JAMES BOND FACT FILES

Although subsequent films in the Bond series did have Spirex-bound marketing manuals printed (and later electronic versions on CD-ROM), Licence To Kill (1989) was the last film in the EON Productions series to be promoted via a printed Exhibitors’ Campaign Book produced by United International Pictures, then distributor of the James Bond titles. As with its predecessor, the Campaign Book included a lengthy editorial focussing on the story, cast and crew – followed by full-page features showcasing the different promotional tie-ins and merchandise available to publicise the release of Licence To Kill (1989).

Apart from the usual original soundtrack album (the last film of the EON Productions series to have its soundtrack released on vinyl record until 2021), and single versions of Gladys Knight's title song and Patti Labelle's ‘If You Asked Me To’ (heard over the end titles of the film), much of the tie-in material issued to promote Licence To Kill (1989) took the form of a book.

Hamlyn published The Making of Licence To Kill – the first in-depth book covering all aspects of the production of a James Bond film; this 128-page softcover book was written by Sally Hibbin, as was The Official James Bond 007 Movie Book, which was updated and expanded to coincide with the release of Licence To Kill in 1989, and also included a new glossy pull-out poster for the film. Hamlyn also published a slim hardcover overview of the James Bond films from Dr. No to Licence To Kill, featuring over 100 photographs from the films, with diagrams, quizzes and more – James Bond The Official 007 Fact File written by Richard Holliss, former editor of Starlog (UK) magazine, was aimed at a younger audience and contained a brief overview of the films, cars, gadgets, and villains etc., and was effectively a modern replacement for the more generic original 1960s compendium annuals. The James Bond The Official 007 Fact File was not featured in the Licence To Kill Exhibitors’ Campaign Book, presumably as this was a product aimed at a younger audience, and did not fit with the more adult-themed tie-ins that accompanied the first James Bond film to be awarded a ‘15’ certificate by the British Board of Film Classification.

Boxtree published The James Bond Girls by 007 MAGAZINE Editor & Publisher Graham Rye to coincide with the release of Licence To Kill. Although featuring all of the actresses from the Bond films since 1962, the cover naturally showcased the girls of Licence To Kill. The 64-page hardcover first edition featured over 100 colour photographs from the James Bond films, many of which had never been published before. The James Bond Girls was launched on Monday June 12, 1989 - the day of the Licence To Kill press screening at London's ODEON Leicester Square. Author Graham Rye, and Licence To Kill producers Albert R. Broccoli & Michael G. Wilson attended the screening. Licence To Kill then had its Royal World Charity Premiere at the ODEON the next day.

Also issued to tie-in with the release of Licence To Kill were The Official Comic Book - a full colour graphic novel version of the film by American artists Mike Grell (distributed in the UK by Acme Press); a 14-page Souvenir Brochure (in the landscape format) from Hexam & Gridley Ltd. that was available in cinemas during the release of the film, and John Gardner's novelization of the screenplay by Richard Maibaum and Michael G. Wilson. Published by CORONET (who were also issuing Ian Fleming's James Bond novels in paperback at the time), the paperback was the nominal film tie-in first edition of the book which was later issued in hardcover by The Armchair Detective Library in the USA in June 1990.

Philips continued their products placement agreement with EON Productions in Licence To Kill and made their promotion of the film their biggest of the year. A competition offered the winner a chance to appear in the next James Bond film, although one wonders if the first prize was ever actually presented as the series did not return to the big screen for another six years. There were also ten prizes of Rolex Submariner watches to be won, and the 500 runners-up each received a bottle of Bollinger Champagne.

A pair of cinema tickets to see Licence To Kill was offered by Olympus Cameras when retail customers purchased one of their products. The Exhibitors’ Campaign Book featured the Olympus Trip MD model that was launched in 1987, although the more expensive Olympus OM4 Ti SLR camera was seen prominently at the start of Maurice Binder's main titles for Licence To Kill, was featured on the poster (15" X 21½") that accompanied the promotion.

Domark released an arcade style computer game to tie-in with Licence To Kill in the same format as their products issued to accompany the preceding two James Bond films. Issued on multiple platforms, the game's storyline closely follows that of the film, consisting of six scenes in which Bond chases drug baron Sanchez, who has murdered his best friend Felix Leiter's bride. The scenes included helicopter chases, underwater diving, water-skis and behind the wheel of an 18-wheel tanker truck.

Also featured in the Exhibitors’ Campaign Book was a Licence To Kill jacket from ‘Q’ Branch; the nylon zip-fronted bomber jacket was advertised as the instant answer to survive a summer shower, and could be easily packed away into its own pocket for form a 170mm X 200mm pouch! The jacket featured the famous gun barrel logo in orange, with the jacket available in Secret Service black only. The licenced product was available via ‘Q' Branch - actually an offshoot of The James Bond International Fan Club - then helmed by 007 MAGAZINE Editor & Publisher Graham Rye, who also appears in the advertising and promotional photographs above with model Janette Bickerton.

Another product not featured in the Exhibitors’ Campaign Book was the four piece ‘Licence To Kill Gift Set’ from Matchbox Toys Ltd. Aimed at a younger audience the set included scale models of the helicopter seen in the pre-credit sequence of Licence To Kill (1989), the Cessna Float plane used by Bond to escape from Milton Krest's men, plus a Kenworth Truck and Sanchez’ henchmen's Dodge Ram Pickup from the tanker chase sequence at the end of the film. Although the packaging stated the toys were for ages 3 and up, cinemagoers had to be over 15 to see Licence To Kill in the UK, and a product aimed directly at children was therefore somewhat at odds with the more adult tone of the film.

Manufactured in Macau, the Matchbox models were rather crudely executed when compared with the superior die-cast toys still being produced by CORGI. The CORGI Aston Martin DB5 was still available throughout the 1980s with the final version manufactured in England released in 1989. Although not associated with any particular James Bond film at the time, the model was clearly issued to tie-in with the release of Licence To Kill (although the car did not feature in the film), and included a badge with the red silhouette of 007 used on other promotional material for Licence To Kill. In 1989 the CORGI brand was sold to Mattel and subsequent models were then manufactured in Hong Kong.

As a result of lengthy legal proceedings the James Bond film series then went into an enforced hiatus, during which time Timothy Dalton's original seven-year contract had expired. After the legal issues were finally resolved pre-production resumed on BOND 17 in early 1994, with a new storyline from screenwriter Michael France. Although keen to complete a third James Bond film, Timothy Dalton declined to sign another multi-picture contract, and ultimately announced his resignation from the role of James Bond on April 12, 1994. Pierce Brosnan was then revealed as his replacement on June 8, 1994 after originally losing the role to Dalton in 1986.

Once the series resumed with GoldenEye in 1995, EON Productions entered into further marketing promotions with companies associated with the film, and licenced the James Bond brand to others. United International Pictures distributed the first three Pierce Brosnan films in the UK and issued Spirex-bound marketing dossiers to accompany the release, although these were not in the same style as the earlier Exhibitors’ Campaign Books. Die Another Day (2002) was distributed in the UK by Twentieth-Century-Fox and accompanied by a press kit on CD-ROM. Columbia Pictures returned to a printed Marketing Guide for Casino Royale (2006). Subsequent films had global tie-ins and marketing campaigns, with the territory specific promotional items now a thing of the past. The UK Exhibitors’ Campaign Books (and their US equivalent Pressbooks) now remain as a unique printed record of how films were promoted in the pre-internet era, long before the rise of social media and instant word-of-mouth free advertising.

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