PAN
RAYMOND HAWKEY SERIES
Also known by collectors as the X series (due to the letter indicating the price at the base of the spine) this series of UK covers was printed by Pan in the 1960’s. The cover design for “Thunderball” was created by celebrated graphic designer Raymond Hawkey. It features a more modern font, a prominent “James Bond” in text and two die cut bullet holes piercing the skin as the cover image. The design was a dramatic change from the previous 1950’s “painted” covers by Pan and this new style may have contributed quite significantly to the literary success of Ian Fleming during “Bond-mania” in the 1960’s. Previously released Fleming Bond novels were republished with covers designed by Pan staff in the same style as Hawkeys, as well as subsequent Fleming novels. With the release of “Octopussy” in paperback by Pan in 1967 this series became the first complete Fleming Bond series with uniform covers anywhere in the world. And when "Colonel Sun" was released in paperback in 1970 it also had a similar style.