Posted on 09/25/2023 5:57:26 PM PDT by Morgana
Actor David McCallum, who became a teen heartthrob in the hit series The Man From U.N.C.L.E. in the 1960s and was the eccentric medical examiner in the popular NCIS 40 years later, has died. He was 90.
McCallum died Monday of natural causes surrounded by family at New York Presbyterian Hospital, CBS said in a statement.
'David was a gifted actor and author, and beloved by many around the world. He led an incredible life, and his legacy will forever live on through his family and the countless hours on film and television that will never go away,' CBS said in a statement.
Scottish-born McCallum had been doing well appearing in such films A Night to Remember (about the Titanic), The Great Escape and The Greatest Story Ever Told (as Judas).
But it was The Man From U.N.C.L.E. that made the blond actor with the Beatlesque haircut a household name in the mid-'60s.
The success of the James Bond books and films had set off a chain reaction, with secret agents proliferating on both large and small screens.
Indeed, Bond creator Ian Fleming contributed some ideas as The Man From U.N.C.L.E. was being developed, according to Jon Heitland's The Man From U.N.C.L.E. Book.
The show, which debuted in 1964, starred Robert Vaughn as Napoleon Solo, an agent in a secretive, high-tech squad of crime fighters whose initials stood for United Network Command for Law and Enforcement.
Despite the Cold War, the agency had an international staff, with McCallum as Illya Kuryakin, Solo's Russian sidekick.
The role was relatively small at first, McCallum recalled, adding in a 1998 interview that 'I'd never heard of the word "sidekick" before.'
The show drew mixed reviews but eventually caught on, particularly with teenage girls attracted by McCallum´s good looks and enigmatic, intellectual character.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
RIP. Good job.
An icon.
I thought he was going to live forever.
RIP Illya Kuryakin
Iliya and Solo go into a beat nic coffee house. A beatnic chick walks up to Illya and starts kissing him. High school girls all over American went hart broken. They all wanted him to be kissing them.
I absolutely loved the Ducky character! I confess that I watch the NCIS shows all the time, up to a certain point in time. Rest in peace, Mr. McCallum. 😢
Earlier thread, different source.
https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/4184861/posts
RIP, Mr. McCallum.
RIP to a very gifted actor, a Morgan loving driver, and a man who gave me a cool dressing routine in junior high school, and an impetus to learn the Russan language in high school.
I quit watching shortly after Cote de Pablo left. The show was never as good after that.
Was always a fan of David McCallum. Rest well, sir.
RIP Mr. McCallum. Another one of our childhood icons goes home.
About the only thing I remember about “The Man from Uncle” is some woman saying to Ilya, “I hear y’all are from Georgia,” and Ilya mumbling back “Georgian SSR.”
That, and I think their secret HQ was in back of a tailor shop. Or maybe that was “Get Smart.”
The BEST NCIS episodes (I think it was a two-part) was the ‘girls’ in the office all DROOLING over pictures of ‘Ducky’ when he was a hot young thing.
Loved. It. :)
My Dad was a total ‘Man From U.N.C.L.E.’ fan, so we always watched it in Prime Time. :)
RIP Ducky, Indeed!
90, he had a long run and acted regularly into his late 80’s. Never did lose his charm or looks.
>>I quit watching shortly after Cote de Pablo left. The show was never as good after that.<<
That’s EXACTLY when I quit watching. Too bad she left the show. After that, I lost interest. I still watch the re-runs, though.
RIP Ducky!
That show is all over the place season to season...a serious drama one season, then totally campy the next.
My vague memory of Man from U.N.C.L.E. was Napoleon Solo getting his butt kicked all the time. The chicks dug him anyway.
Holy cow: I never realized that he played Ashley-Pitt in The Great Escape. I also never watched the Man from UNCLE; never too late. He was a very, very busy guy the last 20 years.
RIP
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.