SpyVibe

September 21, 2013

SPACE GIRLS

Nothing says "Spy Vibe" like Space-Age robots and kinky boots. See more at Spy Vibe's image archive on Pinterest here.

Happy Birthday to Sophia Loren, born September 20th, 1934. A Spy Vibe favorite, Loren brought her elegance and earthy sensuality to many classic films, including Arabesque, Boccaccio '70, Marriage, Italian Style, Two Women, Operation Houseboat, Man of La Mancha, A Special Day, and Brass Target. One of her most indelible screen images is this scene from Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow (1963/De Sica), where she performed a strip tease for Marcello Mastroianni. The pair recreated the scene in Robert Altman's Ready to Wear in 1994. The fun starts at 1:00 below.

Sophia Loren met her husband, producer Carlo Ponti, in 1950 when she was 15 (he was 37). The pair married in 1957- then married again in 1966, after Ponti received an official annulment by the state from his first wife. They remained married until his death in 2007. Carlo Ponti was a major force behind many of my favorite films, including La Strada, Cleo From 5 to 7, Boccaccio '70, The 10th Victim, Blowup, Smashing Time, and A Special Day. Stills from the couple's Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow below from DVD Beaver.

Get ready to meet MIKI ZERO, Japanese fashion model and spy! The creator of Spy Vibe has written a novel called Elevator Girl, inspired by his love of Ian Fleming and based on newly declassified intel from the Cold War. More info at Whiton's website here. Recent Spy Vibe posts: Peter Asher, new Hercule Poirot novel, Beatles fall 2013 releases, A Hard Days Night cinematographer dies, Magic Christian on Blu-ray, Early Beatles image archive, Julie Newmar, Erno Goldfinger, Hitchcock tribute, Ian Fleming memorial, Emma Peel Megaset returns

Recent Ian Fleming posts on Spy Vibe: Erno Goldfinger, Ian Fleming Music Series links: Noel Coward, Whispering Jack Smith, Hawaiian Guitar, Joe Fingers Carr, new Ian Fleming Catalog, Jon Gilbert interview, Double 007 Designs, Bond audio book reissues, discovery of one of Ian Fleming's WWII Commandos, James Bond book covers, Ian Fleming's Playboy interview for Kindle, Spy Vibe's discovery of a rare Ian Fleming serialization, rare View to a Kill, Fleming's Royal gold typewriter, Ian Fleming's memorial address

DUNS AT LITERARY 007

As James Bond fans eagerly read the first excerpts of the new 007 novel by William Boyd (out Sept 26th UK/Oct 8th US), the stylish Literary 007 blog sat down with author Jeremy Duns to discuss his favorite Fleming stories and classic book designs. You can read the interview here. Jeremy Duns has often been a guest on Spy Vibe. See his interview about Ian Fleming and book collecting in our For Your Shelf Only series here, and his favorite spy movie sets here. Jeremy Duns is a British journalist and author of the Paul Dark novels. He recently released two non-fiction books, Dead Drop and Rogue Royale (about a lost Bond screenplay by Ben Hecht!). Enjoy!

September 18, 2013

BEATLES BBC PROMO

The Beatles have posted a fun promo film for the new On Air Vol. 2 album due out on November 11th (See Spy Vibe's post here). Round table events with Mark Lewisohn post here.

BEATLES SUMMIT EVENTS

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of The Beatles, Bloomindales has teamed up with British designers to create a collection of 1960s-inspired products and a series of Beatles events. Author Mark Lewisohn will be hosting a series of round table discussions at Bloomingdales shops in October and November. The Discussions will cover the Beatles on film, in the studio, and on record, and will feature luminaries like Albert Maysles (filmmaker), Henry Grossman (photographer), Ken Scott and John Kurlander (Beatles engineers), Peter Asher (Peter and Gordon/Producer), Brian Kehew (Recording the Beatles), Chris Carter (Breakfast With The Beatles), and Bruce Spizer (historian). Lewisohn will also be signing copies of the first volume in his epic Beatles biography Tune In. Calendar below.

The Beatles campaign is featured on a special website within Bloomingdales and sports a rare video and photo gallery. Stylish new products include suits, shirts, scarves, handkerchiefs, cufflinks, and umbrellas. Pop-up shops around the world are carrying exclusive items, including limited-edition prints by Astrid Kirchherr and Henry Grossman. Spy Vibers may remember that Kirchherr put her entire archive of Hamburg-era images (and the rights to them) up for auction, but the sale was abruptly cancelled before the auction began. As far as I know, an unknown entity purchased the lot in a preemptive sale. I hoped that maybe The Beatles estate itself bought Kirchherr's archives. But with images being licensed out to Bloomingdales and others, it would appear another party is involved. You can see a list of pop-up shop locations and all of the fun details of Bloomingdale's Great Britain project here.

