THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. THE FINAL AFFAIR DAVID MCDANIEL

THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. THE FINAL AFFAIR. David McDaniel.

When The Man from U.N.C.L.E.  was at the height of its popularity, Ace books published many paperback tie-in novels. Some of the best of these were written by David McDaniel. In "The Dagger Affair" McDaniel revealed something the TV show never did: "Thrush" [UNCLE's main antagonists] stood for Technological Hierarchy for the Removal of Undesirables and the Subjugation of Humanity -- sort of like Nazis -- and gave them a fascinating background [Professor Moriarity anyone?] McDaniel wrote this last book detailing how UNCLE finally took care of their world-wide enemies before 1970, but it was never published, as the TV series had long since been cancelled. In The Final Affair it develops that UNCLE has put a special device in Thrush's San Francisco HQ [headed by Ward Baldwin from "Dagger Affair"] that has basically gained them entry into the group's Ultimate Computer, which contains all their knowledge and makes some decisions for them as well. There is a hypnotized double-agent who doesn't know he's really working for UNCLE, and a new deadly Thrush weapon that shoots out destructive fireballs. In a situation that prefigures the TV show Alias, Napoleon Solo's late wife June shows up unexpectedly, and explains why she faked her death [everyone accepts her into UNCLE ranks much too easily]. Solo, Illya, and June lead a strike on Thrush Island to make sure that the group of evildoers can't regroup very quickly, if at all. [It is explained that there will still be a lot of work for UNCLE mopping up and dealing with outbreaks and infighting among various Thrush satraps.] There is a passing of the torch after a major character is killed. In an amusing sequence Illya tells Napoleon to just trust him and hold his hand so they don't stick out in a gay bar [although one can't imagine the sophisticated Solo not realizing what kind of bar he was in!]

Verdict: A fitting close to the UNCLE saga. ***.

A FORTUNATE LIFE: ROBERT VAUGHN

A FORTUNATE LIFE: ROBERT VAUGHN. 2008. Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin's Press.

An interesting and highly readable account of the life of actor Robert Vaughn, as told and written by Vaughn himself. We learn about his childhood and his theatrical family; his interests in politics [one senses a certain conservatism under the liberal veneer]; his early movie roles; his work on The Man from U.N.C.L.E., which made him a household name; and his feelings about who really might have murdered Robert Kennedy. In other words, this is certainly a mixed bag, but it's never boring. Most of the book is in chronological order, while a section in back includes many more anecdotes that for one reason or another were never mentioned in the proper order. No matter. Being told that a certain actor was bisexual, Vaughn thought that meant he took on two women at once. The same guy came to his wedding and told him he ought to appear in A Streetcar Named Desire -- as Blanche Dubois. Vaughn writes of being held hostage in two different countries [for very different reasons] and his harrowing escapes. He's a bit hard on The Man from U.N.C.L.E. , finding the pilot creaky and wondering why anyone would want to watch it. Although the book is dedicated to Vaughn's wife and two children, you learn almost nothing about them, not even how he met his wife. [You can practically hear him saying "Sorry honey, sorry kids, but this book is about me." I mean, we don't even learn what the kids do for a living!] Vaughn is cultured and erudite, but underneath it all he's a typical self-absorbed actor. For more on The Man from U.N.C.L.E. click here. Related posts: The Spy with My Face; The Spy in the Green Hat; The Helicopter Spies.

Verdict: Good read, good book. ***.

THE HELICOPTER SPIES

THE HELICOPTER SPIES (1968). Director: Boris Sagal.

"Never trust a woman who's always on time. It always indicates a -- much deeper -- problem."

Originally shown on The Man from U.N.C.L.E. television program as Parts 1 and 2 of "The Prince of Darkness Affair," this was turned into a theatrical feature for overseas release. While it has a few too many campy moments, basically it's an entertaining flick with Robert Vaughn in top form, as usual, as super-spy Napoleon Solo. UNCLE makes a deal with the nefarious Luther Sebastian (Bradford Dillman) to help them get a new weapon, a thermal prism, away from its mad inventor, Dr. Karmusi (John Dehner), who is holed up in a desert bunker -- which will self-destruct if his heart stops. But once Sebastian gets his hands on the device, he has no intention of turning it over to UNCLE. There's also a weird cult called The Third Way, a gang of men who all have white hair, the always-amusing Kathleen Freeman as a short order cook, and John Carradine as a guru who hasn't said a word in forty years. Carol Lynley is the feminine innocent caught up in the melodrama, Lola Albright is the bad girl, and Julie London has a nice turn as Sebastian's wife, who seems to bed a different hot guy every night. The film is well-edited and has some exciting scenes and interesting doom-traps. Dillman's performance is odd. H. M. Wynant is fun as all of the handsome Aksoy brothers. This busy actor is still working at eighty-two.

