The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

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The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
Genre Espionage
Starring Robert Vaughn
David McCallum
Leo G. Carroll
Theme music composer Jerry Goldsmith
Country of origin Flag of United States United States
No. of episodes 104
Production
Executive producer(s) Norman Felton
Running time 60 min.
Broadcast
Original channel NBC
Original run September 22, 1964 – January 15, 1968
Links
IMDb profile
TV.com summary

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. was an American television series that ran on NBC from September 22, 1964, to January 15, 1968, for 104 episodes (see 1964 in television and 1968 in television). The series centered on a two-man troubleshooting team for a covert espionage organization: American Napoleon Solo (Robert Vaughn), and Russian Illya Kuryakin (David McCallum). Leo G. Carroll played Alexander Waverly, the British head of the organisation.

James Bond creator Ian Fleming contributed to the show's creation. The book The James Bond Films reveals that Fleming's TV concept had two characters: Napoleon Solo and April Dancer (The Girl from U.N.C.L.E.). ("Mr. Solo" was originally the name of a crime boss in Fleming's Goldfinger.) Robert Towne and Harlan Ellison wrote scripts for the series, which was originally to have been titled Solo. Author Michael Avallone, who wrote the first original novel based upon the series (see below), is sometimes incorrectly cited as the creator of the series (such as in the January 1967 issue of The Saint Magazine).

At one point, Fleming's name was to have been connected more directly with the series. The 2004 book The Incredible World of Spy-Fi by Danny Biederman includes a photograph of the cover of the original prospectus for the series, showing the title Ian Fleming's Solo.

Solo was originally slated to be the "solo" star of the series, the only "Man". But a minor walk-on by a Russian agent named Illya Kuryakin caught fire with the fans, and the two were permanently paired. The two agents' witty byplay in the face of danger became the show's most endearing quality.

The series, though fictional, achieved such notability as to have artifacts (props, costumes and documents, and a video clip) from the show included in the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library's exhibit on spies and counterspies. Similar exhibits can be found in the museums of the Central Intelligence Agency and other agencies and organizations involved with intelligence gathering.

Contents

[edit] Background

The show revolved around a fictional secret international law-enforcement agency, the United Network Command for Law and Enforcement; it was engaged in a constant struggle against a vast organization known as THRUSH. The meaning of the acronym was never revealed in the series, but in the U.N.C.L.E. novels written by David McDaniel and based upon the series stated it stood for the Technological Hierarchy for the Removal of Undesirables and the Subjugation of Humanity. This has been accepted as canon.

THRUSH's aim was, essentially, to conquer the world. Napoleon Solo once said of them, "THRUSH believes in the two-party system: the masters and the slaves." So dangerous was the threat from THRUSH that governments, even those most ideologically opposed to one another (such as the United States and the U.S.S.R.), had cooperated in the formation and operation of U.N.C.L.E.. Similarly, if Solo and Kuryakin held opposing political views, the writers allowed little if any of this to show in their interactions.

The creators of the series decided that the involvement of an innocent character would be an integral part of each episode, giving the television audience someone with whom they could identify. Through all the changes in series in the course of its four seasons, this element remained a constant factor — from a suburban housewife in the pilot episode, "The Vulcan Affair", to the various people kidnapped in the final episode, "The Seven Wonders of the World Affair".

Some episodes of the series may be seen as exhibiting extreme "campiness" when viewed by modern audiences; for example, one scene (filmed on Chatsworth Boulevard in Northridge, California, a public street) featured a villain in an ice-cream truck being pursued by Kuryakin and Solo. The fleeing villain, yanking the sticks from what appear to be ice pops, throws them as grenades at his pursuers, whereupon they explode. For some reason, Illya's Karmann Ghia seems unable to catch up to the lumbering ice cream truck, which would allow the heroes to simply shoot the miscreant.

This campiness was mostly in evidence during the show's third season, when the producers made a conscious decision to increase the level of humor of the show (the first two seasons were more straightforward action-adventures). According to The Making of the Man from U.N.C.L.E. this change of direction resulted in a severe ratings drop, and nearly resulted in the show's cancellation; it was renewed for a fourth season and an attempt was made to go back to serious (or at least semi-serious) storytelling, but viewers didn't return and it was cancelled midway through the season.

