March 23, 2023 | Kelly Youngblood
It鈥檚 a toss-up for Mike VanBlaricum on which he loves more鈥攁nything related to James Bond and the fictional character鈥檚 creator, Ian Fleming, or his beloved Alma Mater, the University of Illinois. Luckily, he鈥檚 rarely had to choose.
In fact, VanBlaricum has found opportunities over the years to combine his passion for both, benefitting several different entities at the University, including the 澳门六合彩官网 and its students.
VanBlaricum, who graduated with three degrees in electrical engineering (BS ’72, MS ’74, and PhD ’76), is the president of the Ian Fleming Foundation. He was the driving force behind the creation of the Ian Fleming Foundation Undergraduate Research Scholarship for media students nearly a decade ago. He says there were several reasons for creating this scholarship.
It was a way for the Ian Fleming Foundation, formed in 1992 by VanBlaricum and two friends, to fulfill one of its main purposes鈥攅ducation. It also enabled them to honor the late Ian Fleming and highlight his journalistic endeavors.
鈥淲e wanted to make students aware that Ian Fleming was a journalist, a book reviewer, and a travel writer, as well as being a novelist and short story writer,鈥� VanBlaricum said. 鈥淭hat’s why his books are so well written鈥攈e is trained as a journalist.鈥�
The scholarship is also a nod to the late film critic and journalism alum Roger Ebert (BS 鈥�64), since it was designed to provide incentive and support to outstanding undergraduate students participating in research around film. Plus, the fact that Ian Fleming and Roger Ebert started their careers as journalists seemed like a 鈥渨onderful match.鈥�
The origin of the scholarship may be multi-faceted, but the goal is more singular鈥攖o get undergraduate students involved with research at an early phase of their educational careers.
Undergraduate students in every 澳门六合彩官网 major鈥攁dvertising, computer science + advertising, journalism, or media and cinema studies鈥攆rom freshmen to seniors, are eligible to apply if they are participating in research (either their own or with faculty) or an independent study project with a Media faculty member. The research can cover any area of film history or criticism, advertising in film, contemporary film production including the areas of film merchandising/memorabilia, travel writing, or history, and evolution of print journalism.
鈥淚 think for undergraduates in the 澳门六合彩官网, who are going to be writing and producing as they get older, doing research as freshmen and sophomores is pretty cool. I wish I had done stuff like that when I was that age,鈥� VanBlaricum said.
VanBlaricum is somewhat of an expert when it comes to research. His career in research and program management spans more than 35 years, and much of that time was spent at Toyon Research Corporation based in California, which specializes in technology development and defense systems analysis. He retired from Toyon Research Corporation in 2010 but still serves as president emeritus of the company.
His 鈥淏ondiana鈥� collection, a term VanBlaricum coined himself, began in his 30s and required a talent and dedication only a true researcher could possess. Over the years, the self-professed 鈥渃ollector at heart鈥� has amassed over 10,000 items, ranging from Fleming鈥檚 literary works and related books to merchandise such as toys, games, records, posters, and other ephemera. The Ian Fleming Foundation owns over 40 vehicles featured in James Bond movies, including a helicopter and submarine, which they loan to museums and charity events.
Lately, he spends much of his time organizing and preserving his collection. He is currently in the process of donating a portion of his Ian Fleming/James Bond collection to the University of Illinois Rare Book and Manuscript Library. To date, he has already donated over 800 items.
VanBlaricum and his wife, Pam, who also earned three engineering degrees at Illinois, currently reside in California but come back to visit Illinois often. They own a home in Urbana that they purchased when their two daughters were attending the University of Illinois.
In the fall, they enjoy going to Illini football games as well as various Lyric Theatre and other School of Music presentations. In the spring, they look forward to coming back for Ebertfest. Along with the camaraderie and the possibility of running into old friends, VanBlaricum likes to 鈥渟ee movies on the big screen with an astute audience and to hear people explain and critique the films.鈥�
VanBlaricum, a faithful volunteer at the University of Illinois since he was a student and co-chaired Engineering Open House in 1972 with his wife, continues to be an involved alum.
He has served as president for the Electrical & Computer Engineering Alumni Board, for the Spurlock Museum Board of Advisors, and for the Illinois Music Advisory Council. In addition, he was the creator and a lead developer for the Illinois Distributed Museum, which highlights innovations at the University of Illinois. He鈥檚 also a generous donor, giving to many units, including his major home Grainger Engineering, the Spurlock Museum, the School of Music, and the University Library.
VanBlaricum鈥檚 enthusiasm for the University of Illinois and his Bond/Fleming collection doesn鈥檛 seem to be waning anytime soon; however, he unfortunately had to choose between Ebertfest and Bond this year.
He and his wife will be in London during Ebertfest weekend, attending the 70th anniversary of the publication of Fleming鈥檚 first book, Casino Royale. The Fleming estate is having an event to commemorate the anniversary and is launching a new re-booted series of Bond novels.
鈥淎s my wife, Pam, says, nothing new can come out without me having to buy the whole set,鈥� said VanBlaricum, who is excited to add another item to his collection.