Date: Oct 30, 2007

Licence to Learn About Bond: Bond, James Bond: The World of 007

Hofstra University Symposium, November 6 to 8, 2007; November 9 Concert: Licence to Swing

Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY … The Hofstra Cultural Center is presenting a symposium on James Bond - Bond, James Bond: The World of 007 - to take place Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, November 6, 7, and 8, 2007.

Invited guests include:

Robert Davi (Joseph G. Astman Distinguished Conference Artist), an actor and Hofstra alumnus who has appeared in more than 60 movies and played Franz Sanchez in Licence to Kill. In addition, he played FBI Agent Bailey Malone for four and a half years on NBC’s Profiler.

Tom Mankiewicz wrote, co-wrote or did uncredited work on the screenplays for five James Bond movies: Diamonds Are Forever, Live and Let Die, The Man With the Golden Gun, The Spy Who Loved Me and Moonraker. He wrote Mother, Jugs and Speed and contributed to the screenplays of Gremlins, War Games and The Goonies. He worked on the final draft of the film classics Superman and Superman II, and he co-wrote the screenplay Ladyhawke. These represent just a few of his writing credits. He has executive produced films and worked on a number of different television projects. Mr. Mankiewicz will participate from Los Angeles via a video conference.

Raymond Benson (Joseph G. Astman Distinguished Conference Scholar) is an author, composer and stage director, who wrote The James Bond Bedside Companion as well as novelizations of Bond screenplays and was commissioned to write six original Bond novels. He was also the vice president of the James Bond 007 Fan Club and is on the board of directors of the Ian Fleming Foundation.

John Griswold, author of Ian Fleming's James Bond: Annotations and Chronologies for Ian Fleming's Bond Stories.

Lee Pfeiffer, author, editor and publisher of The Essential James Bond: An Authorized Guide to the World of 007, James Bond's London and The Art of James Bond. He is also a documentary producer who produced The Goldfinger Phenomenon and The Making of Thunderball, The Making of Goldfinger and The Thunderball Phenomenon.

Lois H. Gresh, technical communications director of the Department of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math at the University of Rochester, and co-author of The Science of James Bond (with Robert Weinberg).

Deborah Lipp, author of The Ultimate James Bond Fan Book: Lists, Facts, Anecdotes, Trivia and Much More.
    
Symposium events include:

*Panels and presentations include the following:

•    Raymond Benson on “The James Bond Phenomenon”
•    “Bond’s Weapons, Gadgets and Cars - Science, Fantasy, Commerce”
•    “Bond Girls Grow Up”
•    “A Bond Pot-Pourri,”  featuring the presentations “The Psyche of a Bond Collector;” “Enigma Variations: The SPECTRE in Ian Fleming’s Thunderball and Terence Young’s Film;” and “Helm, Matt Helm: A Comparison of James Bond and His Chief American Rival”
•    “Playing a Bond Villain”: actor Robert Davi interviewed by Lee Pfeiffer
•    “Writing Bond” - panel discussion featuring authors, Raymond Benson, Lois Gresh, John Griswold, Deborah Lipp and Lee Pfeiffer (to be followed by a book signing)
•    Cocktail hour and dinner, featuring a piano medley of Bond music by Raymond Benson.

*Pre-Symposium Film Screenings of Bond Films

•    October 16: Dr. No (1962) and Casino Royale (2006)
•    October 23: On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969) and Live and Let Die (1973)
•    October 30: Thunderball (1965) and Never Say Never Again (1983)
•    November 6: The Man with the Golden Gun (1974) and Goldfinger (1964)
•    November 7: Licence to Kill (1989) - with an introduction by Robert Davi and Die Another Day (2002)

Films will be shown from 6:30 to 11 p.m. The October 16 and 23 screenings will be held at the Multipurpose Room East, located in the Mack Student Center on Hofstra’s North Campus. The October 30, November 6 and 7 screenings will be at the Student Center Theater, located in the Mack Student Center on the North Campus.

*Post-Symposium Concert: Licence to Swing: the Music of James Bond
Friday, November 9, 2007 at 8 p.m.
A concert featuring the songs and music from the James Bond films, as part of the Joseph G. Astman International Concert Series. Pianist Ted Howe and his quartet, with special guest vocalists, will take you on an exciting jazz excursion into the timeless music of 007. Featuring selections by such composers as John Barry, Lionel Bart and Anthony Newley, you'll thrill to new adaptations of familiar James Bond themes including "From Russia With Love," "Diamonds are Forever," "You Only Live Twice" and many more.

All conference events, with the exception of meals, are free to members of the Hofstra community upon presentation of a current HofstraCard. Registration fees are $65; $55 for senior citizens; and $35 for matriculated Hofstra students. A November 8 banquet is priced separately at $40. The November 9 concert is priced at $18; $15 for senior citizens; and $10 for children under 12. Copies of Medicare card must accompany requests for senior citizen rate and a current student ID card must accompany requests for student rate.

For more information on Bond, James Bond: The World of 007 call the Hofstra Cultural Center at (516) 463-5669 or visit www.hofstra.edu/culture.

Hofstra University is a dynamic private institution offering more than 140 undergraduate and 155 graduate programs in liberal arts and sciences, business, communication, education and allied human services, and honors studies, as well as a School of Law. With a student-faculty ratio of 14-to-1, professors teach small classes averaging 23 students that emphasize interaction, critical thinking and analysis. The Hofstra community is driven, dynamic and energetic, helping students find and focus their strengths to prepare them for a successful future.