U.N.C.L.E. headquarters in New York City were most frequently entered by a secret entrance in Del Floria's Tailor Shop. Another entrance was through The Masque Club. Mr. Waverly had his own secret entrance. Unlike the competing TV series I Spy however, the shows were overwhelmingly shot on the MGM back lot. The same outside staircase was used for episodes set throughout the Mediterranean and Latin America.

The episodes followed a naming convention where each title was in the form "The Something Affair", such as "The Vulcan Affair", "The Mad, Mad, Tea Party Affair", "The Take Me To Your Leader Affair", and "The Deep Six Affair".

The theme music, written by Jerry Goldsmith, changed slightly each season. Goldsmith only provided four original scores and was replaced by Morton Stevens, who also composed four scores for the series. After Stevens, Walter Scharf did six scores, and Lalo Schifrin (who later wrote the memorable Mission Impossible theme) did two. Gerald Fried was composer from season two through the beginning of season four. The final composers were Robert Drasnin, Nelson Riddle and Richard Shores.

[edit] Props

Solo and Kuryakin, well-trained in the martial arts, also had a range of useful spy equipment, including handheld satellite communicators to keep in contact with U.N.C.L.E. headquarters. A catchphrase often heard was "Open Channel D!" when agents used their pocket radios (originally disguised as cigarette packs, later as a cigarette case, and in following seasons, as pens).

One prop, often referred to as "The Gun," drew so much attention that it actually spurred considerable fan mail, often so addressed. Internally designated the "U.N.C.L.E. Special", it featured a modular semi-automatic weapon, originally based on the Mauser handgun, but soon replaced by the more-readily available Walther P38 pistol. As such, the gun could be converted into a longer-range carbine by attaching a long barrel, extendable shoulder stock, telescopic sight, and extended magazine. The magazine was actually a standard magazine with a dummy extension on it, but it inspired several manufacturers to begin making long magazines for various pistols. While many these continue to be available 40 years later, ironically, there is no long magazine currently offered for the P-38.

THRUSH had an equally impressive range of weaponry, much of it only in development before being destroyed by our heroes; their most notable item was the infrared sniperscope, enabling them to target gunfire in total darkness. A major design defect of the sniperscope (both in the TV series and in the real world) was that its image tube's power supply emitted a distinctive whining sound when operating. This device was built around a U. S. Army-surplus M1 carbine.

A few of the last episodes had an "U.N.C.L.E. car", which was developed from the Piranha, a concept car built to prove the usefulness of plastics in auto construction.

[edit] Spin-offs

The series was popular enough that a spin-off series, The Girl from U.N.C.L.E., ran for one season, starring Stefanie Powers as agent "April Dancer" (a character name credited to Ian Fleming). There was some crossover between the two shows, and Leo G. Carroll played Waverly in both programs, becoming one of the first actors in American television to star as the same character in two separate series (a feat later repeated by Richard Anderson and Martin E. Brooks on The Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman).

Each two-part episode of Man from U.N.C.L.E. was later re-edited into a series of theatrical films that were initially released in Europe, and then to American TV. In each case, additional footage was shot. Among the films in this series: To Trap a Spy (1964); The Spy with My Face (1965); One Spy Too Many (1966); One of Our Spies is Missing (1966); The Spy in the Green Hat (1966); The Karate Killers (1967); The Helicopter Spies (1968) (TV); How to Steal the World (1968). The U.N.C.L.E. fad also inspired a related series of books, many written by David McDaniel and Peter Leslie. See below for a listing.

Cover from Millennium's "The Birds of Prey Affair" by Joe Phillips
Cover from Millennium's "The Birds of Prey Affair" by Joe Phillips

Other spin-offs included a Man from U.N.C.L.E. digest-sized story magazine, two Gold Key Comics comic book series (one based on the show, which ran for about a dozen issues, the other a one-shot spinoff called Jet Dream based upon characters introduced in the comic book but not featured in the TV series), board games, action-figures, and toy pistols. The show also inspired the naming of the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents. A two-part comics story, "The Birds of Prey Affair" was put out by Millennium Publications in 1993, which showcased the return of a smaller, much more streamlined version of Thrush, controlled by Dr. Egret, who had melded with the Ultimate Computer. The script was written by Mark Ellis and Terry Collins with artwork by Nick Choles, and transplanted the characters into the present day.