Verdict: Entertaining hokum. **1/2.

TO TRAP A SPY

TO TRAP A SPY (1964). Director: Don Medford. 

"What's that got to do with me? I'm just a housewife with two children." 

Before the sixties spy show The Man from U.N.C.L.E. hit the airwaves, a pilot episode was filmed under the name Solo. When the show became a big hit, it was decided to increase the coffers a bit by expanding the first episode into feature-length and releasing it to theaters in color instead of black and white as it was shown on TV. To further make it a little different, it was decided to use the Solo pilot instead of the subsequent U.N.C.L.E. episode [Both of which were "The Vulcan Affair" with some changes]. Therefore the sinister organization in To Trap a Spy isn't Thrush but Wasp, and Solo's boss isn't Alexander Waverly but Mr. Allison (Will Kuluva). Sexy Luciana Paluzzi, who was a hit woman in Thunderball, figures in the added footage, which includes an after-bedroom scene with Solo. [Actually Paluzzi gives a good and more nuanced performance than she did in the Bond film.] 

The plot has Solo (an excellent Robert Vaughn as a very classy spy) importuning a pretty housewife, Elaine May Bender (an equally good Patricia Crowley) to distract old boyfriend Andrew Vulcan (Fritz Weaver), who is planning an assassination of African dignitary Ashumen (William Marshall). But things are never as they seem, and complications arise, leading to desperate circumstances for Solo and the fish-out-of-water Elaine. Weaver and Marshall are both in good form, and Kuluva, frankly, makes a more realistic head of a super-spy agency than the lovable but rather dithery Leo G. Carroll. Some very good scenes and Vaughn and Paluzzi especially play well together. NOTE: David McCallum/Ilya doesn't have much to do in this. Click here for more on The Man from U.N.C.L.E. 

Verdict: The Birth of UNCLE. ***.

THE SPY WITH MY FACE

THE SPY WITH MY FACE (1965). Director: John Newland.

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. was such a successful program that the producers decided to try to make even more money by expanding certain episodes and turning them into movies. (Later on they only did this with two-part episodes, which generally needed no extra material.) This was fine for the foreign market, but a bit of a rip-off for Americans who had to pay to see what they'd already seen for free on TV. The Spy with My Face began life as "The Double Affair," a first season episode of the show in which THRUSH replaces Napoleon Solo (Robert Vaughn) with a surgically-altered lookalike. Senta Berger is the sexy THRUSH villainess who dallies with both the original Solo and the copy, and Sharon Farrell is the perky stewardess who falls for Solo. The plot has to do with Project Earthsave, which will employ a unique and deadly force developed by scientists in the event Earth were to be attacked from space. Naturally THRUSH wants to get its hands on this energy for its own purposes. The best scene has several agents approaching the underground vault that holds the mysterious force as the director (an effective Paula Raymond of Beast from 20,000 Fathoms fame) warns them not to look into the vault without goggles once it's opened -- for some reason you could be sucked inside the vault and killed. The Solo-double murders someone who's on to him by "accidentally" knocking off his goggles. Strangely, no one even makes an attempt to rescue the poor guy as, mesmerized, he walks into the vault and the director intones "we can't save a man who no longer exists." Scenes added to the telecast include an opening raid on a THRUSH HQ, and some sexier bedroom and shower scenes with Vaughn, Berger, and Farrell. This may be basically minor-league all the way, but it's still fun if you're an U.N.C.L.E. fan. Still at its shorter length as a TV episode it probably worked much better. (The TV episode was shown in black and white; the movie version is in color.)

Verdict: Fun for Man from U.N.C.L.E. maniacs. **1/2.