Known to U.S. viewers as "Secret Agent Man" (and made famous by the blockbuster Johnny Rivers song of the same name), "Danger Man" played in Britain in at least two distinct incarnations. Beginning in 1961, the low-budget half hour series starred Patrick McGoohan as all-American John Drake, an agent and all-around trouble shooter for N.A.T.O. Drake was a low-key intelligence agent who could blend in easily wherever he went using a combination of guile and fisticuffs to get the job done. McGoohan tried gamely to put on a neutral, vaguely mid-West American accent, but all too often sounded like he had swallowed something slightly unpleasant but was too embarrassed to cough it back up in mixed company.
The first series ran for a little less than three years and 39 episodes, most of which repeated the same pattern. A crime is committed, Drake shows up in the exotic locale where it was committed, always using his name but often proffering phony credentials (he was everything from a lawyer to a butler to a radio DJ) in order to ferret out the bad guys, and usually winds up punching out three or four of them in one fell swoop: Drake particularly liked chucking conveniently-placed tables at a conveniently placed pair of baddies, leaving just one goon for him to take out the hard way.
"Danger Man" was a modest success in Britain, but didn´t play abroad, and it was cancelled in 1962. But plans changed after the smash hit of a humble little film called "Dr. No" (1962) helped reinvigorate interest in spies and particularly in British spies. As a result, "Danger Man" was "re-imagined" and re-launched in 1964 with a bigger budget and double the running length. There were even bigger changes for the show, however, as John Drake, American N.A.T.O. agent mysteriously morphed into John Drake, British Special Security Agent for MI9. McGoohan seemed much more comfortable tackling the British accent.
The show followed more or less the same formula, only with higher production values and more elaborate plots. However, the series continued to change with the times, becoming increasingly stylized, moving towards more of a pop art aesthetic by the late 1960s. Funky editing and inventive camera work made the show more of a treat for the eyes even as the plots became increasingly less comprehensible. When the series ended in 1966 (except for two color 1968 episodes), McGoohan made a logical and seamless transition into the far funkier and even less-comprehensible cult hit "The Prisoner" which began airing in 1967.
"Danger Man" improved greatly as the series progressed. The early half-hour episodes have a quaint charm to them, but they´re rather stiff and clunky, and Drake is little more than a pair of shoulders holding up a suit. The hour-long series allowed for more complex intrigue, though the writers often held back enough information that viewers couldn´t so much play along as simply watch Drake engage in some inscrutable espionage activities to solve a mystery that really hadn´t been explained much in the first place. Drake´s mission was also pretty obscure. He could show up anywhere and investigate anything, from the murder of a fellow agent to a crooked game-hunting scheme. Though the hour-long shows did feature plenty of high-tech gadgets, Drake never came across as a Bond rip-off. He was always much more subdued, and though devilishly charming never really that much of a ladies´ man. John Drake was all-business all the time.
The boxed set from A&E includes all 86 episodes of "Danger Man" from its initial run of 39 half-hour episodes to its second 45 episode run from 1964-1966 as well as the two color episodes from 1968 which unofficially wrapped up the series. It was only the second run that was seen in the United States beginning in 1965, spawning the Johnny Rivers´ smash-hit song that was (and probably still is) more famous than the show.
There are sixteen discs in the boxed set. The first five include seven or eight episodes each from the series´ initial run of half-hour episodes. The rest of the discs include three or four of the hour-long episodes each.
The first series ran for a little less than three years and 39 episodes, most of which repeated the same pattern. A crime is committed, Drake shows up in the exotic locale where it was committed, always using his name but often proffering phony credentials (he was everything from a lawyer to a butler to a radio DJ) in order to ferret out the bad guys, and usually winds up punching out three or four of them in one fell swoop: Drake particularly liked chucking conveniently-placed tables at a conveniently placed pair of baddies, leaving just one goon for him to take out the hard way.
"Danger Man" was a modest success in Britain, but didn´t play abroad, and it was cancelled in 1962. But plans changed after the smash hit of a humble little film called "Dr. No" (1962) helped reinvigorate interest in spies and particularly in British spies. As a result, "Danger Man" was "re-imagined" and re-launched in 1964 with a bigger budget and double the running length. There were even bigger changes for the show, however, as John Drake, American N.A.T.O. agent mysteriously morphed into John Drake, British Special Security Agent for MI9. McGoohan seemed much more comfortable tackling the British accent.
