Hot damn, the ’60s were just full of great Secret Agent shows and movies. From James Bond to Man from U.N.C.L.E. to Honey West to Jonny Quest to Get Smart, you couldn’t turn the TV dial without finding some sort of Russian spy trying to rule the world (damn Russians). Today, our favorite blond spy, Illya Kuryakin makes a small cameo via Bud’s black turtleneck.
Edit: I forget not everyone here was alive and watching ’60s TV. Some of you were alive, but can’t remember the ’60s. So, here’s Illya Kuryakin and the Man from U.N.C.L.E. logo from the TV series.
Spies with Turtlenecks Rule
Johnny Rivers’ “Secret Agent Man” was on the charts at the pinnacle of the spy business on TV in the USA in the ’60s. The UK’s “Danger Man” became “Secret Agent Man” here in the USA. And it featured Patrick McGoohan as secret agent John Drake. I am also a “Saint” fan with Roger Moore. To me, Moore was more Bond then Connery, but I’ll get my head bit off by the Connery fans out there, but hey, it’s my opinion.
ILLLLLLYAAAAAA! I came as close as I’ve ever come to the weird world of fandom due to that character. David McC was just too hot for words 🙂
Blimey, Johnny Rivers. Now you’ve tripped the memories button! My first-ever frontline gig in Hellay. Ah, the nostalgia…
AWESOME ‘camera angle’ in the last panel. Ohhh yeahh.
Yeah… going out the front door might not have been a good idea.
And who’s this Illya Kuryakin fellow? Sound, British, I guess, Indian at that.
Nah, Ilya/Illya is a Russian name. As is the rest. It was considered quite brave to have a ‘Russian’ character as a co-star back in the middle of the Cold War, even if said Russian was played by a Scotsman :DC
hell, byron … they still have cereal premiums, only they’ve gotten better. i’ve got my eye on this cap’n crunch t-shirt …
–dee!
p.s. hi tafkan, long time… 🙂
otcha Dee!
Erm, I thought Captain Crunch was an old-skool phone hacker…
oy! 🙂 it’s been ages.
he was. he got his nickname from the cereal, primarily because one of their “free toy inside” premiums was a whistle that, when blown, just happened to emit a perfect 2600hz tone.
Ah, that makes sense. I’ve very little knowledge of the strange universe of breakfast cereals, since I was brought up on porridge (which I love love love to this day) and *still* think that plain cornflakes or wheat bikkies are, y’know, awfully threatening… 😛
Actually, David “Illya Kuryakin” McCallum is currently on NCIS as
Dr. Donald Mallard, and he still has women swooning! While I like Roger Moore as Bond, finding out he’s a pooftah kinda tipped the scales for me to prefer Connery, Dalton, and Daniel Craig more these days. I don’t have a problem with anyone who is Gay, in fact several of my friends are, but a playboy James Bond should not be played by a gay man any more than Batman should be (sorry!)
Your story is heating up, and your artwork is getting better every time. Thanks again Byron!
I feel the same way, Drew, only with me it’s Star Trek — I could never really accept Leonard Nimoy as Spock once I found out he wasn’t a real alien. I’ve got nothing against humans, mind you — some of my best friends are human — but an alien shouldn’t be portrayed by a human actor any more than a robot should be.
:-p
Ha! Makkabee, you rock. 🙂
I think it’s frakking scandalous that Caprica Six wasn’t played by a real robot…
Hang on…what? Roger Moore came out? After kazillionty marriages to women, and assorted children? Are we talking about the same Roger TheSaintandshittyuselessfauxJamesBond Moore who went with his definitely female wife to the royal wedding in Monaco only a few weeks ago? ~is very confused~
And don’t forget “The Wild Wild West” — secret agents, gilded age style!
Get Smart was always my favorite of that bunch, though. Pity they lobotomized it when they turned it into “Inspector Gadget” — just because something’s a children’s cartoon doesn’t mean it has to be stupid. But the original? Definitely need to add that to my DVD collection.