September 17, 2013

NEW BEATLES AT BBC

The Beatles officially announced last week that a new double album of unreleased recordings will be available on November 11th. The band made many appearances on the BBC in the 1960s. Per company policy, most of the tapes were wiped after broadcast (a situation well known by fans of Doctor Who and early Avengers episodes). Luckily some tapes survived, and a number of shows were taped and preserved by listeners. Many of these recordings showed up on bootlegs and better sources have been unearthed over the years The Beatles eventually released Live at the BBC in 1994, which contained many non-album tracks from the band's early club sets. The BBC recordings, including that 1994 collection, have been remastered and will come out in November. The new BBC set, The Beatles On Air Vol 2, will contain 63 unreleased performances and radio chat with the band. The remastered Vol 1 set will contain the 1994 material (with some exceptions). I'm very excited to hear both volumes of material! My fellow fans on the Steve Hoffman Forum have been discussing the various BBC tracks that remain unreleased and hope that someday Apple will make available a complete collection of all known BBC performances. More info on Amazon for BBC Vol 1 and On Air Vol 2.

In addition, a new book that documents The Beatles on the BBC will be released on October 29th, The Beatles: the BBC Archives: 1962-1970. From Amazon: "A carefully curated collection of the surviving transcripts of the Beatles’ appearances on BBC Radio and Television from 1962 to 1970, featuring commentary from author and Beatles expert Kevin Howlett and rare photographs and memorabilia from the BBC.

The year 2013 marks the fiftieth anniversary of the release of The Beatles’ first album, Please, Please Me. To celebrate this event with material that has never been in print or has not repeatedly resurfaced is a challenge. But a great deal of both—namely, never-before-seen BBC transcripts, historical documents, and rare photos—will be the main thrust of the book The Beatles: The BBC Archives. Not since The Beatles’ Anthology of 2000 has a work of this magnitude been offered.

Author Kevin Howlett delves into the BBC television and radio archives and draws on previously unpublished transcripts of interviews, as well as personal reminiscences from presenters, producers, and studio staff to reveal the creative and personal evolution of the band- from the witty, irreverent foursome of the early sixties, to the more reflective and confessional individuals before the split at the end of the decade. Each chapter details a full year in the life of the band and is introduced with an engaging text by Howlett that puts the following material into historical context. The book features rare photos of the Fab Four at the BBCs studios, both onstage and off, and eight removables documents of historical merit, direct from the BBC archive itself.

This is the story of two of Britain’s most important cultural forces in tandem . . . word for word, event by event, as it happened with verbatim, unabridged transcripts. This has never been offered to reader before; it is a significant publishing event." Spy Vibers, pick up the book and the new BBC albums and transport yourselves back to Swinging London!

September 16, 2013

BOYD 007 BOOK EVENT

Author William Boyd is scheduled to discuss his new James Bond novel Solo and the literary tradition of Ian Fleming at a special Book Club event on October 28th at the Royal Institution of Great Britain. The talk follows the release of Boyd's Solo on September 26th. From the Guardian: "In a break from our usual format, William Boyd will join us for a special James Bond Book Club. He will talk to John Mullan about the genius of Ian Fleming and the enduring appeal of his iconic spy. He'll also introduce his new novel, Solo, the latest addition to the Bond series, set in 1969. Details of the plot are being kept tightly under wraps, but we are promised the essential Bond elements – cocktails, fast cars, sharp suits - in a tale spanning three continents as the veteran spy (he's 45) embarks on an unauthorized mission during a trip to America." Boyd famously included Ian Fleming as a character in his 2002 novel, Any Human Heart, which was adapted into a mini-series. Solo is his first James Bond thriller.

DHANI HARRISON SINGLE

Dhani Harrison has recorded one of his father's songs, For You Blue, and released it today on iTunes for charity. From the George Harrison website: "Dhani Harrison’s version of his father’s song “For You Blue” is available today! Click HERE to purchase on iTunes. All proceeds go to George Harrison’s Material World Foundation, which is currently focused on helping create awareness for the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation and its mission to cure spinal cord injury. Dhani recorded the new version of “For You Blue” with fellow musicians Blake Mills, Aaron Embry, and drummer Jim Keltner. The song was originally recorded in 1969 and then released on The Beatles’ Let it Be album a year later."

September 15, 2013

FOYLE'S WAR

Broadcast alert: Spy Vibers may want to check out the new Foyle's War that airs tonight. The program focuses on a British detective during and after WWII. From the official site: "While WWII rages across the Channel, police detective Christopher Foyle (Michael Kitchen) reluctantly remains on duty in his quiet English coastal town. The battle comes to Foyle in its own way as he probes war-related cases of murder, espionage, and treason. Mystery blends with history, moral complexity, and period atmosphere in this splendid British series." Fans in the States can see it on Masterpiece Mystery (Bay Area viewers via KQED public television) and online at Acorn TV. More info at the official site here.

September 14, 2013

BEAT CLUB: MY BABE

Jump into Spy Vibe's time machine and join a 1965 dance party with Gerry and the Pacemakers! The lads perform a great arrangement of My Babe, a Willie Dixon/Little Walter blues tune popular among British Invasion bands. The event is hosted by the German music program, Beat Club, which began the same year. Dig the slim mid-60s fashion! Gerry and the Pacemakers were a Liverpool group managed by Brian Epstein and recorded by George Martin at EMI. They were the first band to release three #1 hits in a row, a chart streak that wasn't broken until the 1980s. Stay tuned for some current news about Gerry Marsden and The Beatles on Spy Vibe.