The James Bond Bedside Companion (29 page)

Now Bond felt sorry for M. He had never before heard M use as strong a word as "bloody." Nor had M ever given a member of his staff any hint that he felt the weight of the burden he was carrying and had carried ever since he had thrown up the certain prospect of becoming Fifth Sea Lord in order to take over the Secret Service.

("For Your Eyes Only," FOR YOUR EYES ONLY)

More of the weight on M's shoulders is revealed in THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN when it is learned that his predecessor as the head of the Secret Service was assassinated by one of his own men in the Universal Export office. As a result of this, M is protected by a bulletproof plate which falls from a slit in the ceiling at the touch of a button. The admiral, then, must constantly be on his guard at the office—which may explain his usual businesslike and rather stiff manner in dealing with employees.

The best glimpse of M at his most vulnerable appears in COLONEL SUN. Here, M is kidnapped and drugged by a terrorist group. Bond sees him once at the beginning of the novel. The admiral is under the drug's influence and appears zombielike and helpless. Toward the end of the book, Bond himself is captured by the terrorists and is placed in the same room with M. M has been tortured, suffering bu
rn
s on his chest. The episode again reveals the human side of M as he is forced to deal with the violence of Bond's work on the same level as his top agent.

Felix Leiter

B
ond's
ally in six of the Fleming novels is the American CIA agent from Texas, Felix Leiter. After Leiter loses a right arm and a leg to a shark in LIVE AND LET DIE, the CIA lets him go; however, he finds work with Pinkerton's Detective Agency. Leiter remains with Pinkerton's until THUNDERBALL, in which Allen Dulles (the CIA chief) puts Leiter on the reserve force. Leiter is again placed on the reserves in THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN.

Leiter, when Bond meets him in CASINO ROYALE, is about thirty-five. He is tall and thin, and wears his clothes "loosely from his shoulders like Frank Sinatra." Although his movements and speech are slow, Bond gets the feeling that there is plenty of speed and strength in Leiter, and that he would be a "tough and cruel fighter." Fleming goes on to describe him:

As he sat hunched over the table, he seemed to have some of the jackknife quality of a falcon. There was this impression also in his face, in the sharpness of his chin and cheekbones and the wide wry mouth. His grey eyes had a feline slant which was increased by his habit of screwing them up against the smoke of the Chesterfields which he tapped out of the pack in a chain. The permanent wrinkles which this habit had etched at the corners gave the impression that he smiled more with his eyes than with his mouth. A mop of straw-coloured hair lent his face a boyish look which closer examination contradicted.

(CASINO ROYALE, Chapter 7)

Bond also reflects that "good Americans were fine people and that most of them seemed to come from Texas."

One of the ties between the Englishman and the American may be that they enjoy being "barroom rivals." There is almost always an obligatory scene in which the two visit a bar and drink themselves silly. In CASINO ROYALE, Bond educates Leiter on the making of a "real" martini, and Leiter remembers the formula in subsequent novels. In THUNDERBALL, Leiter seems to have studied martinis thoroughly, for he, in turn, educates a barman in a Nassau hotel on the ingredients of a real martini. Leiter knows when he's being had; the martinis at the hotel are served with inadequate portions of liquor. Leiter explains to the barman:

". . . here's one who's dry behind the ears. A good barman should learn to be able to recognize the serious drinker from the status-seeker who wants just to be seen in your fine bar."

(THUNDERBALL, Chapter 14)

Kingsley Amis, in
The James Bond Dossier,
seems
to think that Leiter has no personality. But Leiter's personality is clearly revealed in his manner of speech, the subjects about which he speaks, as well as through several of the character's idiosyncrasies. For instance, Leiter is a jazz fan, and he escapes a nasty scrape in LIVE AND LET DIE by "arguing the finer points of jazz" with his black captor. Leiter tells Bond many anecdotes about America while giving him guided tours of New York, Saratoga, or Florida. He and Bond have a good laugh at the "old folks" of St Petersburg, and they take pleasure in complaining about the commercialism of the Bahamas' hotels.

