Mr. Novak, NBC TV Series 1963-65. (1 Viewer)

[Flashgear]

While we wait on a Warner Archive announcement for season one of Mr. Novak on DVD (from what I hear, the release is coming late this year and likely not sooner), I'd like to share a few images from Chuck Harter's excellent book here...and with the author's permission...

As we've seen previously, Walter Koenig attributes his high profile and showcase performance as a teenage Russian defector in season one's "Boy Without a Country" (Dec. 10, 1963) as being instrumental in his later casting as "Chekov" on Star Trek...his career signature role, of course...Walter also appeared in two season 2 episodes as well, both of those also being dynamic and important roles in his early career as an actor..."The Firebrand" (Apr. 13, 1965) and "With a Hammer in his Hand, Lord, Lord!" (Sept. 29, 1964)...

Promotional print ad for "Boy Without a Country"...


James Franciscus and Walter Koenig...


Author Chuck Harter at lunch with Walter Koenig in Jerry's Deli in Studio City just last week...Chuck tells me that Walter is in good health and has a number of personal appearances scheduled for later this year on the convention circuit...

 

[WendyCR]

Good to see Mr. Koenig still plugging along. Not sure if it is well known or not, but it was his son, Andrew, who played the role of Mike Seaver's dimbulb best friend "Boner" on Growing Pains in the '80s.

Andrew apparently committed suicide back in 2010 in Vancouver after going missing, so the elder Mr. Koenig and his family had a tough go of it for a while. Come to think of it, in that picture of him above, his son resembled him.

 

[Jeff Flugel]

Thanks to your promotional skills, Randall, I recently purchased the Kindle version of Mr. Harter's book, and am very much enjoying it. I also listened to his appearances on the TV Confidential podcast. He was an articulate and informative guest. Mr. Novak sounds like a quality show...count me in for a copy of season one when Warner Archive releases it.

*Edited to add: I hadn't heard about the death of Walter Koenig's son. Very sad.

 

[shoeshineboy]

I bought the book and thoroughly enjoyed it. Chuck went the extra miles to round up a lot of interesting information and did some wonderful interviews, as well as filled it with cool photos of the era. It's whetted my appetite to see this elusive series which was on TV when I was 2-3 years old (no doubt we were watching a western or something at that hour)... A thumb's up from me.

 

[Flashgear]

Glad to hear that Jeff and Dan! Thank you for that interesting info, Wendy...Chuck Harter's book Mr. Novak - An Acclaimed Television Series is certainly among the absolute best history/episode guides for a vintage TV series ever produced...an unexpected treasure trove of compelling detailed narrative, newly conducted cast and crew interviews and a wealth of great photos and illustrations...the book itself, and it's enthusiastic reception by Warner Archive President George Feltenstein, seems to have been the needed catalyst in getting this great but nearly forgotten tv series out of the vaults...Chuck recently met with famed Television and Film Writer / Critic Leonard Maltin, who will shortly feature his own enthusiastic review of the book on his own website leonardmaltin.com

For details of the book and the forthcoming WAC DVD release check out this website https://mrnovakbook.com/
Amazon order pagehttps://www.amazon.com/Mr-Novak-Acclaimed-Television-hardback/dp/1629331643/ref=pd_ybh_a_19?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=M0PJ4JN4TDHJZQZKFB1Q
BearManor Media order page http://bearmanormedia.com/index.php?route=product/search&search=mr. novak

One of many great Mr. Novak first season episodes is the touching melodrama, "One Way to Say Goodbye" (Mar. 17, 1964) featuring the radiant Kathryn Hays (Star Trek's "The Empath"), directed by Richard Donner...


Another outstanding season one episode was "The Risk" (Oct. 29, 1963), where a reformed alcoholic teacher, brilliantly played by Alexander Scourby, desperately tries to re-establish his career while his young wife (Sherry Jackson) succumbs to her own demons...


Among other first season standouts, Herschel Bernardi's powerful performance as a conflicted teacher determined to be the most "popular" of the faculty at Jefferson High...a print ad for "I Don't Even Live Here" (Oct. 8, 1963)...


Another first season episode which examined conflicted and problematic ethics among both student scholars and accommodating faculty was "X is the Unknown Factor" (Oct. 15, 1963), with a powerful performance by David Macklin as the scholar destined for pre-ordained success, at all costs...another Richard Donner directed episode...here is a print ad for the night of premiere...


