sixties spies and sci-fi (1 Viewer)

[Sam Favate]

I read this today as well; sad news indeed. Sounds like he'd had a rough time of it.

 

[Peter M Fitzgerald]

Count me in as a committed AVENGERS, WILD WILD WEST, DANGER MAN and THE PRISONER fan, and I've also ponied up for the DVD releases of MISSION IMPOSSIBLE, LOST IN SPACE, TIME TUNNEL, UFO, NEW AVENGERS and VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA (though I still have to get the available color seasons, at this point). I could never fully get into THE SAINT, for some reason.

Also available in R1 is A&E's under-the-radar release of the first half of the one-season color British series THE CHAMPIONS (1968-69). It's basically a superhero premise done as a spy show. A fun series, though not nearly as good as THE AVENGERS or MISSION IMPOSSIBLE. I'd put it generally on par with UFO and TIME TUNNEL, in terms of quality.

I'm sure the full series run of THE CHAMPIONS is (or has been) available on DVD in R2.

I'm looking forward to the rumored "complete series" release of LAND OF THE GIANTS in R1 from Fox later this year. I'm also hoping we'll see THE INVADERS on R1 DVD someday.

 

[Sam Favate]

How are the I Spy DVDs? In this old thread, there's a claim that the shows were edited for DVD:

http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htf/...ighlight=i+spy

Is this the case? Are there season sets of the show available, or do the 3 box sets include all the episodes? How is the video quality?

I'm considering getting this, so any opinions are much appreciated.

 

[Bob Hug]

Sam, I'm certainly no authority on this series having purchased just one of the old single disc versions of the series, so I can't comment on any editing, but here's some details on the three sets that I picked up from an Amazon reviewer; it sounds like Image did the same thing that MPI did with "The Rifleman," i.e., mix up the episodes rather than offering straight season sets:

"There was a total of 82 episodes included in all three seasons of the show and they are all included in the three box sets, however the sets are not arranged by season nor are they in chronological order. BOX 1 has 22 episodes of season 1 (out of 28) and 6 episodes of season 2.
BOX 2 has 20 episodes of season 2 (out of 28) and 8 episodes of season 3.
BOX 3 has 18 episodes of season 3 (out of 26), 6 episodes of season 1, and 2 episodes of season 2."

The audio/visual quality on the few episodes included on my single DVD was fine for a 1960s series.

 

[Jeff Flugel]

While I'm a fan of THE NEW AVENGERS as well, allow me to plug the original series (esp. the Diana Rigg years), which, while less action-packed than TNA, are wonderful, witty escapist fun, the original formula done to perfection.

There's also lots of good to be found in THE SAINT color eps as well. Both the Emma Peel and Saint Colour Megasets from A & E are good value.

THE PERSUADERS with Roger Moore and Tony Curtis is also a really fun frolic of a series as well, not exactly 60s (produced in 1971) but certainly very close in spirit.

Am very intrigued by what I've read about MAN IN A SUITCASE and THE BARON...can anyone here attest to the quality of the Region 2 sets from either Umbrella or Network? If they're on a par with the Region 1 A & E sets mentioned above, then I'll be paying Amazon.uk a visit soon.

Lovin' quality 60s TV on DVD.

 

[Bob Hug]

I have the "Man in a Suitcase" set from Umbrella, which I ordered from an Australian online store, JB HiFi, late last year when they had a great sale which, with shipping, cost me just over $50 US. It's loaded with extras, the kind that A&E rarely issues with its Region 1 sets of ITC series. The a/v quality was excellent for a 1960s series and the show is very much like the Patrick McGoohan series "Dangerman" a/k/a "Secret Agent." It's really hard to say if MIAS will ever get an official R1 release given the fact that it only lasted a year and the fact that Richard Bradford (who's excellent as "McGill") never really became a star and was relegated to mostly character roles after this series concluded. But I have to say that, for an American audience, if "Jason King" (surely more obscure here than MIAS) can get a R1 release, anything is possible.

 

[Nelson Au]

I didn't see mention of Gerry Anderson's Thunderbirds from 1965. While it is Supermarionation puppets, it's got great Derek Meddings special effects. I saw this as a kid in the sixties and a few shows in the 70's and 80's and it wasn't till a few years ago that I saw it as an adult on DVD and didn't realize the spy craze had influenced this show too.

You could say that Gerry Anderson's Captain Scarlet from 1968 is in that vein too.

