BBC has reported that the movie and TV star has died at age 80. He was known as the warden in "Escape From Alcatraz" and Longshanks, King Edward I in "Braveheart" but was best known as John Drake in "Danger Man" and even more importantly as Number 6 in "The Prisoner."
R.I.P. Patrick McGoohan
- Thread starter chmsam
- Start date
Help Support Candle Power Flashlight Forum
He was a good actor,I really liked The Prisoner. The village,Portmeirion, in Wales where is was filmed is beautiful.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portmeirion
Wired.com has an article about a remake of The Prisoner.
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Patrick McGoohan, the Emmy-winning actor who created and starred in the cult classic television show "The Prisoner," has died. He was 80.
McGoohan died Tuesday in Los Angeles after a short illness, his son-in-law, film producer Cleve Landsberg, said.
McGoohan won two Emmys for his work on the Peter Falk detective drama "Columbo," and more recently appeared as King Edward Longshanks in the 1995 Mel Gibson film "Braveheart."
But he was most famous as the character known only as Number Six in "The Prisoner," a sci-fi tinged 1960s British series in which a former spy is held captive in a small enclave known only as The Village, where a mysterious authority named Number One constantly prevents his escape.
McGoohan came up with the concept and wrote and directed several episodes of the show, which has kept a devoted following in the United States and Europe for four decades.
Born in New York on March 19, 1928, McGoohan was raised in England and Ireland, where his family moved shortly after his birth. He had a busy stage career before moving to television, and won a London Drama Critics Award for playing the title role in the Henrik Ibsen play "Brand."
He married stage actress Joan Drummond in 1951. The oldest of their three daughters, Catherine, is also an actress.
His first foray into TV was in 1964 in the series "Danger Man," a more straightforward spy show that initially lasted just one season but was later brought back for three more when its popularity - and McGoohan's - exploded in reruns.
Weary of playing the show's lead John Drake, McGoohan pitched to producers the surreal and cerebral "The Prisoner" to give himself a challenge.
The series ran just one season and 17 episodes in 1967, but its cultural impact remains.
He voiced his Number Six character in an episode of "The Simpsons" in 2000. The show is being remade as a series for AMC that premieres later this year.
"His creation of 'The Prisoner' made an indelible mark on the sci-fi, fantasy and political thriller genres, creating one of the most iconic characters of all time," AMC said in a statement Wednesday. "AMC hopes to honor his legacy in our re-imagining of 'The Prisoner.'"
Later came smaller roles in film and television. McGoohan won Emmys for guest spots on "Columbo" 16 years apart, in 1974 and 1990.
He also appeared as a warden in the 1979 Clint Eastwood film "Escape from Alcatraz" and as a judge in the 1996 John Grisham courtroom drama "A Time To Kill."
His last major role was in "Braveheart," in what The Associated Press called a "standout" performance as the brutal king who battles Scottish freedom fighter William Wallace, played by Gibson.
In his review of the film for the Los Angeles Times critic Peter Rainer said "McGoohan is in possession of perhaps the most villainous enunciation in the history of acting."
McGoohan is survived by his wife and three daughters.
---
Associated Press writer Solvej Schou contributed to this story.
© 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Wired.com has an article about a remake of The Prisoner.
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Patrick McGoohan, the Emmy-winning actor who created and starred in the cult classic television show "The Prisoner," has died. He was 80.
McGoohan died Tuesday in Los Angeles after a short illness, his son-in-law, film producer Cleve Landsberg, said.
McGoohan won two Emmys for his work on the Peter Falk detective drama "Columbo," and more recently appeared as King Edward Longshanks in the 1995 Mel Gibson film "Braveheart."
But he was most famous as the character known only as Number Six in "The Prisoner," a sci-fi tinged 1960s British series in which a former spy is held captive in a small enclave known only as The Village, where a mysterious authority named Number One constantly prevents his escape.
McGoohan came up with the concept and wrote and directed several episodes of the show, which has kept a devoted following in the United States and Europe for four decades.
Born in New York on March 19, 1928, McGoohan was raised in England and Ireland, where his family moved shortly after his birth. He had a busy stage career before moving to television, and won a London Drama Critics Award for playing the title role in the Henrik Ibsen play "Brand."