[edit] Reunion TV-movie

A reunion telefilm, The Return of the Man from U.N.C.L.E., subtitled The Fifteen Years Later Affair was broadcast on CBS April 5, 1983, with Vaughn and McCallum reprising their roles, and Patrick Macnee replacing Leo G. Carroll as the head of U.N.C.L.E. (A framed picture of Carroll appeared on his desk.) The movie included a tribute to Ian Fleming via a cameo appearance by an unidentified secret agent with the initials "J.B." The part was played by one-time James Bond George Lazenby who was shown driving Bond's trademark vehicle, an Aston Martin DB5. One character, identifying him, says that it is "just like 'On Her Majesty's Secret Service,'" which was, of course, Lazenby's Bond film.

The movie briefly filled in the missing years. THRUSH had been put out of business, and the remaining leader was in prison (his escape begins the story). Illya had quit U.N.C.L.E. after a mission had gone sour and an innocent woman had been killed, and now designed women's clothing in New York. Napoleon had been pushed out of U.N.C.L.E. and now sold computers, though he still carried his U.N.C.L.E. pen radio for sentimental reasons (which is how the organization is able to contact him after so many years).

Solo and Kuryakin were recalled to recapture and defeat THRUSH once and for all, but the movie misfired on a key point: instead of truly reuniting the agents on the mission - and showcasing their witty interaction - the agents were separated and paired with younger agents. Like most similar reunion films, this production was considered a trial balloon for a possible new series, but none eventuated. Many U.N.C.L.E fans considered it so poorly done as not to be part of the series canon.

[edit] DVD

In a March 24, 2006 interview with the Seattle Times, Robert Vaughn stated that a North American DVD release of the series was scheduled for 2006. The website tvshowsondvd reported that a DVD release of the first season from Anchor Bay Entertainment was scheduled for July 25, 2006,[1] however a subsequent report indicated this would not occur as an issue over the rights to the series has erupted with Warner Brothers.[2]

A region 2 DVD release of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. movies was released on September 8th, 2003. The DVD contains five of the eight movies, missing the following: To Trap a Spy (1964), The Spy in the Green Hat (1966) and One of Our Spies is Missing (1966).

[edit] Trivia

  • Napoleon Solo was originally to have been Canadian, but it was decided that a series on an American network needed an American lead character.
  • In the UK and U.S.A., an U.N.C.L.E. brand of chewing gum was produced to tie-in with the series. Each package included a Man from U.N.C.L.E. card about 5 cm by 9 cm, one side being a good photo of an individual from the series, the other being part of a giant poster from the series. Children were keen to get the complete set and school swaps were common.
  • One of the original pen communicators now resides in the museum of the Central Intelligence Agency. Unfortunately, the museum is not accessible by the public. Replicas have been made over the years for other displays, and this is the second-most-identifiable prop from the series (closely following the U.N.C.L.E Special Pistol). A Bluetooth-equipped pen communicator has been prototyped (as of January 2007), which will work with a voice-controlled, Bluetooth-capable cellular telephone, but the speaker volume is too low to be practical.
  • While "Channel D" is used throughout the series by Solo, in the original pilot ("The Vulcan Affair"), Solo's boss tells him to use Channel D, with the implication that this is a temporary channel assignment for this one mission.
  • The pistol used by Solo in the TV-movie ("The Fifteen Years Later Affair") was based on a Heckler & Koch pistol, and featured a wrist rest rather than the shoulder stock seen on the U.N.C.L.E. Special.
  • The Transformer Megatron was originally created by Takara Toys based on the Walther P38 version of the U.N.C.L.E. Special. As part of the New Microman: Micro Change toyline, this weapon came in a styrofoam insert covered in packaging to make it resemble a briefcase.
  • Post-hardcore band At the Drive-In named a song Napoleon Solo on their album In/Casino/Out.
  • The character of Dr. Kiely Flanagan in Jason Mordaunt's cult novel Welcome To Coolsville[3], uses the aliases Roberta Vaughan, Davidia McCall and Leona Carroll.
  • Future Star Trek stars William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy appeared together in a 1964 episode, "The Project Strigas Affair". Shatner played a heroic civilian recruited for an U.N.C.L.E. mission, and Nimoy played the villain's bumbling henchman.
  • Barbara Feldon, later to become Agent 99 on Get Smart, played an U.N.C.L.E. translator eager for field work in "The Never-Never Affair". Mr. Waverly caved and sent her on a "secret mission" that was, in fact, to pick up a packet of his favorite tobacco. Naturally, Thrush agents thought the package was valuable, and Napoleon had to help her survive the delivery.
  • Forty years after the debut of this series, both of its main stars found themselves enjoying renewed popularity on television, Vaughn in the British caper series Hustle and McCallum in the American military crime investigation series NCIS.
  • In the first regular televised episode of Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, which replaced The Man from U.N.C.L.E. on NBC-TV's Monday night schedule in January 1968, Leo G. Carroll (Mr. Waverly) appears in the dance party segment, holding an U.N.C.L.E. pen communicator and saying into it, "Open Channel D! Come in, Mr. Solo, I think I've found THRUSH headquarters!"
  • In the David McDaniel novels THRUSH was founded by Col. Sebastian Moran after the death of Professor Moriarty at the Reichenbach Falls.
  • In Sweden there is a hardcore/screamo-band named "Mannen från UNCLE", which is the Swedish title for the series.
  • Rocksteady/Reggae artists Ike Bennet & The Crystalites named a song "Illya Kuryakin" which can be found on Trojan Records Guns of Navarone/Ride Your Donkey Album.
  • Rocksteady/Reggae artists Lyn Taitt & The Jets named a song "Napoleon Solo" which can be found on their album Hold Me Tight on Trojan Records.
  • There was a latin rock band from Argentina called Illya Kuryaki Y Los Valderramas.

