Danger Man

There are so many things Ralph Smart got right in the earliest Danger Man, it's almost a pity he couldn't stick to the commercially problematic 30-minute format. The stories are taut, clever Cold War mystery-thrillers. Within the hurried time constraints it isn't all plot as Smart finds room for characterization and texture, even to interject some interesting ideas and questions. A lot of this is done by way of the mercurial Patrick McGoohan but Smart had no shortage of talented collaborators in directors and actors.

McGoohan's early performances are fluid yet quirky. While he projects a kind of reserved elan, he also draws on a trove of itchy, improvisational mannerisms that allow us into more than a few nooks--not all of them pleasant--of John Drake's anxious cynicism. (McGoohan is to the TV spook what the late Jeremy Brett was to Sherlock Holmes: a perturbable, high-strung exotic, haunted but smirking.) I prefer him here to the more celebrated Prisoner, in fact, where he's customarily arch and lacks the variety of situation and emotional register. His narration is another treat, delivered in one of the most delectably ironic voices in dramatic TV history.

The writing bests most on TV, then or now. The tone in the better scripts is wry, veering toward acid, with more than a hint of melancholy. This is not the Cold War as a stage for Kennedyesque moxie, and certainly not the idiotic glamorization found in Bond, but rather as in Le Carré, a stage for the peeling away of deceptions that are as likely to originate at home as in dens abroad. This is not to say it isn't above the occasional stereotype; see, for instance, the leering North Koreans in the episode The Honeymooners. But a mark of this generally very humane work is that it more typically treats nationalistic conceptions of the enemy with skepticism, and even pits Drake in frustration against his own morally ambiguous NATO bosses. Nor is the day always won, and some seeming victories prove Pyhrric. How refreshing this is to watch in 2007, for obvious reasons.

The production design, fairly cheapo and simplistic, never detracts (charmingly, old file inserts make do for exterior locations) and in fact the studio sets somehow hold surprise delights: here a gloomy early 60s facsimile of a Munich street recalling Carol Reed's chiaroscuro in The Third Man, there the lobby of an International Style hotel with its sexy mid-century modernism. That it's all in gorgeous high-contrast black and white only deepens the interest: shadow play for shadowy deeds.

A word too about the memorable score by Albert Elms, particularly his incidental music. The understated jazz is part and parcel of the sensibility here--aloof and insinuating. There is so much intelligence pulsing through Elms' music and the series as a whole that it seems vaguely unlikely; watching this work, I can't help but admire its virtues while ruing what's become of the medium.

Danger Man in this early incarnation is grown-up art on TV, the likes of which in the U.S., anyway, we rarely hope to find today outside of HBO, practically its last refuge. A treasure.

British spies became all the rage in the 1960s, thanks largely to James Bond. However, the British television series "Danger Man" actually predated the James Bond movie series. Curiously, Danger Man's protagonist, NATO Agent John Drake, is probably unique in that the character started out as an American and then somehow "morphed" into an Englishman. In the first year Drake, played by Patrick McGoohan, was based out of Washington DC (the Capital Dome is clearly visible behind him in the opening credits) and he spoke with what passes in Britain as an American accent. In the succeeding years, however, Drake, still played by McGoohan, was based out of London and spoke with a distinct English accent.

What makes Danger man stand out, however, is the high level of intelligence that went into the series. Unlike other 1960s spies Drake did not rely on violence to solve the problems he was given and he almost never resorts to killing anyone. Instead he relied on trickery, maneuver and mind-games, rather than firearms or explosives. In fact, I understand that McGoohan actually turned down the role of James Bond because he objected to the excessive degree of gratuitous sex and violence in the series. In an era when gratuitous sex and violence is far more prevalent than it ever was in the early 1960s, Danger Man makes a refreshing change of pace.

patrick mcgoohans's dicey 'new englander' accent notwithstanding, he's in fine form here. fast paced and inventive plots, exotic locales, and the extremely moral hero john drake all make the first series of danger man great television.

though he doesn't bed down with every girl he comes across, there's more than enough sexual tension to go around, as every female within a thirty-foot radius ends up throwing herself at johnny d. not keen on guns, drake's a master fighter and the resulting fight scenes are always fun to watch. his gadgets are realistic, much more believable than the ones used by bond or the man from wherever.

the very first episode, 'a view from the villa', takes us to portmeirion, PMG's inspiration for the village in 'the prisoner'. another one of the best television programs ever made.

you'll see a host of familiar faces in supporting roles here too. donald pleasance, barbara shelley--all kinds of great actors popped up on dm from time to time. by all means, if you're a fan of espionage shows, danger man should be high on your list of must-sees. it's got all the chewy goodness and none of the camp that marred so many spy programs in the sixties.

British spy/adventure series, with 39 half-hour episodes. Patrick McGoohan stars as John Drake, an American operative working for NATO. He travels all over the world on various missions, everything from rescuing high-profile kidnapping victims to thwarting drug rings and smuggling operations, from stopping assassins to solving public health crises. He often goes undercover, adopting the guise of the loud, obnoxious Ugly American type to lower the guard of his enemies. He generally eschews the use of guns, and is positively chaste compared to the womanizing James Bond stereotype. I thought McGoohan was very good in the lead, an unusual mix of honorable man-of-action and quick-witted malcontent. The stories got pretty monotonous by the end of the season, with many of the set-pieces repeated, and the guest cast reappearing as different characters.

