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

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Rare children's storybook based upon The Man from U.N.C.L.E. Left to right: David McCallum, Robert Vaughn, and the late Leo G. Carroll.
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Rare children's storybook based upon The Man from U.N.C.L.E. Left to right: David McCallum, Robert Vaughn, and the late Leo G. Carroll.

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. is a popular American television series that ran on NBC from September 22 1964, to January 15 1968, for 104 episodes. 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. ("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.

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.

Contents

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 one of the many original novels based upon the series speculated it stood for Technological Hierarchy for the Removal of Undesirables and the Subjugation of Humanity. Another explanation was Terrorism, Harassment, Revenge Unlimited — Supreme Headquarters.

THRUSH's aim was, essentially, to conquer the world. 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.

Solo and Kuryakin were well-trained in martial arts, and had a range of useful spy equipment, including hand held satellite communicators to keep in contact with the U.N.C.L.E. headquarters. 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 US Army-surplus M1 carbine.

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 they could identify with. 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". 

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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 Popsicles, 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.

The 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. 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.

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 did four scores for the series. After Stevens, Walter Scharf did six scores, and Lalo Schifrin 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.

A catchphrase often heard was "Open Channel D!" when agents used their pocket radios (often built into pens).

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 Waverley 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. 

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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. In the 1990s, another Man from U.N.C.L.E. comic book was published for a few issues, with the characters transplanted into the modern day.

There have been occasional reports of a Man from U.N.C.L.E. motion picture being planned, but as of 2006, nothing has been announced.

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 the now-deceased 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. The movie briefly filled in the missing years. Illya had killed a woman on a mission and quit U.N.C.L.E., and now designed women's clothing in New York. Napoleon had been pushed out of U.N.C.L.E. and now sold computers. They were recalled to 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. A final battle with THRUSH was noisy and unspectacular, and fans were largely disappointed.

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,[link] however a subsequent report indicated this may not occur as an issue over the rights to the series has erupted with Warner Brothers.[link]

Trivia

Original Novels

The first Man from U.N.C.L.E. novel, by Michael Avallone. Pictured: Robert Vaughn.
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The first Man from U.N.C.L.E. novel, by Michael Avallone. Pictured: Robert Vaughn.

Two dozen original novels were based upon Man from U.N.C.L.E. and published between 1965 and 1967. 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 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'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 UNCLE 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.

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.

Parodies and jokes

The popularity of the show inspired several parodies and 'in-jokes'. For instance, fans have noted numerous references to Tulsa, Oklahoma, leading to such jocular assertions as "The real U.N.C.L.E. headquarters was located under a corn field, between Tulsa and Oklahoma City"

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 the late Don Adams. This show was very popular and outlived Man from U.N.C.L.E. by several seasons.

Please Don't Eat the Daisies

One episode of the 1980s adventure 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.

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.

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."

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.

NCIS

During an episode of the TV series NCIS, in which David McCallum plays Dr. Donald "Ducky" Mallard, a reference is made to McCallum's past
Kate: "Gibbs, what did Ducky (McCallum) look like when he was younger?"
Gibbs: "Illya Kuryakin."

See also

References

 

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