MOVIES - Aug. 9, 1990

Bond for Sale: The owner of the exclusive rights to novelist Ian Fleming’s James Bond character is putting the superspy on the auction block, it was reported Wednesday, after a long run of movie hits that has grossed more than $1 billion worldwide. The decision was made by film producer Albert Broccoli because revenues from 007 films have been slipping. The latest, “License to Kill,” cost $30 million to make and has grossed only $16 million in domestic theatrical rentals so far. The value of Broccoli’s Danjaq, the company that owns exclusive rights to the Bond writings, is not known, but analysts estimate the worth of the 17-film Bond library at $166 million.