Wednesday 23 October 2013

24 Things You Really (Don't) Need To Know About James Bond And The Number 24


ON THIS day in two years' time, avoid me.

Friday 23 October 2015 is the release date of the 24th Bond film and I'll be unbearably excited.

Consider this your two-year warning.

So with exactly 24 months to go before Bond 24, I thought I'd look for any connections between James Bond and the number 24.


Thank fuck there were, frankly, although they range f
rom credible to flimsy.

And, oh look, there are 24 of them.



24
is the number of frames per second at which motion picture film is usually projected.

The 23 official Bond films have run for a total of approximately 2896 minutes, meaning there have been around 4,170,240 Bond film frames so far.


24
is, of course, the name of the television series starring Kiefer Sutherland. 

Three actors have starred in both Bond and 24:
- Patrick Bauchau (A View To A Kill/Season 5, Episodes 7 & 8)
- John Terry (The Living Daylights/Season 2, Episodes 1-12)
- Michael Madsen (Die Another Day/Season 8, Episodes 19-23)


FLAT 24,
Carlyle Mansions, Cheyne Walk in Chelsea was where Ian Fleming lived between 1950 and 1953, during which time Casino Royale was published.


THE 24TH
word spoken in the Bond films is "the". (Doctor No)


THE 24TH
word written in the Bond novels is "soul-erosion". (Casino Royale)


24
is the number of years during which composer John Barry scored the Bond films, from 1963 to 1987.



24
is, in mathematical terms, the kissing number in 4-dimensional space, or the maximum number of unit spheres that can touch another one without overlapping (who didn't know that?).

In the 23 films thus far, Bond has kissed 64 women, an average of 2.7826087 women per film.

What a man-slag.


24
would be the Scrabble score of 'Mary Goodnight' (The Man With The Golden Gun), if you were allowed names and, er, had a spare 13 tiles.

For the record, the letter values for Mary Goodnight would add up as follows: M-A-R-Y = 3+1+1+4, G-O-O-D-N-I-G-H-T = 2+1+1+2+1+1+2+4+1.


24
is the number of points on a backgammon board. *ahem*




(I'm *really* sorry about the racism right at the end)


24
was Adele's age when she wrote, recorded and released the theme to Skyfall.


24
was bass guitarist John Taylor's age when Duran Duran released the theme to A View To A Kill.


24
is the number of letters in the classical Greek alphabet. And talking of classical Greek stuff, this bloke on the internet, David Alexander, wrote that
"Bond, as originally created by Fleming, exemplified the Ulysses [Odysseus] type of action hero... while capable of the most deliberate and calculated violence when called for... prefers to use cunning whenever possible, and is only brawny by default."
IN YOUR CLEVER FACES, SCHOLARS!


24
is also the number of letters in the modern Greek alphabet, and because For Your Eyes Only is the only Bond to use Greece as a location, here is the film's plot in Greek:

Το συστημα ΑΤΑC με το οποιο ελεγχεται ο στολος υποβρυχιων Polaris, βυθιζεται απο ναρκη στις ακτες της Αλβανιας, και ο Μποντ προσπαθει να προλαβει ωστε να μην πεσει στα χερια Σοβιετικων πρακτορων. Το συστημα ΑΤΑC με το οποιο ελεγχεται ο στολος υποβρυχιων Polaris, βυθιζεται απο ναρκη στις ακτες της Αλβανιας, και ο Μποντ προσπαθει να προλαβει ωστε να μην πεσει στα χερια Σοβιετικων πρακτορων.


24
is the number of carats representing 100% pure gold, an element that features in three Bond film titles: Goldfinger, The Man With The Golden Gun, Goldeneye.


ON THE 24TH
of February 2013, Shirley Bassey sang Goldfinger at the Academy Awards ceremony at Hollywood's Dolby Theatre to a standing ovation. 

And, she might not have the full range any more, but this is ENTRANCING. Shirl, you bloody beauty.


This date is also notable because Adele picked up the Oscar for best original song for Skyfall – the first time a Bond theme has ever won an Academy Award. See her perform it here.


THE 24TH
letter of the Latin alphabet is X. According to The TelegraphThunderball was almost given an ‘X’ rating by censors because of its raunchy shower scenes.

I don't what the fuss was about. We didn't get to see anything good.


(Still with me? Brace yourselves.)


24
is the number of the French department of Dordogne.

At least two Bond actors have filmed in Dordogne: Dame Judi Dench (M) in Chocolat and Sophie Marceau (Elektra King) in La fille de d'Artagnan.


24
is referenced as "four-and-twenty" in the nursery rhyme 'Sing A Song Of Sixpence'. The next line, 'A Pocketful Of Rye', was the title of a 1953 Agatha Christie novel featuring Miss Marple. 

When this was adapted for ITV in 2009, Paul Brooke played the role of Billingsley, a mere 28 years after appearing as Bunky in For Your Eyes Only.


24
is the atomic number of chromium. In the novel Moonraker, Bond buys a Bentley Mark IV (grey with dark blue leather upholstery). 

AND IT HAD CHROMIUM-PLATED CYLINDER BORES, GUYS.



24
is the number of tracks found on the Quantum Of Solace soundtrack.

Shame it's not very good.


1924
saw the births of several people who would play important roles in the Bond films:

- Producer Kevin McClory, best known for the long legal battle with Ian Fleming (later United Artists/MGM) over the writing credits and later the film rights to Thunderball.
- Walter Gotell, who played General Anatol Gogol in six films between 1977 and 1987.
- Lester Prendergast, who played Puss Feller in Dr. No.
- John Stone, who played Submarine Captain in You Only Live Twice.
- Peter Murton, Art Director on Goldfinger and Thunderball, and Production Designer on The Man With The Golden Gun.
- Harold Jack Bloom, Writer, You Only Live Twice.
- Francois Nadal, who worked on the Horse Team on A View To A Kill.


24
is the number of hours in a day.

And if you don't die today, you'll... die another day. Hmm.


"24
Ian Fleming Crescent" is a real address in Whitby, Ontario.

Look!


View Larger Map



BOND 24
will be the twenty-fourth official Bond film. 

An anagram of 'twenty-fourth' is 'try hot wet fun'.

Like this:


If you've got to the end, well done.

I'm off to spend the next 24 months waiting.

And waiting.

And waiting.

You get the idea.

1 comment:

  1. I have grown to really love the Quantum of Solace soundtrack.

    Except for the song. It can die in a fire.

    ReplyDelete