James Bond in film not to produce any other films based on the "Thunderball" story for a period of ten years following the release of the Eon-produced version in 1965. After the interruption of McClory as producer, Albert Broccoli and Harry Saltzman returned to produce once again. The first four Bond films had been popular in Japan, and Eon decided to take advantage of the market by producing "You Only Live Twice". The film included progressive elements of Japanese culture as part of the background. Lewis Gilbert was appointed director and Ken Adam returned as production designer; Adam built a volcano hideaway set for
You Only Live Twice (novel) serialisation in the "Daily Express" newspaper on a daily basis from 2 March 1964 onwards. "You Only Live Twice" was serialised in the April, May and June 1964 issues of "Playboy" magazine. Ian Fleming's novel was adapted as a daily comic strip published in the "Daily Express" newspaper, and syndicated worldwide. The adaptation, written by Henry Gammidge and illustrated by John McLusky, ran from 18 May 1965 to 8 January 1966. It was the final James Bond strip for Gammidge, while McClusky returned to illustrating the strip in the 1980s. The strip was reprinted by Titan Books in "The James