Famed silent film and stage star Lillian Gish guest starred in season one's "Hello Miss Phipps" (Nov. 5, 1963)...a surprising story of a veteran teacher and spinster suddenly charged with misconduct by concerned parents while teaching sex - ed to their impressionable teenagers...ironically, she was the one time teacher of principal Vane (Dean Jagger) himself...presumably, back in the late Jurassic, ha, ha...

 

[Flashgear]

Another fine season one episode of Mr. Novak was "To Break a Camel's Back" (Nov. 12, 1963), starring a then 18 year old Joey Heatherton as the wild child daughter of migrant workers (hey, it's 1963). Her back country old coot archetype of a father being played by the ubiquitous Royal Dano. Mr. Novak suppresses his more craven impulses (if he indeed has any such urges) to help straighten out the lovely but troubled and undisciplined girl...


Joey Heatherton was a talented singer and dancer also...often seen on the Dean Martin Show and a favorite on Bob Hope's Vietnam era USO tours...she was definitely kind of a big deal in the '60s...here's a memorable reminder of why she was a popular television and Vegas nightclub entertainer...

Joey Heatherton publicity photo for her starring role the same year in "Twilight of Honor"...

 

[Flashgear]

One of the most acclaimed season one episodes is the powerful drama "Death of a Teacher" (Feb. 4, 1964), featuring the fine character actor Frank Albertson as an earnest, dedicated and self sacrificing teacher who suffers a sudden death while at work...Harry Townes and Tony Dow lend strong support in telling the story, amid regret and recrimination for the over worked and under appreciated teacher's life work...memorable performances by the series leads, Dean Jagger and James Franciscus also...Script by Producer E. Jack Neuman and directed by Richard Donner, one of 7 episodes he helmed in the series.

Harry Townes, another often seen and solid supporting player...

Tony Dow played the recurring role as editor of the student newspaper in several first season episodes..."Death of a Teacher" gave him some of his finest moments in the series...in season two he returned to play other distinct characters, for a total of 7 episodes of Mr. Novak.

 

[Flashgear]

Continuing an appreciation for Mr. Novak as it moved into it's second season...despite somewhat middling Nielsen ratings that nonetheless steadily improved over the winter and spring, NBC renewed Mr. Novak with a press release on January 2, 1964.

Mr. Novak had received critical acclaim in it's first season, winning the Emmy Award for best drama, a best actor Emmy Nomination for Oscar winner Dean Jagger, and the prestigious Peabody Award for Television drama. But the show was in a battle, literally and figuratively, with ABC's great action show Combat! for the early prime time slot of 7:30-8:30 on Tuesday evenings...it wouldn't help Mr. Novak that Combat was already an established and very fine drama on it's own account, drawing lots of young and older fans with it's action packed gun battles and huge guest stars...Combat would be a top 10 show in it's third season, killing off Mr. Novak when it might have survived on another night, had it been moved...no shame in that, as Combat was going from strength to strength in 1964 to '65...in my opinion, Combat's third season represents the show at the height of it's greatness as one of the '60s best drama shows.

The second season of Mr. Novak would see Dean Jagger receive another Emmy Nomination for best actor, but then have to leave the show because of ill health, and being replaced by Burgess Meredith. The show would once again be lauded with the TV Guide Award, National Education and Teacher Association awards, Writer's Guild of America Award and many other honors. The second season opened with the fine milestone episode "Moonlighting" (Sept. 22, 1964), featuring perhaps James Franciscus's best performance as Novak...a strong episode for Dean Jagger also, the two actors sharing in an intense scene as Mr. Novak, facing a personal and financial crisis, lays bare his humiliation to his mentor, Principal Vane.

Images from Chuck Harter's brilliant new book, Mr. Novak - An Acclaimed Television Series (BearManor 2017) and used with permission.

"Let's Dig a Little Grammar" (Nov. 10, 1964) featured the offbeat casting of comedian Alan Sherman, Johnny Crawford (Rifleman), pop singer Tommy Sands, Harvey Lembeck and David Sheiner in a terrific music inspired story of students finding their true calling in life. With music from Duke Ellington, Miles Davis, Bob Russell, Keith Mitchell, Shelly Manne and Artie Kane...with the latter 3 and others performing the underscore...with possible future music rights obstacles to overcome in clearances when the second season is considered for DVD release, of course...but hey, why worry when we still haven't seen season one yet?


