Friday 8 December 2023

Harry Palmer on the Town

Recently I found online - after searching for it for over ten years - a copy of Town Magazine from July 1966, with a great feature written at the time that the Funeral in Berlin film was being made in the West German capital.

Town Magazine was in the 'sixties one of the first true 'men's magazines' - in its broadest sense; obviously, being the sixties, there are features on pretty girls - including girls featuring in Bond films - but there are, like Playboy had at the time in the States, plenty of articles on deep topics around politics, science, culture etc. Town is a far cry from the 'nineties 'lads mags' in the UK, like Zoo and Loaded.

What comes across strongly in this feature is that one film in, Michael Caine was still not yet a global superstar; more, he was an up and comer. But you already get from reading this article a sense that he was on a trajectory to stardom.

What's fascinating about finding and reading through decades-old magazines is seeing just how different the adverts are and what consumer sensibilities advertisers appealed to: the back cover is for cigarettes, and there are adverts for sports cars, tailored suits, after shave and Terylene trousers

Anyway, take a look at the article 'Son of IPCRESS':









1 comment:

  1. Mid-1960s was the period when the Berlins' focused cold war was raging, with
    the Wall truly up, and news of escapes of East Berliners, who could not make it
    was avidly read in Britain.
    The news that the film Funeral in Berlin was being shot was greatly publicised in the written media. I read a very good description of how the Up and Coming actor Michael Caine would as Harry Palmer add a very good value to the film, citing his good performance in the IPcress File film.
    There were of course news about Roald Dahl writing the script for the Bond film: 'You Only Live Twice', and its Japan locations for the film shooting which was being completed.
    Harold Wilson was the PM then. The country was recovering from the sadness of Winston Churchill's death, the previous year,.
    Print media was the king, and in the tube journeys people were reading the newspapers and paperbacks, Reading was a habit seen every where.
    No wonder, the advertisers used this medium to advertise products. Brylcreem adverts showing the shiny well groomed hair of immaculately dressed Richie Benaud the Australian leg spinner appearing in newspapers.
    It was escapism from the bad news of the Vietnam War, although Wilson did not support it, but more importantly, from the effects of the rampant inflation. Books and films were heavily sought after as diversions from the bad news prevailing in this period. Smoking was the norm. Terylene shirts were popular, I had 6 of them that went well with 2 Terylene trousers! Easy dressing for work with a tie.

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