Flying the Flag For The Jolly Roger

      Hello and welcome to the achieve. I've been busy looking through many a dusty file to bring you an article not to do with the Prisoner, but from McGoohan's previous television series Danger Man. Well they say a change is as good as a rest. The following appeared in the New York Times in June of 1987, and was written by John J. O'conner.

{Patrick McGoohan in "Secret Agent" weeknights at 11 on C31}           

  While the nations public television system continues  to fret about financing and ideology, WNYC has decided to fill up some of its schedule gaps with what looks like a Patrick McGoohan festival. The station has done well by several runs of "The Prisoner," a first rate Kafkaesque series Mr. McGoohan did in the late 1960's for Britain's commercial ITC organisation. Now, weeknights at 11o'clock, Channel 31 is offering the earlier "Secret Agent," an ITC series that had its premiere in 1965. In this one, done in black and white, Mr. McGoohan plays John Drake, a British ""special security agent" travelling the world in search of adventure, although most of the filming was done at the MGM studios at Borehamwood, England.

    Drake is contemporary of Ian Felming's James Bond, but as show business legend has it, Mr. McGoohan refused to indulge in the fleshy theatrics that became 007's trademark. Seeing Drake as a man of high ideals, the actor disapproved of Bond's womanising and regular excursions into violence, especially on the "family medium" of television. Drake never kisses a woman on screen, even though the opposite sex invariably tends to pant heavily in his presence. And far from being preoccupied with weapons, Drake usually doesn't even carry a gun, preferring to use his wits or, as an old fashioned last resort, his fists.

    Reportedly Mr. McGoohan turned down an offer to be the original James Bond in the movies and, in fact, physically he is as ideal as Sean Connery for the role. Mr. McGoohan was actually born in Astoria, Queens, raised in Ireland and then resettled in England for an acting career that got a considerable boost with an acclaimed stage performance in Ibsen's "Brand." Tall and dashing, his cool demeanour and underlying intensity are perfect for a television screen. His performances are completely devoid of histrionic fat. Here, distilled, is television minimalism at its best.

    In last week's run of "Secret Agent"  - its familiar theme song performed by Jonny Rivers - Drake could be found in reasonable facsimiles of Paris, Prague, East Berlin and the beaches of the Cote d'Azur. Now more that 20 years old, the capers still play remarkably well, their short scenes tumbling along and keeping the pace moving at a clip that doesn't leave much time for thought. Too many questions concerning logic could easily spoil the fun. Ralph Smart created the series and served as executive producer. The writers and directors changed from episode to episode. Every  other plot seems to revolves around atomic secrets that are always being bought and sold by an odd collection of misfits. Among the beautiful women passing through Mr. Drake's life so far have been Dawn Addams and Leslie Gordoni. But no touching, please.

    Occasionally, the stories threaten to disappear into thin air. Tonight's for instance, entitled "That's Two of Us Sorry," brings Drake to an Atomic Energy Authority in Scotland, where - you guessed it - some classified material seems to be missing. In no time at all, Drake is visiting a nearby island where the wary inhabitants appear to be suspiciously involved with the illegal whisky and Russian trawlers. The connections with atomic secrets are tedious. But Drake behaves splendidly, and the fine supporting cast includes the wonderful veteran actor Finlay Currie and a newcomer named Francesca Annis, since familiar from several "Masterpiece" Theatre" epics.

    What can WNYC do for an encore? Well, "Secret Agent" originated in Britain under the title of "Danger Man." If any of those earlier episodes are available on the syndication market, the Mcgoohan cycle would be complete. The prospect isn't earth shattering, certainly, but then public television is not being overwhelmed with urgent projects these days. For the current "Secret Agent" run, WYNC has even whipped up something called an "Espionage Sweepstakes" for its viewers. Can free dishes be far beyond?

Archivist-No.3

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