"Boy Under Glass" (Nov. 24, 1964) puts Mr. Novak into a pressure packed ethical dilemma when he flunks a star athlete pitcher, disqualifying him in an upcoming championship game and putting his major league ambitions in jeopardy, as his father, media and alumni intervene...starring Frank Silvera, Arch Johnson and real life Baseball legend Leo Durocher of the L.A. Dodgers himself...

Hall of Fame player Leo Durocher, who was third base coach on the 1963 Dodgers World Series Winning team, former Manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers and World Series Champ as Manager of the 1954 NY Giants, was making a number of TV appearances as himself these last few years...the Beverly Hillbillies "Clampetts and the Dodgers" (Apr. 10, 1963), Mister Ed "Leo Durocher Meets Mister Ed" (Sept. 29, 1963), and The Donna Reed Show "Play Ball" (Oct. 1, 1964, with Don Drysdale and Willie Mays)...his appearance on Mr. Novak was perhaps his only TV drama appearance...

"An Elephant is Like a Tree" (Jan. 12, 1965) was a touching story of a blind teenager struggling to remain in a mainstream high school, with his teacher mother trying to pioneer the integration of blind and handicapped students into Jefferson High...Celeste Holm, Ed Asner and Tony Bill star...this episode was honored by the National Braille Institute for bringing attention to the obstacles facing the blind...


"Enter a Strange Animal" (Jan. 19, 1965) is one of the truly great Novak episodes...mind blowing and incredibly prescient in depicting personal desk top computers in America's class rooms...in 1965! Martin Landau, Nehemiah Persoff and David Macklin guest star...Landau and Persoff deliver their typical powerhouse performance...brilliant!


"The Silent Dissuaders" (Feb. 16, 1965) featured Claudine Longet as an Iranian exchange teacher who imparts her own liberated style, shedding the traditional constraints and oppression of women from her homeland, and inspiring brilliant student Kim Darby to seek a higher education, rather than falling into an early marriage and young motherhood...real romantic tension with Novak also arises, as it often did during the series run...


I'm thinking that WAC's announcement of season one is coming late this year...in the meantime, fans of Mr. Novak can check out Chuck Harter's incredibly thorough and deeply researched new book, loaded with hundreds of illustrations and photos, a detailed history sourced from producer E. Jack Neuman's personal archive, and 40+ interviews with cast and crew...

Book website with many details and info on the upcoming WAC release...https://mrnovakbook.com/

Available from Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Mr-Novak-Acc...coding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=XFV6555VHV5YYN3ZY5CJ
Available from publisher BearManor Media http://bearmanormedia.com/index.php?route=product/search&search=mr. novak

For those interested, I'll continue discussing some of the outstanding and notable episodes from season two later...episodes starring Robert Culp, Tony Dow, Johnny Crawford, Walter Koenig, Beau Bridges, Robert Walker and Lois Nettleton...boy, it's hard discussing a relatively obscure but truly great drama series that hasn't been broadcast in nearly 30 years and has yet to see a DVD release, ha, ha...but I love this show!

 

[Jeff Flugel]

Great post(s), Randall - keep 'em coming! Until you started this thread (and I got Chuck's book), I knew practically nothing about Mr. Novak other than it's basic premise and lead actor. The more I read and hear about it, the more fascinating it becomes. Fingers crossed that Warner Archive comes through with the promised Season 1 DVD release.

 

[Flashgear]

Great post(s), Randall - keep 'em coming! Until you started this thread (and I got Chuck's book), I knew practically nothing about Mr. Novak other than it's basic premise and lead actor. The more I read and hear about it, the more fascinating it becomes. Fingers crossed that Warner Archive comes through with the promised Season 1 DVD release.

Thank you Jeff, I appreciate the encouragement! By the way, when it comes to early 60s MGM TV drama released by WAC, have you seen Dr. Kildare, The Lieutenant, Eleventh Hour and Sam Benedict? I think Mr. Novak is easily the equal of the best of those other series, with a remarkably high quotient of brilliant episodes...equal to the finest of Dr. Kildare, The Lieutenant and Eleventh Hour...blows Sam Benedict completely away, although that series has it's fine moments also...do you also have Combat! on DVD? Along with Mr. Novak,that's one of my absolute top ten vintage series...a damn dirty irony that they had to go up head to head back in the day...in Canada, they weren't programmed opposite each other, so I watched both first run!