[edit] Original Novels

The first Man from U.N.C.L.E. novel, by Michael Avallone. Pictured: Robert Vaughn.
The first Man from U.N.C.L.E. novel, by Michael Avallone. Pictured: Robert Vaughn.
Rare children's storybook based upon The Man from U.N.C.L.E. Left to right: David McCallum, Robert Vaughn and Leo G. Carroll.
Rare children's storybook based upon The Man from U.N.C.L.E. Left to right: David McCallum, Robert Vaughn and Leo G. Carroll.

Two dozen original novels were based upon Man from U.N.C.L.E. and published between 1965 and 1968 (for a time, the most of any American-produced television series except for Star Trek, though there have now been more original novels published based upon Alias). Freed from the limitations of network television, these novels were generally grittier and more violent than the televised episodes and were very successful.

  1. The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (a.k.a. The Thousand Coffins Affair) - Michael Avallone
  2. The Doomsday Affair - Harry Whittington
  3. The Copenhagen Affair - John Oram
  4. The Dagger Affair - David McDaniel
  5. The Mad Scientist Affair - John T. Phillifent
  6. The Vampire Affair - McDaniel
  7. The Radioactive Camel Affair - Peter Leslie
  8. The Monster Wheel Affair - McDaniel
  9. The Diving Dames Affair - Leslie
  10. The Assassination Affair - J. Hunter Holly
  11. The Invisibility Affair - Buck Coulson and Gene DeWeese (writing as "Thomas Stratton")
  12. The Mind Twisters Affair - "Stratton"
  13. The Rainbow Affair - McDaniel
  14. The Cross of Gold Affair - Ron Ellik and Fredric Langley (writing as "Fredric Davies")
  15. The Utopia Affair - McDaniel
  16. The Splintered Sunglasses Affair - Leslie
  17. The Hollow Crown Affair - McDaniel
  18. The Unfair Fare Affair - Leslie
  19. The Power Cube Affair - Phillifent
  20. The Corfu Affair - Phillifent
  21. The Thinking Machine Affair - Joel Bernard
  22. The Stone Cold Dead in the Market Affair - Oram
  23. The Finger in the Sky Affair - Leslie.

Another volume, The Final Affair, also by David McDaniel, was completed but not published. Copies of the manuscript have circulated among fans for decades. Written after the series was cancelled, it was intended to provide a definitive conclusion to Solo and Illya's adventures. Another book, The Catacombs and Dogma Affair, has been mentioned in some sources, but it isn't listed as one of the official U.N.C.L.E. novels (it's possible it might be one of the above volumes, retitled). Volumes 10-15 and 17 of the series were only published in the United States.

The Rainbow Affair is notable for its thinly-disguised cameo appearances by The Saint, Miss Marple, John Steed, Emma Peel, Neddie Seagoon, Father Brown, a retired, elderly Sherlock Holmes, and Dr. Fu Manchu. The novel uses the same chapter title format that Leslie Charteris used in his Saint novels.

