The Ian Fleming Foundation: Bond For Good Causes
Another James Bond movie is headed to the theaters and James Bond fans all around the world are lining up to see Daniel Craig in action as 007. Part of the lure is the long history of the movies and the books written by Ian Fleming which create a whole world of superspy adventures with beautiful women, fast cars, yachts and gadgets. I've seen Bond-related vehicles come up for auction before but I didn't know, until I saw a recent article in the Chicago Tribune, that there is actually an Ian Fleming Foundation, a group of owners of some of these vehicles. The foundation is a charity of seven board members who use their Bond vehicles to help non-profits raise money. The charity will loan out vehicles for a fee or a percentage of the money brought in and that money goes toward the foundation's operating budget. Their end goal is to have a museum of Bond vehicles that raises money that can be donated to a scholarship for a writer or filmmaker.
Some of the vehicles including the Lotus submarine car used in the 1977 film 'The Spy Who Loved Me,' the Aston Martin Volante used in the 1987 James Bond film 'The Living Daylights,' and the Ford Mondeo used in the 2006 film 'Casino Royale' are on display at the Beaulieu National Motor Museum in New Forest between Bournemouth and Southampton in England. The James Bond Experience also includes props and apparel from the movies. The exhibition was created with the Ian Fleming Foundation.
