Double O or Double Zero?
CmdrAtticus
United StatesPosts: 1,102MI6 Agent
I have taken the "Double Oh" pronounciation for granted - until now. Everyone will say "Double Oh", then there are some who say it should really be "Double Zero". However, my question is this: whoever stated (including Fleming himself) that the two "oh's" were supposed to be digits? Just because the last number is? Since this is supposed to be a coded designation, there is no reason why the two "ohs" cannot actually be the letter o (in other words, Fleming could have used BB7 or FF7 or ZZ7. I remember reading that he originally took the classification from a secret filing system they used during the war where instead of A-Z the system used AA-ZZ, therefore 007 could have been a document labeled "7" within the 00 file, or even a page 7 perhaps. He may have chosed the "Oh" designation for the 00 section in his novels because the actual translation meant "nothing" or "no one' - to mean the section was so secret that even it's classification was beyond naming - to the point of repeating it twice to emphasize the fact. To give a modern example - the media refers to the highly secret SEAL group that took out Bin Laden as "Seal Team Six", when in fact the name became so well known the Defense Department finally changed the groups name to a new designation - Naval Special Warfare Development Group "DEVGRU". However, since this also become well known in the media it was changed again to another title, which is so secret the media still has not found out the new code name. Talk about a real "00" section...
I may be grossly misinformed about the OO code, so if any members have any input on this, please let me know.
I may be grossly misinformed about the OO code, so if any members have any input on this, please let me know.
Comments
Plus to me, Thanks to Bond and the mighty Coca Cola empire, I associate "zero zero seven" with a bloody black tin of fizzy pop! Not from QoS i hasten to add, just the merchandise blurb at the time. Does anyone else find that branding a bit off putting, like the idea of a lime green Guinness or perhaps translucent white Scotch?
Am I overthinking this?
And my current Barclaycard ends in 007. I do love reading it out so...
http://apbateman.com
and on a seperate subject and for no reason. what might the First thirteen numbers of your card be TSA? :v
just out of interest.
"Double-O section." Bond also tells M that he would prefer not to leave the Double-0 section. From this brief scene in chapter 3,
"The Impossible Mission" I think we can conclude that it is indeed Double-0-Seven and that the 0s are zeros and not letters.
Always go back to the source. B-)
Maxed out and back again, sorry TP.
http://apbateman.com
Reflections in a double bourbon...
I still believe that the double-0 designation must refer to two zeros. There are references throughout the series that numbers alone are used for agent designations.
In Casino Royale Chapter 3's title is "Number 007" In chapter two of the same novel a reference is made to agent 1860. In TMWTGG Fleming refers to agents 267, 398, 742 and 098, all victims of Scaramanga. When Felix Leiter shows up in Thunderball much to Bond's surprise and delight he says to his friend "007? Meet No. 000."Other clues can be found in the novels. The typeface for a zero '0" is different than for a capital 'O'. Bond makes plenty of references to his Double-0 number throughout the books but never mentions any letters., not for field agents anyway. Because of all these references I still must maintain that as is stated in so many of the books Bond is number 007.
In the end though it might be intesting to learn what two capital Os might mean in the designation if that were indeed the case.
Out of Order might be a good one, referring to the deceased target. I suppose all that rteally counts is that 007, whatever that designation means, will always be Bond. James Bond.
I hold the opinion that it is Double "O" as in the letter "O'. All the other sections in Bond's service are designated by letters. Bond is simply number 7 in the Double "0" section. His designation could still be a "number" it just has a "Oh Oh" prefix.
Ian Fleming had a habit of being inconsistant on small details. It may not be possible to ever know "for certain" if he had numbers or letters in mind. Prehaps they are for all purposes interchangable. Since the source for the "OO" designation was a WW2 Naval Intelligence code for "Top Secret", some clever researcher should be able to find out from the archvives if the WW2 label was intended to be numbers or letters.
I think that will answer the question as well as it can be answered.
Bond’s Beretta
The Handguns of Ian Fleming's James Bond