“On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” (1969): From Denmark with Love

For "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" (EON 1969) production designer Syd Cain once again furnished the arch villain Ernst Stavro Blofeld's hideout with Danish Modern.

Disguised as the herald Sir Hilary Bray James Bond (George Lazenby) checks in at the Swiss mountain resort Piz Gloria. His room features two pendant lamps created in 1964 by the famous Danish designer Verner Panton (1926-1998). Each of the Fun 0DM lamps (DM is short for the German term "Decken-Montage" meaning ceiling-mounted) consists of a four-ring chrome-plated metal frame with natural sea shells discs. The lamps are clearly visible around the film's 56-minute mark (Blu-ray) as Bond is checking the lamp for hidden microphones. Early versions of the Fun 0DM lamp were manufactured in Switzerland which is also the film's primary location.

OHMSS Panton 1

● Link to the Fun 0DM lamp at verpan.com

In the same sequence (time code 56:20) Syd Cain reused the iconic Bodil Kjær Office Desk from 1959 as part of the furniture in Bond's room. The free-standing table previously featured in "From Russia with Love" (EON 1963) and "You Only Live Twice" (EON 1967).

Around the two-hour mark Tracy di Vicenzo (Diana Rigg) is seen fiddling with another Verner Panton-designed lamp, the Fun 5DM, in Blofeld's office. Fun 5DM is an extra-large ceiling mounted lamp with two clusters of shells hanging from stainless steel rings.

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“The Poppy is also a Flower”: Danish theatrical poster (1966)

The somewhat obscure 1966 feature film "The Poppy is also a Flower" is of special interest for James Bond completists as the screenplay was based on an original idea by Ian Fleming hatched before his death in August 1964.

Fleming's participation was due to the film's director, Terence Young. As production of "The Poppy is also a Flower" was about to commence in 1965, Young left the post-production on "Thunderball" to his editor Peter Hunt.

"The Poppy is also a Flower" is an anti-drug spy thriller which highlights UN's campaigns against the world-wide opium trade. United Nations initiated the production which was financed by Xerox Corporation for showings on American TV although the film was released as a theatrical feature in other countries. In Denmark it was called "Operation Opium" and premiered on October 14, 1966. The release poster, pictured below, does its best to accentuate the James Bond/Agent 007 connections.

Harold Sakata (Oddjob in "Goldfinger") is the only actor from the EON Bond series to appear in the star-studded cast of "The Poppy is also a Flower". All of the actors waived their fees for a token payment of one dollar. Many of the male French and Italian actors in the film were dubbed by Robert Rietty who also voiced, among others, Emilio Largo (Adolfo Celi) in "Thunderball" and appeared on-camera in "Never Say Never Again" (1983).

"Operation Opium" was universally panned at the time of release. The film is available on German DVD and Blu-ray (Region 2) as "Mohn ist auch eine Blume" issued by the label Filmjuwelen .

Operation Opium - Danish theatrical posterThanks to movieposter.dk.

“You Only Live Twice” (1967): From Denmark with Love

● Danish Modern design by Bodil Kjær(born 1932) made its first Bond appearence in "From Russia With Love" (EON 1963) in several sequences showing Ernst Stavro Blofeld sitting behind Kjær's iconic Office Desk from 1959.

In "You Only Live Twice" (EON 1967) Bodil Kjær's free-standing wood and aluminum table reappears several times. In the film's teaser sequence, delegates from the three superpowers USA, USSR and United Kingdom are each seated behind Office Desks.
Time code (Blu-ray): 03:56-05:02

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