 

[Neil Brock]

Somehow, my high school in Queens, we didn't have girls who looked like Joey Heatherton, Brooke Bundy, Shelly Fabares, Brenda Scott, Cheryl Holdridge, Marta Kristen, Noreen Corcoran, Davey Davison, Lynn Loring, Bonnie Beecher, June Harding, Julie Sommars or Claudine Longet!

 

[Flashgear]

Yes, My High School had only a few girls of the approximate caliber of those you mention Neil Brock...Brenda Scott is a knockout in "Fear is a Handful of Dust"...that remarkable scene where she breaks down, looking in the mirror of her fears...wow! she was a fine actress too, when given the chance to shine...

Brenda Scott and Tony Dow in season one's "Fear is a Handful of Dust" (Feb. 25, 1964)...both Brenda and Tony were interviewed by author Chuck Harter for his book on Mr. Novak...

And as for Joey Heatherton, you have given me another opportunity to post this astonishing and awe inspiring photo...and I'll take that every time, ha, ha...forgive me if you will...

 

[Flashgear]

Here is a better shot of the "Learning Machine", a futuristic depiction of personal desk top computing in 1964 class rooms as seen in the great season 2 Mr. Novak episode "Enter a Strange Animal" (1/19/65), with Martin Landau as the proponent of high technology...

"The Tender Twigs" (Mar. 16, 1965) is another one of the absolute best episodes...a model United Nations Assembly for students to practice debate skills along the lines of Cold War Political tensions and in the context of the then actual debates on the admittance of Red China versus Nationalist China in the UN Assembly...a Conservative politician, played by Robert Culp, accuses Mr. Novak and another teacher (played by Harry Townes) of Communist inspired subversion in influencing the debate and ultimately, the students themselves...a strong episode for Robert Culp, just before he was cast in I Spy, and Burgess Meredith as the new principal Woodridge...Tony Dow, brothers Robert and Johnny Crawford, Peter Helm and Robert Ellenstein also appear...directed by Joseph Sargent...below is a picture of Robert Culp with producer E. Jack Neuman during production...

Robert Crawford, Tony Dow and Johnny Crawford in the model UN...

A print ad for this episode...James Franciscus and Harry Townes...
KUTV was a NBC affiliate (now CBS) in Salt Lake City...


"Honor -- and All That" (Mar. 23, 1965) concerned a student brawl at a championship basketball game...Beau Bridges guest stars, along with Michael Pollard and Buck Taylor...Mr. Novak and Principal Woodridge are left to pick up the pieces and ultimately wonder if a personal lesson in honor and sportsmanship has been learned by the offenders...a nice showcase role for Beau Bridges, who also appeared that same season in a memorable episode of Combat! ("The Short Day of Private Putnam") and would soon work with his father, brother Jeff and sister Cindy on Lloyd Bridges western series The Loner, reunited on camera 4 years after Sea Hunt left the air...

Beau Bridges in Combat! season 3, "The Short Day of Private Putnam"...

Beau Bridges, Lloyd Bridges and Jeff Bridges on the set of The Loner, 1965...

Michael Pollard as one of the co-conspirators in "Honor -- and All That"...

Buck Taylor, the previous season in an episode of The Fugitive (Terror at High Point")...

Mr. Novak in a heated debate with the students...

After his memorable debut as the Russian defector student Alexsei in season one (see Variety ad promoting him in that episode below), Walter Koenig appeared in another two great second season episodes..."The Firebrand" (Apr. 13, 1965) and "With a Hammer in his Hand, Lord!, Lord!" (Sept. 29, 1964)...the latter a controversial episode depicting a student gang beating of an authoritarian shop teacher played by the great Simon Oakland...Tim McIntire and Arthur Franz also appear...John D. F. Black won the Writer's Guild of America award for his script...

Walter Koenig and Tim McIntire as the kids with a secret to keep...

Simon Oakland, one of the very best at playing tough, both good guys and bad...

Tim McIntire, just like Beau Bridges, went into the acting biz as the son of a famous actor, John McIntire of Wagon Train, The Virginian and many movies...his Mother was the well known character actress Jeanette Nolan...below is a family portrait from an episode of Bonanza, where they all appeared together...

