While 007 may have been the original catalyst, what truly turned the 1960s into an era of Bond was the vast number of rip-offs and spoofs that tried to cash in on the craze. Welcome to a new segment on Cinema60 where we guide you through the magical world of Bootleg Bond!

You may have seen the Michel Hazanavicius O.S.S. 117 spoofs starring the ever charming Jean Dujardin, but Did You Know that O.S.S. 117 was actually a real franchise? O.S.S. 117 started out as a book series, created by the prolific Jean Bruce, who was practically unknown outside of his native France. Within the country, however, the books were a smash hit. Hundreds were written, even after Bruce died right when Eurospy fever was about to consume the planet. Bruce’s books and the subsequent film adaptations actually pre-date James Bond, even though ol’ O.S.S. 117 (Hubert Bonisseur de La Bath when he’s at home), was quickly eclipsed by his Scottish-accented brother-in-chest hair.

Join Bart and Jenna as they trudge through these largely terrible films. We promise it’s far a more fun episode to listen to than it was to watch the films, so consider this episode a bit of a riff on Back Row’s I Watched It So You Don’t Have To column.

The following films are discussed:

• OSS 117 se déchaîne (1963)
OSS 117 Is Unleashed
Directed by André Hunebelle
Starring Kerwin Mathews, Nadia Sanders, Irina Demick

• Banco à Bangkok pour OSS 117 (1964)
Shadow of Evil / Panic in Bangkok
Directed by André Hunebelle
Starring Kerwin Mathews, Pier Angeli, Robert Hossein

• Furia à Bahia pour OSS 117 (1965)
OSS 117: Mission for a Killer
Directed by André Hunebelle
Starring Frederick Stafford, Mylène Demongeot, Raymond Pellegrin

• Atout coeur à Tokyo pour OSS 117 (1966)
Mission to Tokyo
Directed by Michel Boisrond
Starring Frederick Stafford, Marina Vlady, Jitsuko Yoshimura

• Pas de roses pour O.S.S. 117 (1968)
OSS 117 Murder for Sale
Directed by André Hunebelle
Starring John Gavin, Robert Hossein, Curd Jürgens

• OSS 117 prend des vacances (1970)
OSS 117 Takes a Vacation
Directed by Pierre Kalfon
Starring Luc Merenda, Edwige Feuillère, Elsa Martinelli