He married stage actress Joan Drummond in 1951. The oldest of their three daughters, Catherine, is also an actress.
His first foray into TV was in 1964 in the series "Danger Man," a more straightforward spy show that initially lasted just one season but was later brought back for three more when its popularity - and McGoohan's - exploded in reruns.
Weary of playing the show's lead John Drake, McGoohan pitched to producers the surreal and cerebral "The Prisoner" to give himself a challenge.
The series ran just one season and 17 episodes in 1967, but its cultural impact remains.
He voiced his Number Six character in an episode of "The Simpsons" in 2000. The show is being remade as a series for AMC that premieres later this year.
"His creation of 'The Prisoner' made an indelible mark on the sci-fi, fantasy and political thriller genres, creating one of the most iconic characters of all time," AMC said in a statement Wednesday. "AMC hopes to honor his legacy in our re-imagining of 'The Prisoner.'"
Later came smaller roles in film and television. McGoohan won Emmys for guest spots on "Columbo" 16 years apart, in 1974 and 1990.
He also appeared as a warden in the 1979 Clint Eastwood film "Escape from Alcatraz" and as a judge in the 1996 John Grisham courtroom drama "A Time To Kill."
His last major role was in "Braveheart," in what The Associated Press called a "standout" performance as the brutal king who battles Scottish freedom fighter William Wallace, played by Gibson.
In his review of the film for the Los Angeles Times critic Peter Rainer said "McGoohan is in possession of perhaps the most villainous enunciation in the history of acting."
McGoohan is survived by his wife and three daughters.
---
Associated Press writer Solvej Schou contributed to this story.
© 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Flying Turtle
Flashaholic
Ah, memories. I really liked the TV show "Secret Agent" back in the '60's. Much more believable than the silly, but enjoyable, "Man from U.N.C.L.E." Sorry to hear this. R.I.P. Mr. McGoohan. I enjoyed your work.
Geoff
Geoff
swampgator
Enlightened
#6 has left the Village a free man.
Sgt. LED
Flashaholic
You beat me to it.
This guy was something. You just hated him so much in Braveheart you wanted to kill him yourself. That's a good actor. RIP
I'm really very sorry hear that. The Prisoner was a phenomenal show, and a real tour-de-force for Mr McGoohan's talents.
FYI, a mini-series TV remake of the Prisoner has just wrapped up filming, and will be airing sometime this year. You can read more about it at amctv.com.
In honour of the new release, AMC is making all 17 episodes of the original Prisoner available for viewing on their website free of charge. Unfortunately, the link doesn't work from Canada - but hopefully those of you in the U.S. can enjoy watching the show:
http://www.amctv.com/originals/the-prisoner-1960s-series/
RIP Mr McGoohan.
FYI, a mini-series TV remake of the Prisoner has just wrapped up filming, and will be airing sometime this year. You can read more about it at amctv.com.
In honour of the new release, AMC is making all 17 episodes of the original Prisoner available for viewing on their website free of charge. Unfortunately, the link doesn't work from Canada - but hopefully those of you in the U.S. can enjoy watching the show:
http://www.amctv.com/originals/the-prisoner-1960s-series/
RIP Mr McGoohan.
Last edited:
LowBat
Flashlight Enthusiast
When I was touring Wales in the early 90's I just had to go to Portmeirion. I had a great time exploring "the village" which I watched on television as a small child. I discovered Number 6's apartment has been converted into a shop for The Prisoner souvenirs. That show had to be his crowning achievement.
"Be seeing you" :candle:
"Be seeing you" :candle:
I've been a big Prisoner fan since discovering the show in my early 20s. I haven't made it to Wales yet, but I was amazed on a recent trip to London how little had changed in 40 years (compared to the opening montage from the series).
In honor of Mr. McGoohan's accomplishment with the show, here's a couple of shots taken in the summer of 2006:
The exterior of the Prisoner's flat in London (1 Buckingham Place, a couple of blocks from Buckingham Palace). Aside from a new paint job on the door and shutters, little has changed - even the mailbox is still there.
Shot on Abington St, outside the Houses of Parliament on the right (Westminster Abbey is up ahead on the left).
Even the underground tunnels and parking lots are still there - this sequence was from the underground parking structure under the Marble Arch (Bayswater and Park Lane).
