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COLLECTING 007 – US Pressbooks
WRITTEN & COMPILED BY KEVIN HARPER

In the United States Exhibitors’ Campaign Books were called ‘Pressbooks’ and completely different in content to their UK equivalent, and obviously targeted at the American market. Pressbooks were also produced for other territories around the world, although interesting, these were seldom as lavish in production as their UK and US counterparts. US Pressbooks differed in size from the UK versions, and ranged from 13" X 18" for the Sixties films, with the exception of Casino Royale that was issued by Columbia Pictures with a colour cover measuring 11" X 17". Starting with Diamonds Are Forever (1971) the 11" X 17" size was adopted for all subsequent United Artists Pressbooks. Many later films in the Bond series did not have Pressbooks issued in the USA until the advent of electronic Press Kits in the late 1990s.

The final United Artists Pressbook [issued to promote For Your Eyes Only (1981)] was available in two versions - one for the USA showcasing the Bill Gold designed photographic poster and advertising materials; and an International version featuring the Eric Pulford designed artwork painted by Brian Bysouth. Both Pressbooks contained identical editorial content and exploitation details.

US Pressbooks newspaper advert blocks

The re-release programme of the James Bond films in the USA was more standardized than in the UK, and new marketing campaigns were initiated by United Artists for almost every re-issue. The advertising materials available were featured in the new Pressbook, which had a much smaller page count. The National Screen Service issued most sizes of the so-called ‘Combo’ posters and lobby cards, and new cinema trailers were produced for the five official nationwide revivals from 1965-1980. The double-bill of Thunderball/You Only Live Twice, originally released in 1970, did not have a full Pressbook produced; instead, United Artists issued a double-sided ‘Catalogue of Advertising Materials’. Diamonds Are Forever (1971) also had a shorter 8-page ‘Catalogue of Advertising Materials’ rather than the more comprehensive Pressbook. The 1972 Triple-Bill ‘Spend A Night With James Bond’ re-issued the first three Sean Connery films and was promoted with a new 1-sheet poster produced by the National Screen Service. The company also issued newspaper advert blocks with the same generic artwork which incorporated elements designed by David Chasman for the original release of the films. The Man With The Golden Gun (1974) also had a separate advertising supplement issued which featured alternate advert blocks with the Style B poster artwork by Tom Jung; whilst the advertising supplement for The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) also contained alternate press advert blocks showcasing the opening ski jump with review extract headlines.

A 1978 double-bill of The Spy Who Loved Me/The Man With The Golden Gun had a limited release, and although no new posters were created, newspaper advertising blocks were made available by United Artists with the tag-line ‘Bond is Back Because Nobody Does It Better’. Similar promotional material was also available to newspapers for the 1980 revival of Moonraker/The Spy Who Loved Me, although once again, no new posters were issued for this double-bill, however, several TV spots were created for the re-issue. United Artists also produced two versions of the Pressbook to accompany the release of For Your Eyes Only (1981); one for the US market featuring the photographic advertising campaign, and a second edition for the English language international campaign (excluding the United Kingdom) which favoured the alternate painted poster and newspaper block artwork.

With the growth in multiplex cinemas in the mid-1980s, advertising and promotional space was at a premium, with multiple films being screened at each venue. Most cinemas simply opted for the standard 1-sheet poster in lobby displays, and as a result many US poster sizes ceased being produced and individual studios took over the marketing of their own films from the National Screen Service. From the early 1980s studios began issuing an ‘Ad Slick’ (also known as an ‘Ad Sheet’ or ‘Press Sheet’) which featured final, camera-ready advertisements in a number of different sizes. Similar in style to the ‘Composite Material Sheets’ issued by the NSS in the UK, but getting their name from the glossy paper on which they were printed, Ad Slicks were intended for distribution to theaters or promotional companies for use in print media. Usually printed at approximately A4-size (8½" X 11"), these could be supplied as multiple stapled pages, or as a larger folded single sheet. Ad Slicks were produced for the James Bond films as early as 1969 and usually featured variations of the artwork and logos seen in the Pressbook [an example from Octopussy (1983) is pictured below]. As most advertising was now in newspapers and magazines there was no longer the need for the lavish promotional displays seen in the previous decades. Pressbooks later became Press Kits and standardised the material available for each new film, generally limiting their content to star biographies and production notes. However, Casino Royale (2006) reverted to a 68-page (8½" X 11") colour Press Kit that also included material on a CD-ROM.

