Plans for Bond celebrations at MoMA announced

Press Release
In celebration of 50 years of James Bond on film, and in anticipation of the release of the 23rd 007 adventure, SKYFALL the Museum of Modern Art pays tribute to the franchise with a full retrospective of all 22 Bond films — from DR NO (1962) to QUANTUM OF SOLACE (2008) — from Global James Bond Day on October 5th through to the 31st, 2012, in The Roy and Niuta Titus Theaters. 50 Years of James Bond will screen the Bond films in chronological order twice during the month of October.In 1987, MoMA celebrated the 25th anniversary of the release of the first film in the Bond series with a gallery exhibition and film series on the occasion of accepting a donation of the first 14 Bond films by producer Albert R. “Cubby” Broccoli. Broccoli was a supporter of MoMA’s mission to collect, preserve and exhibit films and presented the pristine, 35mm prints to MoMA with the promise to provide new prints of all subsequent Bond releases. To date, the collection has grown to include 22 prints, with the acquisition of Skyfall anticipated later this year.

Anne Morra, Associate Curator, Department of Film remarks, “Since the founding of the MoMA Department of Film in 1935, the Museum has long partnered with the motion picture industry to acquire, exhibit and preserve commercial films. The celebration of this remarkable and on-going gift by Albert R. Broccoli and now guided by Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, illustrates a continuum of industry support for the Museum’s work. There has been no more successful and anticipated movie franchise than James Bond, and we are thrilled to celebrate this singular anniversary.”

Accompanying 50 Years of James Bond is “Goldfinger: the Design of an Iconic Film Title”, an installation that features the first film title sequence to enter MoMA’s collection as a design work in its own right, in conjunction with related preparatory material. It was designer and art director Robert Brownjohn (1926-1970) who conceived, designed, and directed the Goldfinger title sequence. As MoMa explain, “Brownjohn deployed type in dynamic, abstract forms, in this case illustrating both his mastery of modern graphic design and his ability to apply sophisticated graphic treatment to popular media.”

Producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli added, “It’s a thrill to see MoMA celebrating James Bond’s golden anniversary with this special retrospective commencing on the actual anniversary of the world premiere of DR NO.”

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