14 replies to this topic

[superado]

Hello,

For many years, I thought that James Bond used Guerlain's Imperiale cologne in the Fleming novels. These are one of those personal assumptions that is so vivid in my memory, that I "know" I've actually read this, but now, I cannot find it and am in self-doubt.

At least one website states the same thing, but attributes the information to Raymond Benson in his Bedside Companion, but I cannot find it in that book either!

I was told that "The Book Of Bond, James Bond," by Hoyt L & Harry L Barber, states this also, but does not cite the source novel.

I suspect that it is either one or a combination of the following:

1) A case in which another author (Pearson, Amis, Gardner, Wood and Benson) named Guerlain's Imperiale as Bond's cologne, becoming co-mingled with the Fleming "facts."

2) Apocryphally, Fleming mentions this cologne in a non-Bond writing (borderline, "Thrilling Cities"), or in passing attributes Guerlain's Imperiale to Bond via an interview or his correspondence with others (thereby being mentioned in one of his biographies).


3) Fleming himself uses Guerlain's Imperiale, which others (like his biographers) then assumed to be Bond's cologne in part due to the "Fleming is Bond" school of thought.

4) This is an error in a Bond novel commentary, propegating itself onto other commentaries.

Personally, this issue has elevated itself above trivia, becoming an obsession. Can anyone help?

[zencat]

Certainly someone here can help our friend out.

[Goldencobra]

Hi I'm a new member I just joined today.

Yes Bond uses Guerlain's Imperiale in the John Gardner novel Licence Renewed. It's right at the beginning in the second chapter if i recall.
As far as i can remember he never used this cologne in the Fleming novels.

Also Gardner had Bond change his cologne to Dunhill blend 30 in Nobody Lives forever.

Hope this helps

[Qwerty]

A great welcome to the CBn forums Goldencobra.

[zencat]

Hi I'm a new member I just joined today.

Yes Bond uses Guerlain's Imperiale in the John Gardner novel Licence Renewed. It's right at the beginning in the second chapter if i recall.
As far as i can remember he never used this cologne in the Fleming novels.

Also Gardner had Bond change his cologne to Dunhill blend 30 in Nobody Lives forever.

Hope this helps

Great, thanks Goldencobra!

And a big welcome to CBn.

[Mister Asterix]

The only reference Benson has in the Bedside Companion about it is in the bit about Licence Renewed were Benson says Bond still uses Guerlain's Imperiale. Implying (but not actually saying) that Bond used it before.

[superado]

I'm new too Thanks, Zencat, for making me a convert!

...and, thanks folks, for the lead. I too looked it up last night and I now think this is likely what I read (Bedside Companion vs. License Renewed), which convinced me that Bond used Imperiale in Fleming's writings. Now, I wonder if Benson was being literal and that there is indeed some obscure mention in the Fleming novels (I've even scanned TSWLM and have "Thrilling Cities" reserved at my library), that he made a generalism in that Bond has been a long-time Guerlain consumer, or that he was plainly in error to state that Bond still uses Guerlain's Imperiale.

Edited by superado, 16 November 2004 - 04:25 PM.

[Mister Asterix]

[mra]Well, welcome superado and Goldencobra.

It indeed maybe a generalism. The Bedside Companion also tells us that Bond uses Guerlain

[stromberg]

Welcome both of you.

Interesting question, I like this sort of trivia and minutiae.
Just my two cents: have yet to read it so I can't tell, but did anyone check CS if it is mentioned there?

This one I've read, but it was a quick read, so I don't really remember: that type of information could well be from the Pearson Bond biography, maybe the early Paris years...

[Goldencobra]

Hi thanks for the welcome

I reread the Fleming novels a few months ago and as far as i can remember the only men's aftershave/cologne thats mentioned is Lentheric Aftershave in Dr No.
The Fleurs Des Alpes is also mentioned in Dr No but it's a soap. I Think it might also have been mentioned in TSWLM, i'll have to check that.

[milomarch]

I am pretty certain that Bond does indeed use Guerlain's Imperiale as a cologne. It is mentioned in Fleming's books (can't recall which one). This cologne was designed specifically for the Emperor Napoleon, so it has some history behind it. I still have my bottle which I bought nearly 15 years ago after reading about it in one of Fleming's books. I have never read any books from the other authors so I know I did not get this info from them.

[spynovelfan]

Weird. I know Tracy wears Guerlain's Ode in OHMSS, and I seem to remember a couple of other girls wear Guerlain, too, but my memory is that Bond wore Floris in Fleming.

[milomarch]

Well, I have just checked all of my backnotes trying to find the source of Bond using Guerlain's Imperiale cologne, and came up empty. Since I did purchase a bottle of it 15 yrs ago based upon my understanding of a Bonded connection, I am of the opinion now that I may have read of it in Pearson's biography of Fleming. Since many of Fleming's personal habits seemed to have been transferred to Bond, I guess I just made the assumption. So I guess it was 'Floris London' aftershave or cologne after all.

[milomarch]

Just a correction. after checking my sources, I notice that Fleming never mentions Bond using Floris cologne at all. He mentions it being used in Dr. No's bathroom as well as in the restroom at Blades, but the only time Bond mentions it is when he asks May to stock up on Floris bath essence for the arrival of Tiffany Case when she moved in after DAF. The only aftershave/cologne Fleming mentioned Bond using was Lentheric, a bottle of which I just purchased at eBay.

[TortillaFactory]

Most interesting - Fleur des Alps was also mentioned in TSWLM (Bond recommends that Viv start using it in his farewell letter, I think). But as for Bond regularly wearing cologne, I seem to remember some reference to the fact that he didn't in FRWL. My books are all packed up, but I recall him making a snide comment to Kerim Bey about how the English didn't need cologne, because unlike the rest of Europe, they actually bathed. But he may have been referring to someone else (Nash?) who didn't wear cologne.