James Bond (comic strip) To wit, Fleming wrote: Regardless, Fleming later agreed, and to aid the "Daily Express" in illustrating James Bond, Fleming commissioned an artist to sketch whom he believed James Bond to look like. The assigned illustrator, John McLusky, however, felt that Fleming's 007 appeared too "outdated" and "pre-war", and thus changed James Bond to a more rugged and masculine appearance. The first strip, "Casino Royale", was published in 1958. The story was adapted by Anthony Hern, who previously had serialised "Diamonds Are Forever" and "From Russia with Love" for the "Daily Express". The majority of the early comic strips were adapted
James Bond greatest film hero. He was also placed at number 11 on a similar list by "Empire" and as the fifth greatest movie character of all time by "Premiere". The 23 James Bond films produced by Eon Productions, which have grossed $4,910 million in box office returns alone, have made the series one of the highest-grossing ever. It is estimated that since "Dr. No", a quarter of the world's population have seen at least one Bond film. The UK Film Distributors' Association have stated that the importance of the Bond series of films to the British film industry cannot be overstated,