Most important, though, is the fact that Leiter reinforces the friendship theme running through the series. The bond between the two men is extremely heartfelt Felix Leiter, of all of Bond's allies, brings to the series a warmth and joviality which is missing most of the time.

Among the other Bond allies appearing in the novels are Rend Mathis (twice), Quarrel (twice), Darko Kerim, Marc-Ange Draco, Tiger Tanaka, and Niko Litsas. All of these allies not only serve some plot function, but emphasize the friendship theme.

OTHER CHARACTERS

O
ther recurring characters include Bond's secretary, Loelia Ponsonby, until she runs off and marries. Bond insists on calling her Lil because he knows she hates it; but he enjoys having what he considers "a beautiful secretary." Miss Ponsonby is "tall and dark with a reserved, unbroken beauty to which the war and five years in the Service had lent a touch of sternness." Loelia mothers Bond, as well as the two other members of the Double-0 section, worrying herself to death when they are in danger. By the time of ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE, Loelia has married a rich member of the Baltic Exchange and is replaced by the very attractive Mary Goodnight (who also becomes the Bond-girl of THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN). Miss Goodnight begins her role in the series with "blue black" hair, and ends it as a blond.

Miss Moneypenny is another familiar character, though not as much is made of her in the novels as in the films. Moneypenny, it is said, has a secret desire for Bond and "dreams hopelessly" about him. But she never does anything about it She is much more overt about her affection in the films. Moneypenny is also best friends with Loelia Ponsonby, and they share the office gossip. In MOONRAKER, both women are caught wearing the same style blouse on
the same day!

Bill Tanner, M's Chief of Staff, is mentioned sporadically through the novels, but becomes a more substantial entity in YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE, THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN, and COLONEL SUN. Tanner is "about Bond's age" and supposedly is Bond's "best friend in the Service." There is no corroboration of this beyond the fact that the two men are always making references to having lunch together. At the beginning of COLONEL SUN, though, they are playing golf together and have drinks at the club house afterwards. Tanner seems to share Bond's feelings about M, and the pair usually cracks jokes behind the old man's back. (It is also interesting to note that Tanner is only referred to as "Bill" or "Chief of Staff" until YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE, in which we learn his last name.)

Sir James Molony is a famous neurologist assigned to handle cases in the Service. He is called to look after Bond a few times, and is responsible for rehabilitating the agent after he is almost killed by Rosa Klebb's poison-tipped shoe; nursing Bond through depression after the death of Tracy; and "de-brainwashing" 007 after the assassination attempt on M. Molony seems to become more important with each successive appearance; in YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE, the neurologist has become a Nobel Prize winner!

A final character worth mentioning is Bond's Scottish housekeeper, May. One of May's endearing traits is that she calls no man "sir" except for English kings and Winston Churchill. Therefore, she addresses Bond with, "Good moming—s," which Bond presumes is the next best thing. May mothers Bond more than any other woman in his life. After he returns from his stay at Shrublands health spa, he is obsessed with health food. May is mortified by it all, and tells Bond:

"Ye can tell me to mind my own business and pack me off back to Glen Orchy, but before I go I'm telling ye, Mister James, that if ye get yerself into anuither fight and ye've got nothing but yon muck in yer stomach, they'll be bringing ye home in a hearse. That's what they'll be doing."

(THUNDERBALL, Chapter 7)

May serves as comic relief in her brief scenes and is one of the more colorful characters with whom Fleming populates the special world of James Bond.

T
he first James Bond novel begins with the distinctive style and texture that Ian Fleming brings to all of his work:

The scent and smoke and sweat of a casino are nauseating at three in the morning. Then the soul-erosion produced by high gambling—a compost of greed and fear and nervous tension—becomes unbearable, and the senses awake and revolt from it.

James Bond suddenly knew that he was tired. He always knew when his body or his mind had had enough, and he always acted on the knowledge. This helped him to avoid staleness and the sensual bluntness that breeds mistakes.

