The James Bond Bedside Companion Read Online Free PDF Page A

engine, and could reach a speed of 85 m.p.h. in a matter of seconds! The Bryces remember that once when Fleming and Josephine were speeding down a country road in the Studillac, they were stopped and arrested by the highway patrol. Fortunately, the local sheriff happened to have recently read a James Bond novel and let Fleming off the hook. A few months later, William Woodward was shot by his own wife in a tragic accident; she mistook him for a burglar. DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER was dedicated to Ivar Bryce, Cuneo, and Woodward.

Front and back covers of the firstAmerican paperback edition of CASINO ROYALE, published in 1955. (© Copyright 1955 by Popular Library. Photo courtesy of collection of Michael Van Blaricum.)

After the visit to Saratoga, Fleming and Cuneo decided to take a cross-country trip together. Fleming had never seen the Midwest or California, so the pair took off on the Twentieth Century Limited to Chicago. Cuneo fondly remembers that the train was already pulling into Albany before Fleming had finished instructing the steward how he wanted his martinis mixed!
    In Chicago, much to Cuneo's chagrin, Fleming was intent on seeing the location of the St. Valentine's Day Massacre. Cuneo convinced him first to visit the Art Institute of Chicago, which contains some of the great Impressionist masterpieces of the world. Fleming was entranced, and when Cuneo ribbed him about the fact that it was nice to find this much "culture" on the "great American prairie," Fleming grandly declared that the pictures had no right being in Chicago! The two men's relationship, remembers Cuneo, was one of constantly "guying" each other.
    The pair took the Superchief to Los Angeles, and Cuneo again remembers that they were halfway to Iowa before the stewards had absorbed their instructions on how to make Ian's martinis. Because Cuneo was a friend of Errett Cord, a chief stockholder in the Santa Fe Railroad, the men gained access to the engine room. During the ride, Fleming questioned the engineer and his assistant on everything from the block-signal system to something called the "dead man control." Fleming was particularly interested in railroads, and his novels frequently contained scenes taking place on trains.
    In Los Angeles, Fleming was in heaven when he and Cuneo visited the Los Angeles Police Intelligence Headquarters. Cuneo introduced Ian and himself to Captain James Hamilton, explaining that Fleming had the "usual distorted view" all Englishmen have of America. "They believe, you know, our country is laced by organized gangs of racketeers, of tremendous wealth, and of enormous influence." The captain, to Cuneo's amazement, replied, "Don't you ?"The captain proceeded to conduct an animated conversation with Fleming about the criminal world. He took out charts and showed the author the Mafia organizations, its discipline, and how it works. Los Angeles' detective work had been reduced to what Cuneo calls a "business machine fineness." A detective at the scene of a fresh crime could telephone the details to his office, where the information was punched on a card and run through a machine. The computer matched specific details of the crime with particulars of other cases. In this way, the detectives determined if there was a similar pattern between the new case and earlier ones. Fleming scribbled down notes on a handy pad that he carried with him at all times. Cuneo was bored by the proceedings, but Fleming was fascinated.
    From Los Angeles, Fleming and Cuneo went to Las Vegas, a perfect locale for James Bond. They had hardly stepped off the plane when Fleming called to Cuneo with a "yelp of delight." He had found a coin machine from which, for a quarter, one could inhale pure oxygen for a couple of minutes. "This," Cuneo said to him, "ought to tell you all you want to know about the joint."
    The pair stayed at the Sands, and went to the blackjack tables even before going to their rooms. There, Fleming met Jack Entratta, the owner of the