There's a man who leads a life of danger
To everyone he meets he stays a stranger
With every move he makes another chance he takes
Odds are he won't live to see tomorrow
Secret agent man, secret agent man
They've given you a number and taken away your name
Beware of pretty faces that you find
A pretty face can hide an evil mind
Ah, be careful what you say
Or you'll give yourself away
Odds are you won't live to see tomorrow
Secret agent man, secret agent man
They've given you a number and taken away your name
------ lead guitar ------
Secret agent man, secret agent man
They've given you a number and taken away your name
Swingin' on theone day Riviera
And then layin' in thealley next day Bombay
Oh no, you let the wrong word slip
While kissing persuasive lips
The odds are you won't live to see tomorrow
Secret agent man, secret agent man
They've given you a number and taken away your name
Secret agent man
Those are the lyrics of the song 'Secret Agent Man' written by Steve Barri and P.F. Sloan and performed by Johnny Rivers for the opening sequence of the American broadcast of the British television series 'Danger Man,' aired as 'Secret Agent. betwen 1964-1966.
However I have often thought, as has my wife, that the lyrics are more fitting to what happened to 'the Prisoner.' The fact that they've given the Prisoner a number, and taken away his name. I'm not at all sure that happened to John Drake at any time.
Be seeing you
This as well as the 'Resignation Suit' which Drake wears in a couple of episodes, lends more credence to 'The Prisoner' being a sequel...
ReplyDeleteBCNU );oB
Hello Steve,
ReplyDeleteYes, it can certainly be seen that way. My thoughts in the past have been on those lines. But then again it might just be a the case of McGoohan picking the Prisoner's suit of clothes out of wardrobe because he likes the look.
Regards
David
Be seeing you
Numbers were quite prevalent by the time Rivers' tune was penned. Bond was 007, Maxwell Smart was Agent 86, Mr.Waverley was No1 (shome mishtake shurely), Napoleon Solo was No11, and David McCallum was playing No2 (never understod that one).
ReplyDeletehttp://numbersixwasinnocent.blogspot.co.uk/2010/06/from-mind-of-mcgoohan-john-drake-of.html
Further to the coincidence or otherwise of "the suit" worn in "The paper Chase": the trope of cctv surveillance is also explored within "The Paper Chase", and some of the dialogue-style seems to have inspired McGoohan, if only unconsciously.
"I know everything that goes on in this house. It’s useless for you to sit there with your enigmatic face."
"Are you the judge and jury then?"
"If you like…… and you have only one plea"
"Guilty?"
"Guilty!"
http://numbersixwasinnocent.blogspot.co.uk/2009/09/mcgoohan-on-my-mind-time-has-come.html
Hello Moor,
ReplyDeleteAn interesting comment. I used to watch 'Get Smart' and was a huge fan of 'The Man From U.N.C.L.E' once upon a time.
Yes, 'The Paper Chase' Peter Swanwick is in that one, but I found the final scene with the go-kart a little too ridiculous, and too long!
McGoohan actually wore that suit of clothes in more than one episode of 'Danger Man,' I'd have to get the book out to see which ones, as I can't recall them off-hand.
Regards
David
BCNU
Yes, I too found the whimsy of the go-kart a little jarring in a show like "Danger Man". The episode was quite scrupulously done otherwise. Have you seen the production pix of the card table and how they filmed it on a little circular railway track for the camera to rotate around them?
ReplyDeleteMcGoohan was the director of that episode, and I would really like to know if he approved/requested that "keystone Cops" finale, or whether it was Sidney Cole, insisting on a bit of fashionable "Avengers-style" stuff. Cole did speak of there being a disagreement between them, after he took the controlling reins over from the increasingly absent Ralph Smart, which he [Cole] thought was a directly contributor reason as to why McGoohan began to gravitate away from doing any more "Danger Man".
Hello Moor,
DeleteNo I have not seen any production stills from 'Danger Man.' When I was a boy I did have some 'Danger Man' bubble-gum crads. And when I attended a 'Memorabilia' event at the NEC years ago where I did buy some 'Danger Man' photographs.
And that's a very interesting comment about the production of the episode. But again, I know virtually nothing of the production side of 'Danger Man,' I've never really felt the need to go into that aspect. It has always been enough to simply enjoy the episodes. However I have looked into a couple of episodes regarding the reality of the stories behind 'Under the Lake,' and 'Don't Nail Him Yet.'
Regards
David
Be seeing you
I had no idea about the production pix until I saw the Extras on the Network dvd's. I recall the go-kart finale is done to a sort a sort of Irish Jig piece of music. I'm not sure whether that makes it moor, or less likely, that McGoohan had the idea to do it that way. Perhaps it was the whole notion of John Drake leaping out of a window, into a bale of hay, and somehow then driving away in a go-kart, that he found just too ridiculous for words. It's a shame, but I don't let it spoil what is otherwise a fantastic episode, in so many different ways.
DeleteHello Moor,
DeleteAh, well there you have the advantage of me, as I do not have the Network DVD boxset of 'Danger Man,' I have all the episodes on good old fashioned Video.
I agree it's a fantstic episode, and if only Drake had used the Go-Kart to simply drive away, instead of up and down, round and round, over and over, the episode would be perfect. But as you say, I've never allowed that to spoil the episode for me either, when I watched it.
Regards
David
I'm obliged {as Drake would say}
If one holds a shaded lense (from a pair of shades) to one eye while the camera rotates around the card table, the illusion of 3D is created. It's particularly effective with the smoke. Try it!
ReplyDeleteHow does it work? Because one eye is shaded - the brain picks it up a fraction of a second after the other eye, thus creating two images. Of course this only works while the camera is in motion. Try it also at the beginning of 'Fall Out' as the camera pans into Portmeirion. Look out for the bird that flies across the screen while the actual location is finally revealed. It seems to pop out!
BCNU );oB
Hello Steve,
DeleteInteresting. I might give it a go the next time I watch the episode.
Regards
David
I'm obliged