003½: The Adventures of James Bond Junior
Encyclopedia
003½: The Adventures of James Bond Junior is a 1967 James Bond
spin-off
novel carrying the Glidrose Productions
copyright. It was first published in the United Kingdom
by the Jonathan Cape publishing company
in 1967 and later in 1968 in the United States by Random House
. The novel was written under the pseudonym
R. D. Mascott; the real name of the author to this day has never been officially revealed by the current owners of the Ian Fleming
Estate (i.e., Ian Fleming Publications a.k.a. Glidrose) or EON Productions
(Danjaq
), who owns the screen rights to the novel.
Although the novel is based around a character who is the nephew of James Bond
, in Ian Fleming's own novels Bond in fact was an only child and indeed an orphan, however, unbeknownst to agent 007 he does have a son as told in You Only Live Twice.
In 1966 Harry Saltzman
announced a television series about a ten year old who fought SPECTRE
that could have been based on 003½ but nothing became of it.
003½: The Adventures of James Bond Junior is considered a failed attempt at launching a youth-oriented line of fiction aimed at 8 to 14 year olds. A moderately successful television series by the same name was launched in 1991, produced by EON Productions / Danjaq. The success of the show spawned numerous novelisations
, a video game, and comic book
s. Unrelated to 003½, Ian Fleming Publications began publishing a successful youth-oriented line of Young Bond
adventures featuring James Bond as a teenager in the 1930s beginning in 2005.
Although an officially licensed spin-off from the James Bond series, its place within the canon
of the books—if any—has never been established.
and Kingsley Amis
. Amis is usually seen as completely bogus since a year later he released Colonel Sun
under the pseudonym
Robert Markham
, however, unlike R. D. Mascott, Amis's authoring of Colonel Sun was never a secret. Amis's writing style is also not similar to Mascott. Roald Dahl on the other hand does share some similarities specifically with one book he wrote in 1975, Danny, the Champion of the World
. Coincidentally, in 1967, Roald Dahl completed the screenplay for You Only Live Twice
for EON Productions, the same year 003½: The Adventures of James Bond Junior was published. Although there is evidence to suggest Dahl may have written 003½, there is equally as much evidence to suggest he didn't.
One author that has recently been identified as a possibility is Arthur Calder-Marshall who wrote a number of similar books especially in style and his descriptions of characters and environments in his books The Magic of My Youth (1951) and The Scarlet Boy (1961). It has also been suggested that the initials R. D. are a play on the name Arthur, which is typically shortened to Artie. Other writers that have been named as possibilities but tend to be rejected, include Peter Fleming (Ian's brother) and Nichol Fleming (Peter Fleming's son and Ian's nephew).
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
spin-off
Spin-off (media)
In media, a spin-off is a radio program, television program, video game, or any narrative work, derived from one or more already existing works, that focuses, in particular, in more detail on one aspect of that original work...
novel carrying the Glidrose Productions
Ian Fleming Publications
Ian Fleming Publications is the production company formerly known as both Glidrose Productions Limited and Glidrose Publications Limited, named after its founders John Gliddon and Norman Rose...
copyright. It was first published in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
by the Jonathan Cape publishing company
Jonathan Cape
Jonathan Cape was a London-based publisher founded in 1919 as "Page & Co" by Herbert Jonathan Cape , formerly a manager at Duckworth who had worked his way up from a position of bookshop errand boy. Cape brought with him the rights to cheap editions of the popular author Elinor Glyn and sales of...
in 1967 and later in 1968 in the United States by Random House
Random House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
. The novel was written under the pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
R. D. Mascott; the real name of the author to this day has never been officially revealed by the current owners of the Ian Fleming
Ian Fleming
Ian Lancaster Fleming was a British author, journalist and Naval Intelligence Officer.Fleming is best known for creating the fictional British spy James Bond and for a series of twelve novels and nine short stories about the character, one of the biggest-selling series of fictional books of...
Estate (i.e., Ian Fleming Publications a.k.a. Glidrose) or EON Productions
EON Productions
Eon Productions is a film production company known for producing the James Bond film series. The company is based in London's Piccadilly and also operates from Pinewood Studios in the United Kingdom...
(Danjaq
Danjaq
Danjaq, LLC is the holding company responsible for the copyright and trademarks to the characters, elements, and other material related to James Bond on screen. It is currently owned and managed by the family of Albert R. Broccoli, the co-initiator of the popular film franchise...
), who owns the screen rights to the novel.
Although the novel is based around a character who is the nephew of James Bond
James Bond (character)
Royal Navy Commander James Bond, CMG, RNVR is a fictional character created by journalist and novelist Ian Fleming in 1953. He is the main protagonist of the James Bond series of novels, films, comics and video games...