There's a group of Prisoner fans that do annual walk-arounds to all these sights (which is how I managed to find them through a google search).
I really am sorry to hear he is gone. Hopefully the new show will raise some interest in the original series (available for free streaming here).
"Be seeing you." :candle:
Last edited:
Black Rose
Flashlight Enthusiast
I'm rather embarrassed to admit that I never heard of The Prisoner until I heard the Iron Maiden song of the same name in the 80s .
Oddly enough, the show originally premiered in the UK 5 days before I was born.
Oddly enough, the show originally premiered in the UK 5 days before I was born.
selfbuilt, thanks for the link and the pics.
When I saw the pic of the tunnel my mind flashed back in time to high school when I watched this show late at night.
I have tried to think and live as a free man,thanks Mr.McGoohan.
"Be seeing you"
When I saw the pic of the tunnel my mind flashed back in time to high school when I watched this show late at night.
I have tried to think and live as a free man,thanks Mr.McGoohan.
"Be seeing you"
Bradlee
Enlightened
Thanks for the heads up. I was hoping the rumors would eventually come to fruition
.
NA8
Flashlight Enthusiast
- Joined
- Jun 4, 2007
- Messages
- 1,565
No one mentioned his work for Disney in The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh (1963). I guess they're still ticked about the limited release DVD.
"On November 11, 2008 the Walt Disney company released a limited pressing of 39,500 issues of The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh in DVD format for the first time as a part of the "Disney Treasures" collection, and was now called Dr. Syn: The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh. The DVD's sold out in three weeks. The film had only been available on VHS for a short time. The two DVD set includes the American TV version and the theatrical version Dr. Syn Alias The Scarecrow in widescreen format. It also includes the original introductions by Walt Disney and a documentary on Disney's interest in Dr. Syn. The Disney versions were shot on location in England. The church in the movie is St. Clement's Church in the village of Old Romney."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scarecrow_of_Romney_Marsh
"On November 11, 2008 the Walt Disney company released a limited pressing of 39,500 issues of The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh in DVD format for the first time as a part of the "Disney Treasures" collection, and was now called Dr. Syn: The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh. The DVD's sold out in three weeks. The film had only been available on VHS for a short time. The two DVD set includes the American TV version and the theatrical version Dr. Syn Alias The Scarecrow in widescreen format. It also includes the original introductions by Walt Disney and a documentary on Disney's interest in Dr. Syn. The Disney versions were shot on location in England. The church in the movie is St. Clement's Church in the village of Old Romney."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scarecrow_of_Romney_Marsh
Last edited:
LowBat
Flashlight Enthusiast
Thanks for the pics selfbuilt. I didn't know about the tunnel or where it was. Now you got me to look at some of my old pictures. Like you I found the London flat near Buckingham Palace. In reality it's a legal office (as indicated on the gold plaques). The wife of my second cousin works at law firm nearby and she told me where to find this place. This picture was from March of 1993, and comparing it to your 2006 picture, it looks like they added some shrubbery by the front door and painted the top of the fence gold.
Here are some pictures of Portmeirion from July of 1991. I walked into the village on a very early rainy morning.
Number 6's flat. I think the mailbox and address plaque were as it was on the show. Also note the penny-farthing bicycle by the door. There happened to be a black cat wondering around which made it all the more intriguing.
The path to Number 2's residence.
This should look very familiar. When they made the show there were still parts of Portmeirion that had yet to be completed. The flower boxes around the courtyard pool are an example, for they were not present in the series.
You can walk down to the beach where rover would appear whenever there was an "orange alert".
Here are some pictures of Portmeirion from July of 1991. I walked into the village on a very early rainy morning.
Number 6's flat. I think the mailbox and address plaque were as it was on the show. Also note the penny-farthing bicycle by the door. There happened to be a black cat wondering around which made it all the more intriguing.
The path to Number 2's residence.
This should look very familiar. When they made the show there were still parts of Portmeirion that had yet to be completed. The flower boxes around the courtyard pool are an example, for they were not present in the series.
You can walk down to the beach where rover would appear whenever there was an "orange alert".
Last edited:
LowBat
Flashlight Enthusiast
I've never seen that one. When you mentioned Disney I thought of "The Three Lives of Thomasina". Another role and movie I liked was "Ice Station Zebra".