Whitman Books also published three hardcover novels aimed at young readers and based upon the series. The first two books break the naming convention "The .... Affair" used by all other U.N.C.L.E. fiction and episodes:

  1. The Affair of the Gunrunners' Gold - Keith Brandon
  2. The Affair of the Gentle Saboteur - Brandon
  3. The Calcutta Affair - George Elrick

A children's storybook entitled The Coin of El Diablo Affair was also published.

The aforementioned digest magazine based upon Man from U.N.C.L.E. and often featured original novellas that were not published anywhere else.

[edit] Parodies

[edit] Get Smart

The original television show (as well as the James Bond movie series) inspired a parody series, the 1965-1970 NBC sitcom Get Smart, which starred Don Adams.

[edit] The Glass Bottom Boat

The Glass Bottom Boat was a movie starring Doris Day, Rod Taylor, Arthur Godfrey, Paul Lynde, Dom DeLuise.

Doris' character is dating Rod's character and is mistaken for a spy. Lynde is the head of security for the secret project run by Taylor and at one point dresses up in drag. In a party scene, Lynde walks by the bar, sees Napoleon Solo (Robert Vaughn) standing there holding a drink in full tuxedo while the U.N.C.L.E. theme is playing. Lynde does a double take and finds Solo has disappeared!

[edit] Please Don't Eat the Daisies

One episode of the 1960s comedy series Please Don't Eat The Daisies was entitled "Say Uncle." Aired Jan. 11, 1966. Official Synopsis: The twins see their dad go into a tailor shop and talk to Illya Kuryakin as he comes out. Because their spy manual says that "anyone can be a spy provided he eats the proper breakfast" they're sure that Dad is a secret agent. When Mom overhears Jim ordering dynamite on the phone, she starts to believe it too. With permission from U.N.C.L.E. Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuryakin make cameo appearances.

[edit] A.U.N.T.I.E.

The July 1965 issue of Mad Magazine featured a parody of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. called "The Man From A.U.N.T.I.E." which stood for Association of Unbelievably Nauseating Television and Idiotic Entertainment. Its two spies were called "Napoleon Polo" and "Illya Nutcrackin".

Ben Elton also called his 1990 comedy television series "The Man From Auntie," a reference not only to the Man from U.N.C.L.E. but also to the BBC's nickname "Auntie Beeb".

During one episode of G.I. Joe, a James Bond-style agent named Matthew Burke worked for the secret organisation known as A.U.N.T.I.E.

An episode of the British television series The Avengers was entitled "The Girl from A.U.N.T.I.E.". Despite the title, the episode had little connection to "The Man from U.N.C.L.E.".

[edit] The A-Team: "The Say U.N.C.L.E. Affair"

One episode of the 1980s adventure series The A-Team was entitled "The Say U.N.C.L.E. Affair" and featured Vaughn and McCallum. Vaughn was a member of The A-Team's cast at this point, playing General Stockwell, while McCallum appeared as an enemy agent. The episode was loaded with in-jokes referencing the series but otherwise there was no link to the original show. In the cliff-hanger ending Stockwell and Ivan have a gunfight in which Ivan's truck is wrecked. It is unclear at the end if Ivan is killed or escapes.

[edit] NCIS

As noted above, David McCallum went on to co-star in the television series NCIS starting in 2003. In the series, he plays medical examiner Dr. Donald "Ducky" Mallard. A second season episode of the series, "The Meat Puzzle", makes direct reference to The Man from U.N.C.L.E. in a conversation between the characters Jethro Gibbs and Kate Todd:

Kate: "Gibbs, what did Ducky (McCallum) look like when he was younger?"
Gibbs: "Illya Kuryakin."

In a first season episode, the team create an E-Fit of Dr. Donald "Ducky" Mallard -- a simulation of what Mallard might have looked like as a young man. When the E-Fit is briefly shown it is an image of actor McCallum as he appeared in The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

[edit] Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp

Created by Stan Burns and Michael Marmer, Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp was an American television show on ABC from September 12 1970 to September 2 1972 that featured a cast of chimpanzees who were given apparent speaking roles by overdubbing with human voices. The plot revolved around Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp, and his female colleague Mata Hairi, in secret agent and spy scenarios. Link worked for an agency APE (Agency to Prevent Evil) engaged in a long conflict with the evil organization CHUMP (Criminal Headquarters for Underworld Master Plan).

[edit] Translations

  • (French) : Des Agents très spéciaux
  • (Spanish) : El hombre de C.I.P.O.L

[edit] See also

[edit] References

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