, in Ian Fleming's own novels Bond in fact was an only child and indeed an orphan, however, unbeknownst to agent 007 he does have a son as told in You Only Live Twice.
In 1966 Harry Saltzman
Harry Saltzman
Harry Saltzman was a Canadian theatre and film producer best known for his mega-gamble which resulted in his co-producing the James Bond film series with Albert R...
announced a television series about a ten year old who fought SPECTRE
SPECTRE
SPECTRE is a fictional global terrorist organisation featured in the James Bond novels by Ian Fleming, the films based on those novels, and James Bond video games...
that could have been based on 003½ but nothing became of it.
003½: The Adventures of James Bond Junior is considered a failed attempt at launching a youth-oriented line of fiction aimed at 8 to 14 year olds. A moderately successful television series by the same name was launched in 1991, produced by EON Productions / Danjaq. The success of the show spawned numerous novelisations
Novelization
A novelization is a novel that is written based on some other media story form rather than as an original work.Novelizations of films usually add background material not found in the original work to flesh out the story, because novels are generally longer than screenplays...
, a video game, and comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
s. Unrelated to 003½, Ian Fleming Publications began publishing a successful youth-oriented line of Young Bond
Young Bond
Young Bond is a series of five young adult spy novels by Charlie Higson featuring Ian Fleming's secret agent James Bond as a young teenage boy attending school at Eton College in the 1930s...
adventures featuring James Bond as a teenager in the 1930s beginning in 2005.
Although an officially licensed spin-off from the James Bond series, its place within the canon
Canon (fiction)
In the context of a work of fiction, the term canon denotes the material accepted as "official" in a fictional universe's fan base. It is often contrasted with, or used as the basis for, works of fan fiction, which are not considered canonical...
of the books—if any—has never been established.
The author
To this day it has never been confirmed who wrote 003½: The Adventures of James Bond Junior, although many authors have been named as possibilities such as Roald DahlRoald Dahl
Roald Dahl was a British novelist, short story writer, fighter pilot and screenwriter.Born in Wales to Norwegian parents, he served in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War, in which he became a flying ace and intelligence agent, rising to the rank of Wing Commander...
and Kingsley Amis
Kingsley Amis
Sir Kingsley William Amis, CBE was an English novelist, poet, critic, and teacher. He wrote more than 20 novels, six volumes of poetry, a memoir, various short stories, radio and television scripts, along with works of social and literary criticism...
. Amis is usually seen as completely bogus since a year later he released Colonel Sun
Colonel Sun
Colonel Sun , by Kingsley Amis, is the first James Bond continuation novel published after Ian Fleming's death in 1964; Glidrose Productions used the collective pseudonym "Robert Markham", for British novelist Kingsley Amis, with the intent of so publishing other novels by different writers...
under the pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
Robert Markham
Robert Markham
Robert Markham is a pseudonym created by Glidrose Publications in the mid-1960s. By 1967, Glidrose, the publishers of the James Bond novel series created by Ian Fleming, had exhausted all available material written by Fleming before his death in 1964...
, however, unlike R. D. Mascott, Amis's authoring of Colonel Sun was never a secret. Amis's writing style is also not similar to Mascott. Roald Dahl on the other hand does share some similarities specifically with one book he wrote in 1975, Danny, the Champion of the World
Danny, the Champion of the World
Danny, the Champion of the World is a 1975 children's book by Roald Dahl. The plot main centers on a young English boy, Danny, and his father, William, who live in a Gypsy vardo fixing cars for a living and partake in poaching pheasants. The story is based on Dahl's adult short story "Champion of...
. Coincidentally, in 1967, Roald Dahl completed the screenplay for You Only Live Twice
You Only Live Twice (film)
You Only Live Twice is the fifth spy film in the James Bond series, and the fifth to star Sean Connery as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. The film's screenplay was written by Roald Dahl, and loosely based on Ian Fleming's 1964 novel of the same name...
for EON Productions, the same year 003½: The Adventures of James Bond Junior was published. Although there is evidence to suggest Dahl may have written 003½, there is equally as much evidence to suggest he didn't.
One author that has recently been identified as a possibility is Arthur Calder-Marshall who wrote a number of similar books especially in style and his descriptions of characters and environments in his books The Magic of My Youth (1951) and The Scarlet Boy (1961). It has also been suggested that the initials R. D. are a play on the name Arthur, which is typically shortened to Artie. Other writers that have been named as possibilities but tend to be rejected, include Peter Fleming (Ian's brother) and Nichol Fleming (Peter Fleming's son and Ian's nephew).