NEGOTIATIONS WILL CONCLUDE NEXT WEEK

JOHN E. AYERS, the illustrator of “Jean Hornsby’s Tree-Riffic!” www.jeanhornsby.com , “The Loves of Pocahontas,” and other books, says: “I am very excited to have been chosen to illustrate ‘PER FINE OUNCE.’ I am also very excited that all of the material I am using now is based upon what was written by Geoffrey Jenkins as an ‘Official James Bond 007′ story. Its exciting stuff and I can easily see myself sub-consciously drawing Sean Connery’s image into my Commander Peace—who replaced 007, when the original Jenkins-Glidrose (Ian Fleming Publications) deal was cancelled. I think it’s a shame that the Ian Fleming heirs cut PER FINE OUNCE loose, because it’s one of the best action-adventure stories I have ever seen. It would have made for one of the best James Bond movies ever, because Jenkins’ South African setting is so hostile and different from anywhere else Bond was ever sent by Her Majesty’s Secret Service.”

Ayers also says, “I am grateful for this opportunity, because any illustrator working on this story is going to get international recognition from James Bond fans and Geoffrey Jenkins fans alike, pro and con. To a lesser degree, it is like an actor being cast in the role of Bond. There’s a great deal of responsibility that comes with it to the fans, which have a pre-conceived idea of what they are looking for in the story. I have several pictures of Commander Geoffrey Peace in my head, already. Sometimes, I see him as the young Sean Connery in ‘Dr. No’ and ‘From Russia, With Love.’ At other times, I see him as George Lazenby—not Roger Moore or Timothy Dalton. Commander Peace is a real ‘tough-guy,’ and Connery and Lazenby quantify that consideration, the same way Humphrey Bogart was a ‘tough guy’ in ‘The Maltese Falcon,’ ‘The Big Sleep’ and ‘Casablanca.’ “

When asked who he would like to see portray Commander Geoffrey Peace in the movie version of PER FINE OUNCE, which will certainly owe a lot of its scenes to John Ayers’ work, the artist, who is consistently compared to N.C. Wyeth said: “I’d like to see George Lazenby, perhaps, as the villain, because Mr. Lazenby is very good at that, too, the same way Bogart was good at playing villains. I think my choices could be between three people: One—Russell Crowe, because he is ‘certainly a tough guy, a brilliant actor, and an A-list movie star. Second—George Clooney, because he could play Commander Peace as not only tough, but suave in the same way James Bond is suave in Connery’s films. Third choice: Toby Stephens, the British actor and son of Maggie Smith, who starred in ‘The Prime of Miss Jean Brody.’ and who is now so famous because of the Harry Potter films. Toby Stephens played the villain in ‘Die Another Day,’ and he was one of the best villains of all time, as far as I’m concerned. He also did the BBC radio versions of ‘Dr. No’ and ‘Goldfinger’ as James Bond and I thought he was absolutely terrific. Yes—he might just be the man to play Commander Peace. I see him as Peace, the man who replaced 007 in PER FINE OUNCE.”

John Ayers is scheduled to begin work on PER FINE OUNCE two weeks after the signing of his contract, and the final completion of two other projects in his schedule. GEOFFREY JENKINS’ PER FINE OUNCE, illustrated by JOHN E. AYERS will be ready for publication in late 2011. (Stay Tuned.)

JOHN E. AYERS, the artist who illustrated “Jean Hornsby’s Tree-Riffic!” and the recently published “The Loves of Pocahontas” is in negotiations with the Geoffrey Jenkins Estate to create the first ‘Commander Geoffrey Peace’ graphic novel, PER FINE OUNCE, based upon an original James Bond thriller commissioned by the Ian Fleming estate in 1966. “All references to James Bond 007 have been removed, “Ronald Payne said Saturday, “but the original gold smuggling adventure set in South Africa will be retained. This is the first graphic novel or comic book to ever use ‘Commander Geoffrey Peace,’ who first appeared in the two Jenkins thrillers, ‘A Twist of Sand’ and ‘Hunter Killer.’ Hopefully, the graphic novel which will be based upon the original Jenkins synopsis will showcase the extraordinary talents of this extraordinary artist and illustrator, whose works have been compared to N.C. Wyeth and Norman Rockwell.”

John Ayers said: “I am delighted to be in contractual talks with Mr. Payne and the Geoffrey Jenkins estate and feel that all the people who see and read the story as published will also visualize my works as the basis for a future motion picture.”

JOHN E. AYERS, the brilliant illustrator of “Jean Hornsby’s TREE-RIFFIC…!”, the story of two leaves,  “Mr. Oak” and “Miss Maple,” who tell the story of a family on a Pennsylvania mountain top in 1947, www.jeanhornsby.com has just completed illustrations for a second ‘young people’s book,’ entitled, THE LOVES OF POCAHONTAS by MERRY WYATT, published by Xlibris. The story which centers on the young Pocahontas, the Indian princess and daughter of “Powhatan,” the mightiest chief in 1608 Virginia, is profusely and beautifully illustrated in a style reminiscent of Norman Rockwell’s earliest works.

Mr. Ayers, who created quite a sensation with the publication of “Jean Hornsby’s TREE-RIFFIC…!” in 2006, has scored again with this book of enchanted pictures of early tribal life amongst the ‘Mattaponi, Pamunkey, and Rappahannock’ Indians, who were part of Chief Powhatan’s mighty ‘Confederation.’

But, it is “Princess Pocahontas,’ herself, whom many believe saved the life of England’s Captain John Smith, when faced with the chopping block, that drives the story. THE LOVES OF POCAHONTAS is better than Disney’s animated versions, and Ayres, who is a sensitive and gifted artist when it comes to detail, has enhanced Mrs. Wyatt’s book one-hundred fold.

The writing is superb, but in this case “one John Ayers illustration—and there are many—–is worth ten thousand words….” Ayers is genuinely “Top-of-the-line.”