Bond Newsletter Launch
In which 007 joins our family of newsletters.
The name’s Bond, James Bond Lexicon Newsletter.
Over the last 45 issues of this newsletter, the world’s most famous secret agent, 007, has hardly been mentioned, which on reflection is somewhat strange as I post something about him on social media every day.
It’s time to change that and change it in a big way - rather than just increase the number of mentions here, we decided that it was time for Bond to have his own separate communications channel, his own dedicated newsletter.
So earlier this week we launched the James Bond Lexicon Newsletter, a bi-weekly round-up of our online 007 activities, Bond news and reviews, and a regular sneak look at our in-progress James Bond Chronology project.
We’ve been overwhelmed by the number of folks who have subscribed in just the first couple of days.
If you’d like to join them, you can sign up for your FREE subscription below.
Other Stuff
There’s also been a notable increase in readership for the newsletter over the last few weeks. I really appreciate your interest and support. But there are about half the folks reading that haven’t yet signed on for a FREE subscription. If you’re one of those folks who have recently joined us but haven’t subscribed yet, you can do so by clicking the button below to get each upcoming newsletter delivered straight to your email.
Feed My Need For Coffee
Our intention is that this weekly newsletter will always be a FREE subscription, but if you enjoy what you read here, or any of the other places I hang out online, and feel you would like to contribute, you can now leave a tip over by clicking on the Ko-Fi banner below.
Brabazon Bits
A nice addition to the research stack for the Brabazon book project arrived this. - the June 1950 issue of Aeromodeller with a contemporary article and a detailed double-page spread plan view. - Made me wonder if anyone used them to build a model of the Brab back then.
I also managed to track down some more vintage trading cards featuring the Brabazon, one from Australia, and one from Holland. These are on their way and I’ll make sure to post images here once they arrive.
Word Slinging
Earlier this week the Batman Universe website posted an article reviewing the recent The Man Who Laughs anthology.
And it was a delightful bonus to discover my contribution getting a shout-out along the way:
“Personally, essays like Alan J. Porter’s “Why I’m Fed Up with the Joker” proved illuminating as to why I sometimes get weary of seeing Joker pop up in current comics.”
You can find the full review HERE or order your copy of the book HERE.
Pages and Screens
Books Read in 2023 - “Ian Fleming: The Complete Man” by Nicolas Shakespeare
This is the Fleming biography I’ve been waiting for. A highly readable, extensively researched examination of the extraordinary life of a complex man that places its focus firmly on its subject rather than his most famous creation.
Building and expanding on previous works, this 700-page work provides insights into not only Fleming but also shines a spotlight on the changing culture and the decline of Empire during his lifetime.
Such is the drama of Fleming’s life that it takes until page 450 for him to write that memorable opening to Casino Royale, and even then 007 remains more of a background character in Fleming’s personal journey.
Even if he had never created James Bond, Ian Fleming’s life as journalist, intelligence officer, bibliophile, linguist, and society man would be worthy of study.
Before They Were Beatles Updates
The scripts for the first three episodes of the new The Forgotten Beatles podcast series have been written, and even better editing and production of the first episode are now done. Next up is finalizing some of the supporting materials and we’ll be ready to go. It looks good for that early 2024 launch, as we kick things off with Pete Best’s story both before and after his time as a Beatle.
The December issue of the Before They Were Beatles newsletter is done and staged, ready for delivery at the end of the month. In the upcoming issue we will be introducing a young George Harrison to our story. If you don’t want to miss out on the expanded story of the early Beatles history, you can sign up for a subscription below.
Podcast Procratinations
I never expected that one of the best movies of the year would be an emotional heartfelt roller coaster of a human-driven story set in post-war Japan - that just happened to have a giant lizard in it.
You can hear me, and the other guests, gushing about how great Godzilla Minus One is over on the ESO Network podcast.
Weekly Web Round-Up
Forest Comics & Books - Less Doctor Who this week, but the Star Trek graphic novels have been very popular. We’ve also got a whole bunch of Marvel and DC graphic novels waiting to be added over the next few weeks as well. More details on those as we get them listed. In the meantime, you can check out our current offerings HERE
Batman On The Cover - The journey through Batman’s comics publishing history continues this week as we round up August 1968 with foreign editions published in Mexico, Norway, and Sweden.
No standouts this week as all were straight reprints of existing US covers.
Where on the Web is Alan?
You can now find links to all the places you can find me online, websites, newsletters, social media, and more in a single LINKS page on my personal website.
As always, thanks for joining me this week. If you know someone else who might enjoy the contents of this week’s newsletter, or just my weekly ramblings in general - please feel free to share by clicking the button below.
See you next time
Alan J. Porter
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The Can’t See The Forest (TM) newsletter is a production of Megrin Entertainment, a division of 4Js Group LLC