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Saab product placement in the Gardner novels
brinkeguthrie
Piz Gloria
What is it with this guy? I just finished the one with Marcus Bismaquer- I did a search on my Kindle and Saab was mentioned 146 times. Did he get paid to include them?
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Without Mr Gardner there would be no Dragonpol or so much else. He is greatly missed, but never forgotten by this member and hopefully many others.
Indeed x I loved the man,bless him.. great guy.
To Gardner’s great credit, he put a huge amount of thought into Bond’s choice of car for the ‘80s and in PussyNoMore’s not so humble opinion, he made a great choice.
The Saab 900 turbo was, at that point in history, considered to be a real performance vehicle that sat outside the ‘fleet managers’ reach. As a consequence, it was considered to be a car for the discerning individualist, therefore perfect for Bond.
Comparisons with Aston mentions are a little misleading as the DB3 really only featured in one novel whereas the Saab was in all of Gardner’s up to ‘Role Of Honour’ when he swapped it for a Bentley.
Yeah, Gardner took a serious and respectful approach in his effort to bring Bond into the 80s. Maybe harder to see through 21st Century eyes looking at the Saab, there was definitely some research and thought into its selection. And obviously Saab was very accommodating.
I'd love to see the 1981 Silver Beast show up on screen in a future Bond film. Or even tricked up from Q Branch for OO7 to use under cover.
Top Gear had a wonderful tribute to Saab in on of their episodes. They made some good cars over the years.
The Silver Beast and its creator.
Happily, I was very kindly credited with finding that on You Tube by the Gardner family. They said they hadn't seen it since its original transmission.
It's a great piece and Gardner's wry expression aptly shows how much he was loving all the massive promotion for Licence Renewed in 1981. I just wish there were more Gardner TV (and radio) interviews available.
I always liked the concept of an aircraft landing light available to blind pursuers--great to see it in reality with the other optional extras.
Kind of an unknown reference today, this 2010 ad competition drew a mention to Gardner's Saab, though.
That is funny.
Poor old John. He came in for a lot of criticism for his Bond work.
The Pussy was pleased that he did ‘Licence Renewed’ . He made a good fist of that and unlike most continuation novels it had a memorable story line and the ingredients worked.
Beyond that, he was treading water.
That said, ‘The Silver Beast’ certainly was a great element in the ‘80s reboot.
Personally i like his novels,and he was very popular at the start,deserves respect.
*Come to think of it, You Only Live Twice was the first Fleming I read and SeaFire and Cold Fall were the first Gardners. Not exactly the best starting points for either run in terms of understanding what the hell is going on in the broader narrative.
(Beside, without being named, the Silver Beast is hinted in the RPG James Bond 007: Role-Playing In Her Majesty’s Secret Service ).
Lancia is still around, aren't they (in Italy at least)?
They are, but only in Italy and only one model. So that’s basically over I’m afraid.
Too bad. One of those interesting car brands you don't see that often. Think I saw a Lancia earlier this summer. Could have been an Italian visiting Norway.
Could also have been an older model ;)
Glad Alfa is still around though :)
It definitely could have been an older model; I just noticed the car badge while driving. :-) Alfa sure has some good looking car models. Not that often you see Alfas where I live, but there's probably more of them further south in the country.
11 years... damn, where'd the time go?
@RichardTheBruce - I love the idea of The Silver Beast finding its way into a Bond film. Maybe one day, when a hardcore Bond nerd directs a Bond film, the ol' girl will get some screentime.
You're not a petrol head if you haven't owned an Alfa.