YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE (1967) Sean Connery as James Bond 007 Italian Photobusta

Vintage original 18.25 x 26.5 in. Italian photobusta poster from the classic 1960's action/adventure thriller, YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE, released in 1967 by United Artists and directed by Lewis Gilbert.

Based upon the famous novel by Ian Fleming, when an American space capsule is swallowed-up by what they believe to be a Russian spaceship, World War III nearly breaks out. The British Government, however, suspects that other powers are at work as the space craft went down near Japan.

Is the force behind the theft, as James Bond 007 (Sean Connery) discovers, but its motives are far from clear, and he must first find out where the captured space capsule is held before America and Russia initiate another world war. The cast includes Akiko Wakabayashi, Mie Hama, Tetsurô Tanba, Teru Shimada, Karin Dor, Donald Pleasence, and Bernard Lee, Lois Maxwell, and Desmond Llewellyn. This Italian photobusta poster was printed for the film's original theatrical release in Italy on October 4, 1967. The design features three full-color photographic action scenes in the bottom half and a close publicity shot of beautiful Japanese actress Akiko Wakabayashi wearing a bikini top.

Next to this cheesecake shot is an illustration of the famous image of Sean Connery as James Bond 007 wearing a tuxedo as he holds his gun and, in this particular instance, a space helmet. Italian photobusta posters were printed on a glossy paper stock that really enhances the colors but is very unforgiving when it comes to being handled. Accordingly, this poster, which was folded once vertically down the center, has creases of varying sizes across the majority of it. There are multiple pinholes in or near each corner (some have a lesser amount and other corners have more) and one or two pinholes in the center of both sides. The number "10 7" was machine-punched slightly into and above Connery's last name above the title (see the shot of the verso that we have included) and there are a few small surface nicks as well. The extremely rich color tints are still fresh and vibrant without any signs of fading and this poster can easily be displayed as-is. The novel was the last Ian Fleming James Bond novel published during his lifetime. Released on March 16, 1964, it was the twelfth novel in the series. For the first time in the James Bond film franchise, the screen story bore little resemblance to the source novel.

Some characters and the Japanese setting remain intact, as do several minor details (the oubliette, and the man wearing a face mask, et cetera), but the two stories are radically different. As this was anticipated to Sir Sean Connery's last appearance as James Bond, publicity material released in advance of the movie announced Bond would be killed, married, and become Japanese. While these events were portrayed in this movie, they were actually ruses as part of Bond's undercover activities. Production Designer Ken Adam's volcano set was constructed at Pinewood Studios (located in Iver Heath on the outskirts of Slough in England) and consisted of a movable helicopter platform, a working monorail system, a launch pad, and a full-scale rocket mock-up that could simulate lift-off. Seven hundred metric tons of structural steel and two hundred miles of tubular steel were used.

Adam once said that the set used more steel than that used for the London Hilton Hotel.

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