Spy Author John Le Carré No Fan of James Bond: I 'Dislike' Ian Fleming's 'Neo-Fascistic' 00

New York Daily News ^ | Monday, August 23rd 2010 | MICHAEL SHERIDAN

[mylife]

Granger would be an excellent smiley!

[mylife]

"Bond was really quite the fool"

[Rummyfan]

The best of the bunch was Michael Caine as Harry Palmer in the Ipcress File and Funeral In Berlin.

Those were based on novels by Len Deighton. I liked Le Carre's early stuff, but the last ten years he's revealed himself as a fanatic ultra leftie.

[firebrand]

James Bond was thought to be based in part on Dusko Popov, although I believe in Popov's memoir he makes light of this or denies it. They do have certain things in common.

I still read Le Carre. Don't like his politics.

I just finished McEwan's The Innocents, based on a true story of espionage in Berlin in the 1950s--excellent. Good portraits of American vs. British spies. Seems very true to life and historically accurate.

[Safetgiver]

Fleming and Bond will still be renowned far into the future....Fleming was the first author that got me to actually read. He also got me in lots of trouble with the nuns who wanted me to study in study hall. I told them I was studying....England, the Caribbean, Russia, etc.

[Old Teufel Hunden]

"Le Carré's own spy character, George Smiley"

This sounds like professional jealousy to me. Everyone has heard of Bond, James Bond. How many people have heard of George Smiley? Not many...

With all that being said, I do think that the James Bond movie series should come to an end. It's nothing like Sean Connery and Roger Moore. It made a slight comeback with Pearce Brosnan who I thought was pretty good.