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My Book World
Fleming, Fergus, ed. The Man with the Golden Typewriter: Ian Fleming’s James Bond Letters. New York: Bloomsbury, 2015.
When Ian Fleming achieves notoriety as author of the James Bond 007 series, following the publication of Casino Royale, in 1953, he purchases a gold-plated typewriter. Presumably, he continues to pound out the remaining books in the series on this golden instrument. I’m not sure why I am drawn to this book except that, like most voyeurs, I enjoy reading authors’ letters, especially those written to other authors, agents, and publishers. Their words open up a world of publishing that many of us only dream of. In large part, I am not disappointed by the letters’ contents.
As the title would suggest, the letters all pertain to the famed James Bond novels. Twelve of the sixteen chapters are organized around those titles. The remaining four relate in different ways to the 007 series, not the least of which are letters exchanged with Herman W. Liebert, Yale librarian in the 1960s. Mr. Liebert is a fan but a critical one, the type of fan that Fleming seems almost obsessively drawn to, the type of fan who seems to have caught Fleming in a mistake or two and is intent on seeing that they are corrected. Fleming, rather that being put off by it, as would be many writers, rather enjoys corresponding with such critics. He drains them dry for information that, in his estimation, will make his corrections for the novel’s next edition or, indeed, his next book, even better. And he composes such charming letters, how could one possibly refuse? The following passage provides a fine example:
“What I would pray you to do is to pay particular attention to the gangsterese—improving, re-writing, and even editing snatches of conversation wherever you think fit” (303).
Here Fleming cleverly enlists the aid of an unsuspecting critic, and he aims to milk the epistolary relationship for all he can. I don’t believe his pursuit is mean-spirited or cynical. I only think he wants to make his novel as authentic as possible. Later in this same letter, Fleming says,
“So, as you see, I am taking your kind offer very seriously indeed and I am embarrassed to suggest what fee to offer you for this invaluable work. But if you can successfully bring about this vital piece of collaboration I propose to present you with a handsome present from Cartiers as a memento.
I am coming out to New York by the Queen Elizabeth sailing on July 20th and shall be about two weeks in the States, when perhaps we might meet and I could make the presentation!” (303).
How could one not accept? Well, as it turns out Mr. Liebert declines payment of any kind, responding:
“Grateful as I should be, I hope you will not indulge in a present, for the pleasure and pride I have in the offer to go over the book are more than sufficient reward. The fact that I am doing this work will be graveyard so far as I am concerned” (304). He continues by offering to meet Fleming in New Haven, a proposal which Fleming must decline because of a tight travel schedule, so the two gentlemen never meet. However, the exchange of letters is a fascinating one, highlighting Fleming’s generosity, as well as his pursuit of perfection in his work.
Editor Fergus Fleming has selected the best to publish, but toward the end of the author Fleming’s life, (he has severe heart problems), the letters diminish by way of texture and content. Yet the overall collection is worth the time whether the reader is a James Bond fan or merely one of the art of letter writing. Judging by these that are now over fifty years old, it is an art that has probably been lost. I dare anyone’s most recent e-mail to stand up to the quality of these missives.
NEXT TIME: New Yorker Fiction
When Ian Fleming achieves notoriety as author of the James Bond 007 series, following the publication of Casino Royale, in 1953, he purchases a gold-plated typewriter. Presumably, he continues to pound out the remaining books in the series on this golden instrument. I’m not sure why I am drawn to this book except that, like most voyeurs, I enjoy reading authors’ letters, especially those written to other authors, agents, and publishers. Their words open up a world of publishing that many of us only dream of. In large part, I am not disappointed by the letters’ contents.
As the title would suggest, the letters all pertain to the famed James Bond novels. Twelve of the sixteen chapters are organized around those titles. The remaining four relate in different ways to the 007 series, not the least of which are letters exchanged with Herman W. Liebert, Yale librarian in the 1960s. Mr. Liebert is a fan but a critical one, the type of fan that Fleming seems almost obsessively drawn to, the type of fan who seems to have caught Fleming in a mistake or two and is intent on seeing that they are corrected. Fleming, rather that being put off by it, as would be many writers, rather enjoys corresponding with such critics. He drains them dry for information that, in his estimation, will make his corrections for the novel’s next edition or, indeed, his next book, even better. And he composes such charming letters, how could one possibly refuse? The following passage provides a fine example:
“What I would pray you to do is to pay particular attention to the gangsterese—improving, re-writing, and even editing snatches of conversation wherever you think fit” (303).
Here Fleming cleverly enlists the aid of an unsuspecting critic, and he aims to milk the epistolary relationship for all he can. I don’t believe his pursuit is mean-spirited or cynical. I only think he wants to make his novel as authentic as possible. Later in this same letter, Fleming says,
“So, as you see, I am taking your kind offer very seriously indeed and I am embarrassed to suggest what fee to offer you for this invaluable work. But if you can successfully bring about this vital piece of collaboration I propose to present you with a handsome present from Cartiers as a memento.
I am coming out to New York by the Queen Elizabeth sailing on July 20th and shall be about two weeks in the States, when perhaps we might meet and I could make the presentation!” (303).
How could one not accept? Well, as it turns out Mr. Liebert declines payment of any kind, responding:
“Grateful as I should be, I hope you will not indulge in a present, for the pleasure and pride I have in the offer to go over the book are more than sufficient reward. The fact that I am doing this work will be graveyard so far as I am concerned” (304). He continues by offering to meet Fleming in New Haven, a proposal which Fleming must decline because of a tight travel schedule, so the two gentlemen never meet. However, the exchange of letters is a fascinating one, highlighting Fleming’s generosity, as well as his pursuit of perfection in his work.
Editor Fergus Fleming has selected the best to publish, but toward the end of the author Fleming’s life, (he has severe heart problems), the letters diminish by way of texture and content. Yet the overall collection is worth the time whether the reader is a James Bond fan or merely one of the art of letter writing. Judging by these that are now over fifty years old, it is an art that has probably been lost. I dare anyone’s most recent e-mail to stand up to the quality of these missives.
NEXT TIME: New Yorker Fiction
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Listen to My Long-Playing Records Podcasts:
"A Certain Kind of Mischief"
"The Best Mud"
"Handy to Some"
"Tales of the Millerettes"
"Men at Sea"
"My Long-Playing Records"
"Basketball Is Not a Drug"
"Snarked"
"Killing Lorenzo"
"Bathed in Pink"
Also available on iTunes.
Introduction to My Long-Playing Records
"My Long-Playing Records" — The Story
"A Certain Kind of Mischief"
"Ghost Riders"
"The Best Mud"
"Handy to Some"
"Blight"
"A Gambler's Debt"
"Tales of the Millerettes"
"Men at Sea"
"Basketball Is Not a Drug"
"Engineer"
"Snarked"
"Killing Lorenzo"
"The Age I Am Now"
"Bathed in Pink"
Listen to My Long-Playing Records Podcasts:
"A Certain Kind of Mischief"
"The Best Mud"
"Handy to Some"
"Tales of the Millerettes"
"Men at Sea"
"My Long-Playing Records"
"Basketball Is Not a Drug"
"Snarked"
"Killing Lorenzo"
"Bathed in Pink"
Also available on iTunes.
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