I actually managed a music store-video store combo back in the day! The early 90’s, a Sam Goody-Suncoast [no longer in business]. Those were the days, all the free music I wanted and no cops to tell me no! Being the manager had it perks, but managing teenagers aged me quickly! o.O
…is this a flashback?!? o.O Why am I remembering this???
Love the top banner! I loved I Spy! and The Wild Wild West, had to watch the Man from U.N.C.L.E, but never was into the spy thing or “Bond”. Must be a male thing! LOL
Carlin would have been a great Spy. Though I can tell Barb why us boys were into spies. We are known for lying, but not for lying well. Let’s face it, the only mystery a woman sees in a guy is when he’s next to her not telling her the same bull most guys say to impress her. Truth is, women are better liars than we are, and even we saw through most of the badguys (Thanks to awesome shows) so why would they be into shows about men who are lying when they know that they could do all that without the gizmos. (doesn’t help men are headlining the shows too, Agent 99 aside.) They can make men spill their guts and get into private events/areas without too much effort, so why see some shmuck do it all fancy-like? Sorry if it’s a rant, but that’s how I see it. Keep up the awesomeness, Byron.
How can you mention TV spies or Patrick McGoohan (who was actually a native New Yorker, by the way http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrick_McGoohan) without mentioning “The Prisoner”?
While not a spy show per se (we never really learn which side is holding McGoohan’s character captive) it was probably one of the best Cold War-era mindfucks ever made. (Arguably, only “The Parallax View” might be better if you’re willing to look past Warren Beatty’s rather twee-to-the-point-of-self-indulgent performance. Not a feat that I’ve ever been able to manage…)
THIS.
Am I going mad or did Bruce Willis do a semi-respectable version of Secret Agent Man on his “Rhythm and Blues” LP? In fact I think I actually bought that LP, back during or after the Moonlighting days! Ah those were the days … but after the ’70’s it must be said! 😀
Oh and great comic Byron, loved all the old Spy shows myself! Preferred Connery as Bond and also quite like Craig’s version, amazingly! 😀 Hated Roger Moore’s awful acting!
Thx Bob, for finally being the one to mention Willis in a musical context without spitting. Actually he wasn’t bad at all!
I agree with TAFKAN, I think that Lazenby was definately closer to the character that Fleming wrote about, followed by Dalton & Craig. Fleming’s Bond was really not very nice, and a lot rougher and unrefined than the movie Bonds. Overall, tho, I still have to go with Connery; best Bond ever.
In resurecting the great TV spy shows of the 60’s, how has everyone (I think) missed the best one? Mission: Impossible?!! I lived for that show. My wife would also chime in were she “here”, & throw in her 2 cents for Honey West & The Avengers…
Ahahahahaha! Now Byron HAS to do a strip/wallpaper in which every member of the band is pulling off a Mission Impossible mask of *another* band member’s face… 😛
“…throw in her 2 cents for Honey West & The Avengers…”
Egads, how could we forget Diana Rigg’s leather catsuit! ~dies dribbling~
Ah, yes! Emma Peel is certainly needed today. (I had a schoolboy crush on Diana Rigg when The Avengers was on it’s U.S. run on ABC.) But let’s not sell her replacement, Tara King (the lovely and talented Linda Thorson); who, in my opinion at least, admirably filled the rather large go-go boots that Ms. Rigg vacated for — ironically enough — the Bond movie On Her Majesty’s Secret Service; short.
Yes, Thorson did a very good job, although her character was created to have, shall we say, far less elegance and coolth than Mrs Peel’s.
Also, let us not forget Cathy Gale (Peel’s predecessor, played by Honor Blackman IIRC), also a gorgeous and elegant character!
Unfortunately I’ve never been blessed to see any of the Gale episodes. I know that they’re on DVD, but the only set I’ve seen was on eBay — and for Southeast-Asia-encoded players (R5, I think) at that!
Farewell then to George ‘Wexford’ Baker. It was nearly George ‘James Bond’ Baker, but that never came to be, perhaps happily. He brought integrity and grace to his roles. Flash wasn’t his thing. A gentleman.
I say he should have been Buddet in a sexy Emma Peel or Modesty Blase catsuit why hotter and leave the black sweater to Sterling Archer he invited it.