Ian fleming author biography outline

In Nicholas Shakespeare’s new biography of author Ian Fleming, James Bond arrives on the scene rather late. But there’s a good reason to delay focusing on the secret agent Fleming created: His life before Bond is far more interesting than what followed, and much of it would find its way into the books like “bullion,” Shakespeare writes, “to be cut into slices.”

Fleming didn’t publish “Casino Royale” — the novel that introduced Bond to the world — until 1953, when Fleming was 43. By that time, he had already lived multiple lives: as a war reporter, book collector, stockbroker, merchant banker, naval intelligence operative. Fleming may have been staring at a blank page in 1953, but his advance work was abundant: His own thrill-seeking life would become the raw material of his remunerative popular art.

Shakespeare, a British novelist and the author of a biography of English writer Bruce Chatwin, is the first Fleming biographer to get his hands on just about everything Fleming wrote, which helps to make this biography somehow both capacious and breathlessly entertaining. He does a fine job of clearing up some of the hazier myths about Fleming’s tenure in British naval intelligence, even while much of that documentation remains classified. The subtitle of “Ian Fleming: The Complete Man” is apt: This is certainly the most three-dimensional portrait of a complex man who gamely tried to shore up the postwar morale of his beloved England with his fictional hero at a time when the Empire desperately needed it.

Ian Fleming was to the manner born. His grandfather Robert was one of the wealthiest merchant bankers in 19th century England. Fleming lost his father, Val, in World War I, which might have

Ian Lancaster Fleming (28 May 1908 – 12 August 1964) was a British author and journalist. He was best known for writing the James Bond spy novels. He also wrote the children's book Chitty Chitty Bang Bang in 1964.

Fleming was born in London to a wealthy family. He was educated at Eton College. He spent many years working in Britain's Naval Intelligence Division during the Second World War. During this time, Fleming helped with the planning and management of two British intelligence units. This experience along with his work in journalism provided much of the background to the stories in his James Bond novels.

Fleming wrote his first James Bond novel, Casino Royale, in 1952. Because of the book's success, Fleming wrote eleven more novels and two collections of short-stories about the British secret agent.

In total, there have been twenty-six films based on Fleming's famous character. The twenty-sixth, Spectre, was released in October 2015.

Fleming died on 12 August 1964 of a heart attack in Canterbury, Kent, aged 56.

References

English author (1908–1964)

For other people named Ian Fleming, see Ian Fleming (disambiguation).

Ian Lancaster Fleming (28 May 1908 – 12 August 1964) was an English writer, best known for his postwar James Bond series of spy novels. Fleming came from a wealthy family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co., and his father was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Henley from 1910 until his death on the Western Front in 1917. Educated at Eton, Sandhurst, and, briefly, the universities of Munich and Geneva, Fleming moved through several jobs before he started writing.

While working for Britain's Naval Intelligence Division during the Second World War, Fleming was involved in planning Operation Goldeneye and in the planning and oversight of two intelligence units: 30 Assault Unit and T-Force. He drew from his wartime service and his career as a journalist for much of the background, detail, and depth of his James Bond novels.

Fleming wrote his first Bond novel, Casino Royale, in 1952, at age 44. It was a success, and three print runs were commissioned to meet the demand. Eleven Bond novels and two collections of short stories followed between 1953 and 1966. The novels centre around James Bond, an officer in the Secret Intelligence Service, commonly known as MI6. Bond is also known by his code number, 007, and was a commander in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve. The Bond stories rank among the best-selling series of fictional books of all time, having sold over 100 million copies worldwide. Fleming also wrote the children's story Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang (1964) and two works of non-fiction. In 2008, The Times ranked Fleming 14th on its list of "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945".

Fleming was married to Anne Charteris. She had divorced her husband, the 2nd Viscount Rothermere, because of her affair with the author. Fleming and Charteris had a son, Caspar. Fleming was a heavy smoker and drinker for most