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 (film) "Ning-Po" unloaded, Bond flies over the area in a heavily armed autogyro created by Q. Near a volcano Bond is attacked by helicopters, which he defeats, confirming his suspicions that the enemy's base is nearby. A Soviet spacecraft is then captured in orbit by another unidentified craft, heightening tensions between Russia and the United States. The mysterious spaceship lands in an extensive base hidden inside the volcano. It soon turns out that the true mastermind behind this is Ernst Stavro Blofeld, the mysterious leader of SPECTRE who has been hired by the People's Republic of China to start a Soviet-American