 

[Flashgear]

"Where is there to go, Billy, but up?" (Mar. 9, 1965) featured the luminous Lois Nettleton as a substitute math teacher with the impulses of a daredevil...and as a new love interest for Mr. Novak, who is understandably fascinated with her, taking up sky diving to be near her...Paul Mantee plays her hovering ex who wants her back...there's almost as much skydiving in this one as an episode of Ripcord, Larry Pennell should have been in this one...what might be a routine romance outing (calculated to give a ratings boost for the series) is instead elevated by the sincere and affecting performance of the wonderful Lois Nettleton...James Franciscus is good too, conveying the desperation of yearning he feels for her...

Lois Nettleton, a very busy actress in '60s TV...beautiful and talented...

Paul Mantee, a welcome actor in so many shows, often cast as a heavy, must have done this episode of Novak not long after he did his wonderful SF film Robinson Crusoe on Mars...

I think I always enjoy seeing him in old TV shows precisely because of this great and enjoyable childhood favorite...Paul Mantee with his man Friday (Vic Lundin) on Mars...

And seen here with co-star Mona the monkee...

And in season four of The Fugitive...

 

[Flashgear]

"The Student Who Never Was" (Mar. 30, 1965) guest stars Robert Walker jr. as a brilliant but erratic student who concocts a bizarre deception to compensate for his own loneliness...Bonnie Beecher is the girl he hopes to impress...Novak and Woodridge sort out the ensuing mess and rescue the shattered teenage psyche...
Image below of Robert Walker and Burgess Meredith from Chuck Harter's brilliant book...

His famous father, an accomplished star at MGM and WB who died young...

His even more famous Mother, actress Jennifer Jones...

Bonnie Beecher is the object of Robert Walker's affections...here she is in an episode of The Fugitive...

Robert Walker was given a potentially star making role in 1964, Warner Brother's "sequel" to Mister Roberts, with Robert Walker jr. playing the central role of Ensign Pulver...played in the original film by Jack Lemmon, of course...Burl Ives was recast as the tyrannical captain...it flopped...but Robert Walker dropped the Jr. from his name to distance himself from his famous father and namesake, and was seen in many TV shows where he often played creepy and threatening delinquents...like in Star Trek as "Charlie X" and a memorably murderous appearance as an Alien on The Invaders...

"Charlie X"...

 

[Marc Rambeau fan]

One of the most acclaimed season one episodes is the powerful drama "Death of a Teacher" (Feb. 4, 1964), featuring the fine character actor Frank Albertson as an earnest, dedicated and self sacrificing teacher who suffers a sudden death while at work...Harry Townes and Tony Dow lend strong support in telling the story, amid regret and recrimination for the over worked and under appreciated teacher's life work...memorable performances by the series leads, Dean Jagger and James Franciscus also...Script by Producer E. Jack Neuman and directed by Richard Donner, one of 7 episodes he helmed in the series.
View attachment 44430
View attachment 44431
Harry Townes, another often seen and solid supporting player...

Tony Dow played the recurring role as editor of the student newspaper in several first season episodes..."Death of a Teacher" gave him some of his finest moments in the series...in season two he returned to play other distinct characters, for a total of 7 episodes of Mr. Novak.

 

[Marc Rambeau fan]

I recently started a fan page for one of the actors who appeared in "The Death Of A Teacher" episode, the now deceased actor Marc Rambeau, but I wasn't able to post very much about "MR. NOVAK" on his page...I searched, but wasn't able to find too much about it online. If anyone has any info on him or his appearance on this episode, I would love it if you would visit the page, MARC RAMBEAU-ACTOR, on FACEBOOK, and include it in a post. I haven't read the "MR. NOVAK" book yet, but I'm planning to order a copy right away...somehow, I'm just finding out about the book, and this forum. So glad to be here.

