User Reviews

. . . "Philip Marlowe" creator\novelist Raymond Chandler says toward the end of this apparent telephone dialog with "James Bond" originator Ian Fleming, who has just disclosed he churns out an Agent 007 novel during each of his annual vacations to Jamaica. Fleming then replies, "Well, you write better books than I do." Most of this conversation can be classified as the proceedings of a mutual admiration society. Fleming mentions that he's just finishing another Bond yarn. When Chandler asks, "What's it called?" Fleming replies "GOLDFINGER." Both men agree it's harder to come up with villains than heroes. As Chandler puts it, "You don't find anyone, really, who's all bad" (being a fan, no doubt, of Hitler's paintings or Mussolini's train schedules). Fleming quibbles when Chandler classifies Bond as a hero, stating, "I never intended James Bond to be a hero--I don't see him as a hero, myself."