 

[Jeff#]

They aren't edited, Sam. I bought the complete series packed in those 3 sets in 2002, and I SPY is complete. Robert Culp did well over 2 hours of audio commentary in 2001, but all of it was split up over 3 episodes (the ones he directed and / or wrote) which are from the 1st and 3rd seasons included in the last set....on one at least one of the "Robert Culp Collection" discs of that set. I haven't seen these in 5 years so I don't recall exactly which disc(s) had the commentaries. They were partially in response to Culp's reviewing of the episodes and a lot were some memories and long (but interesting) stories he had of the crew and working with Bill. It was indeed oddly packaged in terms of going out of order with some of the episodes, but what matters is that all 82 are there and they look great!

I can't understand why Image couldn't get Bill Cosby to join in on the commentary though, as he and Culp have reunited several times over the years (such as in the dreadful private eye feature film "Hickey & Boggs", which Culp also directed in the early 1970s, on "The Cosby Show" in the late 1980s, the TV movie sequel "I SPY Returns" - filmed in at least two countries in July 1993 --- sold separately on DVD, and on the "Cosby" sitcom parodying I SPY in 1999).

 

[Jeff#]

Danger Man -- I bought two of the earlier volumes, but held off on the rest of the series...until a few years later when I bought the 86 episode megaset for half price ($75) earlier this month! I'm watching one of the second season shows (the first as an hour-long show) right now.

The Wild Wild West -- Bought the first 10 volumes from Columbia House on DVD paying way too much ($20 for some 4 episode discs, $12 for others) for several months throughout 2003. That included the entire first season and first 3 episodes of the second season. I still have those discs.

In January I bought the 40th Anniversary edition of WWW's first season for $25.
I will be buying the 2nd season soon.

The Prisoner -- Got the entire series in one shot in the overpriced / oversized A & E megaset release from a few years ago. I bought that before Danger Man.

The Saint -- I only bought the Early Episodes -- the only two sets released here in the U.S. and all are first & second season. Still holding off on the megaset of the superior color episodes from the final two seasons...maybe because I want to someday buy the entire series in one box with slimmer cases.

The Avengers -- Liked it, but won't allow myself to collect it since the pre-Diana Rigg episodes were originally shot on videotape, and I don't collect the awful-looking kinescope films that remain (of the Ian Hendry and Honor Blackman shows). For that reason I won't buy the filmed episodes either.

The New Avengers -- No point in my collecting this if I don't buy the original series, but I agree with the other Jeff about it being better than the original. Why? Better production values overall (including the music) that were possible in the 1970s. The episodes filmed in Canada in the 2nd season were enjoyable too. I have to admit that Joanna Lumley's hair looked terrible though, but that was a popular style back then.

With all of the above shows I've seen every episode back in the 1980s and 90s cable reruns.

 

[Sam Favate]

Thanks for the opinions on I Spy, guys. I am seriously considering getting this (while I wait with the rest of you for The Man From U.N.C.L.E.).

Don't overlook the first season of Danger Man (back when it was called Danger Man). Those half-hour shows are great. I enjoy the hour-long shows too (still working on that mega set), but I like the pre-James Bond era episodes. (The half-hour show aired before the Bond craze, and McGoohan was even offered the role of 007, according to several sources.)

 

[Jeff#]

I've long wondered why Patrick McGoohan would reject the roles of both Simon Templar and James Bond? Roger Moore took both, and McGoohan was offered 007 before "Live and Let Die" started production.

I'm glad A & E Video had the sense to keep the original Danger Man openings (two versions of those with McGoohan from the hour shows alone) and provide the U.S. release's "Secret Agent" title theme as an extra with that abbreviated version of Johnny Rivers' famous song.

As far as opening titles go, the most impressive is the positive-negative photography used for the final version of McGoohan walking towards the camera before the Danger Man logo appears. It's the only thing about black & white that actually works better than when the same effect is attempted in color.

 

[michael_ks]

Well, not the only thing, really. There is no color "film noir"--for obvious reasons.

 

[michael_ks]

Bob covered MIAS quite well. I'll just add that the transfer quality is, to my eyes slightly superior to the color A&E "Saints". Also, the general consensus is that the UE transfers are slightly better than those on the Network release, but I cannot attest to this.