Dr. No US Pressbook

From Russia With Love US Pressbook Goldfinger US Pressbook

Dr. No
(1963)

From Russia With Love
(1964)

Goldfinger
(1964)

Dr. No/From Russia with Love US Pressbook

Thunderball US Pressbook Goldfinger/Dr. No US Pressbook

Dr. No/From Russia With Love
(1965) & (1971)

Thunderball
(1965)

Goldfinger/Dr. No
(1966) & (1969)

You Only Live Twice US Pressbook

Thunderball/From Russia With Love US Pressbook On Her Majesty's Secret Service US Pressbook

You Only Live Twice
(1967)

Thunderball/From Russia With Love
(1968)

On Her Majesty's Secret Service
(1969)

Thunderball/You Only Live Twice United Artists Catalogue of Advertising Materials

Diamonds Are Forever United Artists Catalogue of Advertising Materials Spend A Night With James Bond (1972)

Thunderball/You Only Live Twice (1970/71) & (1972)

Diamonds Are Forever
(1971)

Spend A Night With James Bond (1972)
[Advertising blocks only]

Live And Let Die US Pressbook The Man With The Golden Gun US Pressbook The Spy Who Loved Me US Pressbook

Live And Let Die
(1973)

The Man With The Golden Gun
(1974)
[ROLLOVER] Advertising Supplement

The Spy Who Loved Me
(1977)
[ROLLOVER] Advertising Supplement

The Spy Who Loved Me/The Man With The Golden Gun (1978)

Moonraker US Pressbook Moonraker/The Spy Who Loved Me US Pressbook

The Spy Who Loved Me/
The Man With The Golden Gun
(1978)
[Advertising blocks only]

Moonraker
(1979)

Moonraker/The Spy Who Loved Me
(1980)
[Advertising blocks only]

For Your Eyes Only US Pressbook

For Your Eyes Only US Pressbook [For international distrubution only] Octopussy (1983) Ad Slick

For Your Eyes Only
(1981)

For Your Eyes Only (1981)
[For International Distribution Only]

Octopussy (1983)
Ad Slick

Tomorrow Never Dies Multimedia CD-ROM Press Kit

Casino Royale 68-page Press Kit & CD-ROM

Tomorrow Never Dies
(1997)
Multimedia CD-ROM Press Kit

Casino Royale
(2006)
68-page Press Kit & CD-ROM

 

Columbia Pictures Pressbook (USA)

For the 1967 spoof James Bond film Casino Royale, Columbia Pictures issued a Pressbook (11" X 17") that initially comprised 20-pages with a full-colour cover printed in the landscape format to utilise the full artwork, unlike the UK edition where the tattooed girl wrapped around onto the back cover. An additional 12-page insert featuring more promotional advertising material was also issued, and a further 8-page insert produced once the film was in general release promoting its short-lived box-office success. This insert featured new posters and newspaper advertising blocks promoting Casino Royale as “The #1 sensation across the nation!”

Casino Royale US Pressbook

Casino Royale  US Pressbook Insert

Casino Royale
(1967)

Pressbook Insert [12-pages]

Warner Brothers Exhibitors' Promotional Brochure (USA)

Never Say Never Again Warner Brothers Exhibitor Promotion Book (USA)

For Sean Connery's 1983 comeback as James Bond in Never Say Never Again, US distributor Warner Brothers issued a 4-page colour Exhibitors’ Promotional Brochure (14" X 17") with a die-cut rectangle in the front cover; when closed (below left) it showed Sean Connery's face from Bond’s ‘identity card’ tucked under the bikini bottom of a knife-wielding model featured in the centre fold-out.

Never Say Never Again US promotional brochure/Japanese B1 poster

The knife-wielding female torso was photographed by influential Austrian-born, American graphic designer and art director Henry Wolf (1925-2005), and was also used on a Japanese B1 (28.5" X 40.5") cinema poster (above right) for Never Say Never Again (1983). Wolf had revolutionised US magazine design during the 1950s and 1960s with his bold layouts, elegant typography, and whimsical cover photographs while serving as art director at Esquire, Harper's Bazaar and Show magazines.

Warner Brothers Press Kit (USA)

Warner Brothers also issued a Press Kit for Never Say Never Again (1983) housed in a folder (9" X 12") that contained a series of A4-sized stapled Production Notes and star biographies. Also included was a set of 17 glossy black & white 10" X 8" promotional stills.

Never Say Never Again US Press Kit

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