 

[Marc Rambeau fan]

https://www.facebook.com/forgotten60sactor/ MARC RAMBEAU-ACTOR on FACEBOOK

 

[Jeff Flugel]

Thank you Jeff, I appreciate the encouragement! By the way, when it comes to early 60s MGM TV drama released by WAC, have you seen Dr. Kildare, The Lieutenant, Eleventh Hour and Sam Benedict? I think Mr. Novak is easily the equal of the best of those other series, with a remarkably high quotient of brilliant episodes...equal to the finest of Dr. Kildare, The Lieutenant and Eleventh Hour...blows Sam Benedict completely away, although that series has it's fine moments also...do you also have Combat! on DVD? Along with Mr. Novak,that's one of my absolute top ten vintage series...a damn dirty irony that they had to go up head to head back in the day...in Canada, they weren't programmed opposite each other, so I watched both first run!

Since you asked, Randall, I own and have seen some of The Lieutenant, and am interested in both The Eleventh Hour and Sam Benedict...but with the high price of Warner Archive sets, I'm forced to be choosy and those two are lower down the list for me compared to some others. I still need to pick up Harry O season 2, Maverick season 3, more Bronco. etc.

I've no doubt Dr. Kildare is a good, quality show but I'm afraid my interest in medical dramas has declined drastically in recent years, due to my son having spent a lot of time in the hospital, recovering from multiple heart surgeries in the first two years of his life. (He's doing great now, BTW) After all that time spent in the children's ward with him, the last thing I want to do these days is watch any hospital drama.

I don't own Combat either, mostly because the individual seasons seem out of print (though there are some used copies of season one, mission one going for reasonable prices on Amazon Marketplace), with only the complete series readily available...and since it would be a blind buy for me, I'd rather start slow and begin with the first season if at all possible. I know this series has many devoted fans, but not only is the war genre not a particular favorite of mine, it's also one that seems difficult to do proper justice to on a limited TV budget. That said, I do intend to check it out some day.

Have no fear, I do fully plan to invest in Mr. Novak season one when it finally comes out!

 

[Flashgear]

Thanks Jeff for your perspective on these shows...blessings to your family! I'm glad to hear that your son is doing well, and after an extended and fraught experience like that, I can certainly understand your reticence and ambivalence about a hospital based show like Dr. Kildare...likewise the cost of the WAC sets...I have yet to get Harry O, and don't have all of Bronco, Lawman and The FBI either.

I can also fully understand the same reticence about War themed shows too...especially those set in the historically grand scale of total war that WW2 represents, with the budgetary challenges of depicting that convincingly on weekly television...WW2 was no budget conscious low intensity conflict after all...though at the time, Combat! was perhaps the most expensive show on TV in 1962-67 at approx. $175K in '60s dollars per episode...often due to prestige guest stars...the magnificent MGM 'French Village' certainly enhanced the urban combat episodes tremendously, and are among my favorites...they had a great relationship with the California National Guard to provide tanks for many episodes, even though those tanks were obviously not period accurate...great and dangerous looking pyrotechnics and millions of blank rounds expended, with some of the absolute best stunts ever done for tv in that era...second unit footage of eye popping French Loire Valley Chateaus were edited into episodes to give an authentic 'feel'...winter set episodes were filmed at snowy Squaw Valley...the beautiful Vinyards of the Korbel Winery were also used to great effect...as was Bronson and Franklin Canyon...and the actual demolition of downtown LA landmarks were sometimes exploited to great and convincing effect too...the regular cast was up to depicting the dreadful suffering of war itself, with many memorable showcase episodes for all the leads to suffer a mental breakdown with the grief of combat fatigue...each of the cast had at least one crying scene that could tear your heart out, and needless to say, was virtually unheard of in 60s tv drama...Combat could be a very dark and grim show...Leonard Rosenman's beautiful music for Combat! is also something to behold...

It's a shame that such an acclaimed, pioneering, well written and daring show like Mr. Novak had to go up against the Combat juggernaut and lose in the ratings...in retrospect, I can't understand why NBC didn't move it to another night where it might have thrived going into the second season...believe it or not, the following season, My Mother the Car and Please Don't Eat the Daisies filled the Mr. Novak time slot and were absolutely slaughtered by Combat!

Another fallout from this was Combat, as an independent production produced on the MGM lot, was evicted from MGM after it's third season...perhaps that was payback for having killed off the MGM property Mr. Novak? But contentious filming conflicts between Selmur, which owned Combat, and the other MGM property Man From Uncle also played a huge part in that...the Man From Uncle people having to furiously re-dress the 'French Village' after Combat had blown it up and shot it up with debris and Fuller's earth everywhere, ha, ha...