy time striking up a friendship with one another.

Next post: Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service

Monday, September 28, 2015

Crazy Comic Book Numbering 6



This is the latest in a series of posts covering how various comic series have had name changes or an unusual numbering pattern. The titles covered will give you a sense of what I’m getting at. To qualify the numbering must rename the same or if changed, there must somehow be an obvious tie to the original number somehow. Hiatuses not counted until there is a name and/or numbering change in between. There must also be at least three different names and/or renumberings. Info source:  the current edition of Overstreet’s price guide.

Five cases per post.

Case #26 (Youthful)
·        Captain Science 1-7 November 1950-December 1951
·        Fantastic 8-9 February 1952-April 1952
·        Beware 10-12 June 1952-October 1952
·        Chilling Tales 13-17 December 1952-October 1953

Case #27 (Harvey)
·        Black Cat Comics 1-15 June-July 1946-?
·        Black Cat Western 16-19 ?
·        Black Cat Comics 20-29 ?-June 1951
·        Black Cat Mystery 30-53 August 1951-1954?
·        Black Cat Western Mystery 54 February 1955
·        Black Cat Western 55-56 ?
·        Black Cat Mystery 57 July 1956
·        Black Cat Mystic 58-62 ?-March 1958
·        Black Cat 63-65 October 1962-April 1963

Case #28 (Marvel)
·        Daredevil 1-380 April 1964-October 1998
·        Daredevil 1-119 November 1998-September 2009 then revert to old numbering:
·        Daredevil 500-512 October 2009-February 2011
·        Black Panther: The Man Without Fear 513-523 February 2011-November 2011
·        Black Panther: The Most Dangerous Man Alive 524-529 November 2011-April 2012

Case #29 (Marvel/Timely/Atlas)
·        Blaze Carson 1-5 September 1948-June 1949
·        Rex Hart 6-8 August 1949-February 1950
·        Whip Wilson 9-11 April 1950-September 1950
·        Gunhawk 12-18 November 1950-December 1951

Case #30 (Song Hits/Capitol Stories/Charlton)
·        The Thing! 1-17 February 1952-November 1954
·        Blue Beetle 18-21 February 1955-August 1955
·        Mr. Muscles 22-23 March 1956-August 1956

Saturday, September 26, 2015

Crazy Comic Book Numbering 5



This is the latest in a series of posts covering how various comic series have had name changes or an unusual numbering pattern. The titles covered will give you a sense of what I’m getting at. To qualify the numbering must rename the same or if changed, there must somehow be an obvious tie to the original number somehow. Hiatuses not counted until there is a name and/or numbering change in between. There must also be at least three different names and/or renumberings. Info source:  the current edition of Overstreet’s price guide.

Five cases per post.

Note: I decided against covering All-Famous Crime for now because I’m not convinced that Overstreet has the name pattern right for this title

Note: apparently for Batman and Robin only the cover title changed and not the indicia, hence its exclusion

Case #21 (Archie)
·        Archie… Archie Andrews, Where are You? 1-8 February 1977-?
·        Archie… Archie Andrews, Where are You? Comics Digest 9-10 ?
·        Archie… Archie Andrews, Where are You? Comics Digest Magazine 11-114 ?- May 1998

Case #22 (Marvel)
·        Avengers 1-402 September 1963-September 1996
·        Avengers 1-13 November 1996-November 1997
·        Avengers 1-84 February 1998-August 2004 then back to original numbering:
·        Avengers 500-503 September 2004-December 2004

Note: I decided not to count Avengers Annual this time around because there was not clear point where the first series’ Annuals folded back into the third series’ Annuals, putting them at two each rather than four.

Case #23 (Ace/Periodical)
·        Indian Braves 1-4 March 1951-September 1951
·        Baffling Mysteries 5-26 November 1951-October 1955
·        Heroes of the Wild Frontier 27 January 1956 then renumbered:
·        Heroes of the Wild Frontier 2 April 1956

Case #24 (Comic Media/Allen Hardy/Charlton)
·        Dynamite 1-9 May 1953-September 1954
·        Johnny Dynamite 10-12 June 1955-October 1955
·        Foreign Intrigues 14-15 1956-August 1956 (no #13)
·        Battlefield Action 16-84 November 1957-November 1984

Case #25 (Archie)
·        Betty & Veronica Annual Digest Magazine 1-4 November 1980-1984?
·        Betty & Veronica Comics Digest Magazine 5-43 ?
·        Betty & Veronica Digest Magazine 44-208 ?-November 2010
·        Betty & Veronica Friends Double Digest 209-Present January 2011-Present

Note: Overstreet’s listing for this title is rather confusing. I may have some of the names off.

Friday, September 25, 2015

Crazy Comic Book Numbering 4



This is the latest in a series of posts covering how various comic series have had name changes or an unusual numbering pattern. The titles covered will give you a sense of what I’m getting at. To qualify the numbering must rename the same or if changed, there must somehow be an obvious tie to the original number somehow. Hiatuses not counted until there is a name and/or numbering change in between. There must also be at least three different names and/or renumberings. Info source:  the current edition of Overstreet’s price guide.

Five cases per post.

Note: I decided against covering All-Famous Crime for now because I’m not convinced that Overstreet has the name pattern right for this title

Case #16 (St. John)
·        Weird Horrors 1-9 June 1952-October 1953
·        Nightmare 10-13 December 1953-August 1954
·        Amazing Ghost Stories 14-16 October 1954-September 1955

Case #17 (Marvel) – Second Source: Amazing Spider-Man: Official Index to the Marvel Universe
·        Amazing Spider-Man Annual 1-2 1964-1965
·        Amazing Spider-Man Special 3-9 November 1966-1973
·        Amazing Spider-Man Annual 10-28 1976-1994
·        Amazing Spider-Man Annual ’96-’97 1996-1997
·        Amazing Spider-Man ’98 1998
·        Amazing Spider-Man 1999 1999
·        Amazing Spider-Man Annual 2000-2001 2000-2001
·        Amazing Spider-Man Annual 1 December 2008 then folded into old numbering:
·        Amazing Spider-Man Annual 36-39 September 2007-July 2012

Note: Amazing Spider-Man itself had a second set of numbering folded in to the original title. I may cover this later once I finish with those with three or more distinct numbering.]

Case #18 (Marvel)
·        Amazing Spider-Man: Skating on Thin Ice 1 1990
·        Amazing Spider-Man: Double Trouble 2 1990
·        Amazing Spider-Man: Hit and Run 3 1991
·        Amazing Spider-Man: Chaos in Calgary 4 1992?
·        Amazing Spider-Man: Deadball 5 1993

Case #19 (National)
·        Animal Antics 1-23 March-April 1946-November-December 1949
·        Movietown Animal Antics 24-51 January-February 1951-July-August 1954
·        The Raccoon Kids 52-64 September-October 1954-November 1957

Case #20 (Timely/Marvel/Atlas)
·        Daring Mystery Comics 1-8 January 1940-January 1942 then Title Split!
o   1.   
§  Comedy Comics 9-34 April 1942 to Fall 1946
§  Margie Comics 35-49 Winter 1946-47-December 1949
§  Reno Browne, Hollywood’s Greatest Cowgirl 50-52 April 1950-September 1950
§  Apache Kid 53 December 1950 then renumbered as
§  Apache Kid 2-19 February 1951-April 1956
§  Western Gunfighters 20-27 June 1956-August 1957
o   2. Daring Comics 9-12 Fall 1944-Fall 1945

Note: Overstreet conflicts here on whether this title or the previously covered All Surprise becomes Jeanie Comics with #13.