As for "The Baron", antiques art dealer/adventurer John Mannering, who is a cross between the debonair Templar and rough-and-tumble McGill (of MIAS) is played by American Steve Forrest, who unfortunately is not the most dynamic actor in the world. His delivery is somewhat wooden, but he has a very able, attractive and telegenic assistant in Susan Lloyd. Forrest is good in action scenes however, showing much prowess with machine gun and fists alike. Terry Nation and Dennis Spooner, staple writers for ITC turn in some very good scripts for "The Baron" and this is where the series strength lies, along with the good production values witnessed in other ITC contemporaries like "The Saint" and "Danger Man".

An interesing side note on the character of Mannering. John Creasy, author of books on the adentures of "The Baron" portrayed him as British. The show's creators turned him into a Texas oil millionaire instead in an attempt to attract American audiences, something that was always (and wisely so) on the mind of ITC executive Lew Grade. Trouble is, British viewers and fans of the novels unfairly panned the series for this reason and the show ended, like MIAS with just one season and 30 episodes.

 

[Jeff#]

Oh....I have to disagree with you there: One noteable case in point: The 1990s / early 2000s version of The Outer Limits. It managed to pull off in modern times what the B & W original series had previously done in the 1960s. Even in color, the new OL was quite "film noirish" in its own right.

Film noir isn't about monochrome or color, but rather what can effectively create a dark and sinister mood in a work of fiction.

 

[Jeff Flugel]

Thanks Bob and Michael, for the interesting responses about MAN IN A SUITCASE and THE BARON, respectively. Looks like I'll have to pick those up. From what I've read on other U.K. boards, it does indeed sound like Umbrella's encoding on the transfers is slightly better than Network (though the latter seems to offer excellent extras - something which A & E isn't exactly good at). Pity about them casting an American (Forrest) as the Baron...guess that was part of Lew Grade and ITC's idea of appealing to the worldwide market. Good to know he's convincing in the action scenes, anyway. And everything I've heard about MIAS leads me to believe that it's a terrific series.

Also looking into DEPARTMENT S, JASON KING,THE CHAMPIONS, STRANGE REPORT, and RANDALL AND HOPKIRK, DECEASED. Something about ITC shows just appeal to me.

 

[michael_ks]

It was just dark, that's all--like all modern sci-fi shows are. Nothing distinctive about it whatsoever. The cinematography and directing for the new series IMO doesn't begin to approach what was achieved by Conrad Hall, Jr. and Gerd Oswald.

 

[michael_ks]

Jeff, if you make the plunge for "The Baron" be advised that the image quality is a notch below MIAS and "The Saint" for about the first 7-8 episodes, then begins to closely match these for the remaining episodes. Also, the brief night shots setting a scene often appear grainy and greenish in tint, something I've noticed with "The Saint" and MIAS as well.

You really can't go wrong with "Suitcase" especially as Richard Bradford does an exceptional job portraying the dejected anti-hero. Unlike Templar or Drake, McGill often comes out of a case decidely the worse for wear and in the early episodes (before censors stepped in), quite bloodied up. Also, one has to sometimes listen closely to Bradford's lines as he chose to compact and mumble his lines somewhat (much to the consternation of directors) in an effort to emulate his idol, Marlon Brando. And being the consummate professional, Bradford's fight scenes are the best I've ever seen in an ITC series. It's legend that some stunt men refused to work with him because of his pugilistic nature.

 

[Jeff#]

Gerd Oswald, John Braham, Bryon Haskin, and others were indeed talented directors, and Conrad Hall's work as the original Director of Photography (whom ABC wrongly fired after the first season) was incredible for its time.

But the same can be said for a lot of other directors and directors of photography from both series. We can't overlook the fine work that earned the new series numerous awards and nominations: http://imdb.com/title/tt0112111/awards

 

[progrocktv]

I actually met Bill Cosby very briefly a few years back during an event. I dodn;t want to take any of his sime up because he looked busy but I quickly asked him what was it like working on I SPY which he sincerely replied "one of the BEST experiences of my life". I then asked him if he's still in contact with Robert Culp which he replied "Bob Culp is one of my best friends and we try to go golfing together every 2 weeks"

Man, what I'd pay to be the caddy during one of those golf games!

 

[progrocktv]

Other spy series I'd love to see on DVD:

Man/Girl from U.N.C.L.E. (of course)
It Takes A Thief (I hear Universial might be releasing these sometime soon)
Mod Squad
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