Great Portmeirion pics. I see you also have an eye for reproducing camera angles. And that black cat certainly sets the stage (very "Free for All").
As for the tunnel, it isn't where you'd expect it to be. The Prisoner clearly pulls in and out of the parking garage on Great College St off Abington Road (again, unchanged except for all the vine growing along the left side):
But all the interiors were shot at the Marble Arch parking garage:
The gate has been updated and the sidewalk removed, but the rest is all the same (e.g. the back paneling, support columns, etc. - just painted two-tone now). Even the red fire buckets on the wall on the right are still there (although hard to see in that still frame).
Unfortunately, they've remodeled the area where he walks through the WAY OUT doors, but otherwise its all easily recognizable.
As for 1 Buckingham Place, I think it also houses government offices on the second floor now. I don't have it handy, but I took a pic down the length of the road, and it looks exactly the same - except for 40 years growth of the two trees at the intersection with Catherine Place.
Thanks again for the Portmeirion pics - I'm looking forward to visiting one day.
P.S.: Another classic role for him was the scientist/creator from Scanners. Fits with a number of the Prisoner themes.
Last edited:
It's been almost exactly one year since the death of The Prisoner star/co-creator Patrick McGoohan, and I have just seen the recently released blu-ray production of the Prisoner series.
I have to say - I am stunned by the quality.oo: For Prisoner fans who have made the jump to HD TV, this is one blu-ray set you must get. They went back to the original 35mm negatives for the blu-ray, and did a fabulous job remastering them. Compared to the revious DVDs (which obviously came from a poor quality print), the differences is unbelievable.
To give you a *very* rough idea, I took some photos of my TV with both sets playing on the same setup (Panasonic blu-ray player and plasma HD TV). I haven't done anything to pics except resize them for here (camera set to daylight white balance, evaluative exposure settings).
For each still, the blu-ray is shown first, followed by the regular DVDs. Click on the images to bring up higher resolution photos:
In reality, there is an even more dramatic difference than these photos show (camera pics of TV only turn out so well, and even the blow-up pics are still only half the actual HD resolution). Trust me, there's a LOT more detail in the actual blu-ray set. And note that this is the best the DVDs could look (the blu-ray machine is an upconverting DVD player, and everything is connected by HDMI with identical settings).
They've also done a great job on the sound. Not only have they cleaned it up considerably, but they have done good job spatializing the original mono audio track for 5.1 surround sound (i.e. alarms go off on the back channels, door closing sounds behind you, etc).
Well worth it for Prisoner fans! RIP Mr. McGoohan. :candle:
I have to say - I am stunned by the quality.
oo: For Prisoner fans who have made the jump to HD TV, this is one blu-ray set you must get. They went back to the original 35mm negatives for the blu-ray, and did a fabulous job remastering them. Compared to the revious DVDs (which obviously came from a poor quality print), the differences is unbelievable.To give you a *very* rough idea, I took some photos of my TV with both sets playing on the same setup (Panasonic blu-ray player and plasma HD TV). I haven't done anything to pics except resize them for here (camera set to daylight white balance, evaluative exposure settings).
For each still, the blu-ray is shown first, followed by the regular DVDs. Click on the images to bring up higher resolution photos:
In reality, there is an even more dramatic difference than these photos show (camera pics of TV only turn out so well, and even the blow-up pics are still only half the actual HD resolution). Trust me, there's a LOT more detail in the actual blu-ray set. And note that this is the best the DVDs could look (the blu-ray machine is an upconverting DVD player, and everything is connected by HDMI with identical settings).
They've also done a great job on the sound. Not only have they cleaned it up considerably, but they have done good job spatializing the original mono audio track for 5.1 surround sound (i.e. alarms go off on the back channels, door closing sounds behind you, etc).
Well worth it for Prisoner fans! RIP Mr. McGoohan. :candle:
Last edited:
LowBat
Flashlight Enthusiast
Hard to believe it's already been a year since Mr. McGoohan passed away. Those Blu-Ray differences are a very tempting incentive to replacing my Prisoner collection, which happens to be VHS tapes I made from a PBS broadcast in the early nineties. I like them because they were very well hosted by Scott Appel.
