JFK’s 1961 Book List Made James Bond a Star: Inside Kennedy’s Favorite Books and ‘Electric Effect’ on Pop Culture

When John F. Kennedy shared his list of favorite books with Life magazine in March 1961, the majority of readers undoubtedly expected titles focused on history, politics and war. Understandable, considering the president was in the midst of navigating the Cold War. While those were certainly on the list, there was also a surprise: among JFK’s books was From Russia With Love by Ian Fleming. 

The timing was fortuitous. Although James Bond was already a successful literary creation in Britain, he hadn’t yet become the global cultural force he would soon be. Sean Connery had yet to play the character for the first time in 1962’s Dr. No and Bondmania had not yet swept America. But Kennedy’s endorsement changed the conversation.

In Some Kind of Hero: The Remarkable Story of the James Bond Films, authors Matthew Field and Ajay Chowdhury write, “President Kennedy’s endorsement spread like wildfire across the world. As a personal acquaintance of the president, Fleming could not have been more pleased. To say Bond’s stock was rising would be a considerable understatement. Fleming’s works became the first global literary phenomenon, arguably creating a new genre: the spy thriller. The books were selling in the tens of millions and Fleming became an international celebrity—all this without a single film being made.”

JFK and 007

Kennedy’s appreciation for Bond also made sense. The world of From Russia With Love, the fifth 007 novel, was steeped in espionage, Cold War tension and geopolitical maneuvering—themes that mirrored the realities of Kennedy’s own presidency. And it was a far cry from the more gadget-driven, larger-than-life Bond adventures that would come later. Fleming’s Bond operated in a world of intelligence, strategy and political danger.

Fleming himself soon made clear just how significant Kennedy’s endorsement had been. On June 20, 1962, he wrote to Robert F. Kennedy, then Attorney General, “Thank you for your charming note of June 1st, and I am delighted to take this opportunity to thank Kennedys everywhere for the electric effect their commendation has had on my sales in America… Over here we are all watching with fascination your gallant attempts to harass American gangsterdom. If James Bond can be any help to you, please let me know and I will have a word with M.”

There it was in Fleming’s own words: Kennedy’s endorsement had an “electric effect.” And that boost came at exactly the right time.

Dr. No arrived in 1962, introducing moviegoers to Sean Connery as Bond. Then came From Russia with Love, followed by Goldfinger, the movie that would firmly establish Bond as one of cinema’s biggest icons.

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Kennedy obviously didn’t create James Bond, but his public admiration gave Bond something invaluable in America: credibility and visibility at a crucial moment. And in one of history’s most remarkable pop-culture coincidences, Kennedy’s Bond connection came full circle in November 1963.

In The World of James Bond, Christopher Bray writes, “Unusually, [From Russia With Love] was a film without America or the Americans, except that it benefited from Kennedy choosing the novel for a Life article on March 17, 1961, about his reading habits. It was given as one of his 10 favorites; the article noted Kennedy’s ‘weakness for detective stories, especially those of British author Ian Fleming.’ The film indeed was the last Kennedy saw. He watched it the night before he left for Texas in November 1963.”

It’s a remarkable detail in that the president who helped elevate James Bond in America spent his final evening watching Bond on screen.

The films would ultimately turn 007 into a global phenomenon, but before James Bond became the world’s most famous spy, one presidential reading list helped light the fuse.

For those curious, here are the books Kennedy named as favorites in Life magazine in March 1961:

• Lord Melbourne by David Cecil 
• Montrose by John Buchan 
• Marlborough by Sir Winston Churchill 
• John Quincy Adams by Samuel Flagg Bemis 
• The Emergence of Lincoln by Allan Nevins 
• The Price of Union by Herbert Agar 
• John C. Calhoun by Margaret L. Coit 
• Talleyrand by Duff Cooper 
• Byron in Italy by Peter Quennell 
• The Red and the Black by M. de Stendhal 
• From Russia With Love by Ian Fleming 
• Pilgrim’s Way by John Buchan