(CASINO ROYALE, Chapter 1)

Immediately the senses of the reader are bombarded by images that highlight the environment of the story. There is a preoccupation with sights, sounds, smells, textures, and tastes. Due to Fleming's experience as a journalist, his writing exhibits a reporter's attention to detail.

Though it lacks many of the qualities (such as the greater depth of the Bond character) which improve the later books, CASINO ROYALE is one of the best novels in the series. It is harsh, stark, and extremely atmospheric, as well as highly readable.

The story concerns one of the USSR's chief agents in France, a certain Le Chiffre, who is operating as undercover paymaster of the Communist-controlled trade union in Alsace. Recently he carelessly appropriated USSR funds to finance a chain of brothels for his own profit. Now under pressure to repay his debt to the Soviets, Le Chiffre is gambling for high stakes at the casino at Royale-les-Eaux, a resort in northern France. NATO would greatly benefit if Le Chiffre's luck should fail, for his subsequent humiliation and destruction would lead to the collapse of the Communist trade union. Agent 007, James Bond, is sent to Royale-les-Eaux to do battle with Le Chiffre over the baccarat table. Bond succeeds in defeating Le Chiffre, but he later finds himself at the mercy of the villain. Bond is captured and tortured, but his life is unwittingly saved by a member of SMERSH, the USSR's organization for eliminating spies and traitors. The man from SMERSH executes Le Chiffre for his treachery and leaves Bond unconscious. After recuperating, Bond begins an intense love affair with heroine Vesper Lynd, who is revealed at the novel's end to be a double agent working for Russia. Torn between duty and her love for Bond, she commits suicide; this wounds Bond deeply,
and he makes a resolution to fight back against SMERSH and other forces of evil in the world.

STYLE AND THEMES

C
ASINO ROYALE is more a novella than a complete novel. It is short and compressed. Its brevity is certainly an asset, and the pages seem to fly by. This is the Fleming Sweep at work. The end of each brief and concise chapter pulls the reader into the next. This pace is sustained to the conclusion.

The book introduces the narrative structure that became a hallmark of the Bond novels: the opening chapter is a "teaser," dealing with an event that takes place somewhere in the middle of the story. The second chapter goes back in time to the beginning of the adventure—Bond receives his assignment from M and the story proceeds from there.

There is abundant detail in the novel's settings, especially when it comes to props. Bond doesn't use a mere cigarette lighter, but a black, oxidized Ronson lighter. Special attention is paid to each item; every object has a brand name. We are told the ingredients of Bond's breakfast, and the vintage of champagne served. This stylistic element (what Kingsley Amis calls "Fleming Effect") heightens the prose to such an extent that everything is ultimately believable. After writing his first draft, Fleming took great pains to research the facts and these graphic details are among the most distinctive ingredients of the
oeuvre.

But other elements set CASINO ROYALE apart from the rest of the series. First, the character of James Bond is darker, colder, and more ruthless—until he falls in love. Then, we see a side of James Bond not often revealed in the series. The agent actually contemplates marriage! He views the prospect with caution, doubt, and suspicion, but also with curiosity. Ian Fleming wrote the novel just prior to his own marriage. Perhaps many of his own fears and curiosities were transferred to the leading character. But James Bond never makes it to the altar in this novel. Bond takes the tragedy of Vesper's death hard, and he becomes something of an unfeeling stone wall. Second, the tone of the story is the most serious of all the books in the series. It is also one of the most violent. Third, the climax occurs, curiously enough, only two-thirds of the way through the narrative. The last third is a moody denouement concerning the love affair between Bond and Vesper. This structure might have been deadly, but Fleming manages to keep the story suspenseful and well paced. Fourth, the novel is more atmospheric than any other in the series except, perhaps, YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE. CASINO ROYALE has shadowy, melancholic imagery which is vividly conjured in the opening chapter and lingers until the story's tragic and cynical conclusion. This ending on a down note is not in keeping with most of the Bonds; the cynicism of the author is at its strongest here.