The guest cast features many performers who would later appear in the James Bond films, including Lois Maxwell, Donald Pleasence, Robert Shaw, Honor Blackman, Charles Gray, Zena Marshall, Nadja Regin, Walter Gotell, Burt Kwouk, and Anthony Dawson. Other notable guests include Barbara Shelley, Hazel Court, Sam Wanamaker, Mai Zetterling, Nigel Green, George Coulouris, Bevely Garland, Jackie Collins, Judy Carne, Hermione Baddeley, Jack MacGowran, and William Marshall.

The spy adventure was one of the signature genres of the 1960's, and many cite Danger Man as ground zero for the phenomenon. It wasn't the first, but it was the impetus that led to The Avengers on TV, to the James Bond films, as well as the shows The Saint, The Man from U. N. C. L. E., Mission:Impossible, and more. However, the first (and technically only...but more on that in a moment) season wasn't very well received when it aired in the U. S. on CBS, and the show was ended. McGoohan was the first choice to play James Bond in the films, but he thankfully turned it down (too much sex!), and it went to Sean Connery. Meanwhile, after the genre exploded in popularity by the middle of the decade, Danger Man was revived, although changed a great deal. It went to an hour-long format, the character was made a British agent (although the John Drake name was kept), and the US title was held over: Secret Agent, while also adding the hit theme song "Secret Agent Man". This series eventually led to The Prisoner and cult immortality, but that's a story for another day.

"DANGER MAN"-"SECRET AGENT"-Produced by ITC Productions. The Half-Hour Episodes,30 minutes each,1960-1961,black and white. The Hour Long Episodes,60 minutes each,1964-1966,black and white. Episodes ran on British Television from 1960-1961,1964-1966. Episodes that ran on American Television from 1965-1966,CBS-TV.

Out of all the espionage shows that came out in the 1960's,this show was among the tops of the list and set the standard for the next batch of espionage,intrigue shows to follow suit. This was indeed a highly entertaining series that was full of quick dialogue,twist endings,and some of the most inventive story lines anywhere. Besides,this was way better than James Bond! The series starred Patrick McGoohan as British secret agent John Drake. As for some of the episodes,this series was one action-packed show which feature McGoohan traveling to certain parts of the world to handle situations given to him by his superiors under orders of his Majesty's Secret Service. This was a show that had a lot of action-packed fighting scenes(where Patrick McGoohan's boxing experience shows in some of the episodes)which some were very inventive and very useful in taking out the baddies. The gadgets were amazing and for the most part which could actually exist,and are brought in as part of a plan in some dangerous situations. The gadgets were really cool items like The Exploding Pen,The Watch with a hidden camera and lots more cool stuff! And had a fare for a ladies as well and also show it in some of the love scenes where he trades affairs for sex secrets on the show and in some segments made him a detail well-crafted character. As for the diabolical villains,Drake had the deal with the evil doers out to destroy the world,but saves the day and the organization he works for.

ABOUT DANGER MAN-SECRET AGENT............... The series consisted of four seasons done in a unusual manner. In the first season,televised from 1960-1961,Patrick McGoohan's character of John Drake is a NATO intelligence officer working for the UN in New York. There were only 39 half-hour episodes filmed in black and white and some of the earlier Danger Man material hasn't been seen since its original broadcast,and most recently they are now on DVD for your enjoyment. The series was cancelled after its first season,and it was not until 1964 that it was reprised,when the "spy craze" of the time exploded with not only James Bond 007,but for every aspects of a lot of television shows that followed including,"The Avengers","The Man From U.N.C.L.E.",and so many more. It was here during its new format and under its second season,that John Drake not longer works for NATO,but for the British Government Intelligence Agency,"M9",which consisted of hour long episodes for seasons two and three(combined total of 45 episodes),which are filmed in black and white. It wasn't until the summer of 1965,that American audiences were interested in this series as well seeing the exploits of John Drake each week,and from that period in 1965,the ratings soared in which the "Danger Man" was shown as an summer replacement here in the states. The last two episodes of the series,also an hour long each,were filmed in color,and these two episodes were combined into a two hour TV-movie entitled "Koroshi" from 1966. This was actually a compilation of two Danger Man episodes,"Koroshi",and "Shinda Shima". Unfortunably,this was the last of the series,before Patrick McGoohan would made the transition from this role to the next series,"The Prisoner". The storyline deals with John Drake who is being sent to Japan to investigate the murders of two British agents who were under the society of the Koroshi who in turn plan to execute world leaders. However,Drake is sent to destroy the organization and at the end becomes sufficient in destroying the society and from there Drake sets out to destroy the society that is handling the affairs. If you wonder where the producers for the Sean Connery/James Bond thriller,"You Only Live Twice" came up the ideas,then you'll see why the last episodes of Danger Man were brilliant to the core.