The show followed more or less the same formula, only with higher production values and more elaborate plots. However, the series continued to change with the times, becoming increasingly stylized, moving towards more of a pop art aesthetic by the late 1960s. Funky editing and inventive camera work made the show more of a treat for the eyes even as the plots became increasingly less comprehensible. When the series ended in 1966 (except for two color 1968 episodes), McGoohan made a logical and seamless transition into the far funkier and even less-comprehensible cult hit "The Prisoner" which began airing in 1967.
"Danger Man" improved greatly as the series progressed. The early half-hour episodes have a quaint charm to them, but they´re rather stiff and clunky, and Drake is little more than a pair of shoulders holding up a suit. The hour-long series allowed for more complex intrigue, though the writers often held back enough information that viewers couldn´t so much play along as simply watch Drake engage in some inscrutable espionage activities to solve a mystery that really hadn´t been explained much in the first place. Drake´s mission was also pretty obscure. He could show up anywhere and investigate anything, from the murder of a fellow agent to a crooked game-hunting scheme. Though the hour-long shows did feature plenty of high-tech gadgets, Drake never came across as a Bond rip-off. He was always much more subdued, and though devilishly charming never really that much of a ladies´ man. John Drake was all-business all the time.
The boxed set from A&E includes all 86 episodes of "Danger Man" from its initial run of 39 half-hour episodes to its second 45 episode run from 1964-1966 as well as the two color episodes from 1968 which unofficially wrapped up the series. It was only the second run that was seen in the United States beginning in 1965, spawning the Johnny Rivers´ smash-hit song that was (and probably still is) more famous than the show.
There are sixteen discs in the boxed set. The first five include seven or eight episodes each from the series´ initial run of half-hour episodes. The rest of the discs include three or four of the hour-long episodes each.
Known to U.S. viewers as "Secret Agent Man" (and made famous by the blockbuster Johnny Rivers song of the same name), "Danger Man" played in Britain in at least two distinct incarnations. Beginning in 1961, the low-budget half hour series starred Patrick McGoohan as all-American John Drake, an agent and all-around trouble shooter for N.A.T.O. Drake was a low-key intelligence agent who could blend in easily wherever he went using a combination of guile and fisticuffs to get the job done. McGoohan tried gamely to put on a neutral, vaguely mid-West American accent, but all too often sounded like he had swallowed something slightly unpleasant but was too embarrassed to cough it back up in mixed company.
The first series ran for a little less than three years and 39 episodes, most of which repeated the same pattern. A crime is committed, Drake shows up in the exotic locale where it was committed, always using his name but often proffering phony credentials (he was everything from a lawyer to a butler to a radio DJ) in order to ferret out the bad guys, and usually winds up punching out three or four of them in one fell swoop: Drake particularly liked chucking conveniently-placed tables at a conveniently placed pair of baddies, leaving just one goon for him to take out the hard way.
"Danger Man" was a modest success in Britain, but didn´t play abroad, and it was cancelled in 1962. But plans changed after the smash hit of a humble little film called "Dr. No" (1962) helped reinvigorate interest in spies and particularly in British spies. As a result, "Danger Man" was "re-imagined" and re-launched in 1964 with a bigger budget and double the running length. There were even bigger changes for the show, however, as John Drake, American N.A.T.O. agent mysteriously morphed into John Drake, British Special Security Agent for MI9. McGoohan seemed much more comfortable tackling the British accent.
The show followed more or less the same formula, only with higher production values and more elaborate plots. However, the series continued to change with the times, becoming increasingly stylized, moving towards more of a pop art aesthetic by the late 1960s. Funky editing and inventive camera work made the show more of a treat for the eyes even as the plots became increasingly less comprehensible. When the series ended in 1966 (except for two color 1968 episodes), McGoohan made a logical and seamless transition into the far funkier and even less-comprehensible cult hit "The Prisoner" which began airing in 1967.
"Danger Man" improved greatly as the series progressed. The early half-hour episodes have a quaint charm to them, but they´re rather stiff and clunky, and Drake is little more than a pair of shoulders holding up a suit. The hour-long series allowed for more complex intrigue, though the writers often held back enough information that viewers couldn´t so much play along as simply watch Drake engage in some inscrutable espionage activities to solve a mystery that really hadn´t been explained much in the first place. Drake´s mission was also pretty obscure. He could show up anywhere and investigate anything, from the murder of a fellow agent to a crooked game-hunting scheme. Though the hour-long shows did feature plenty of high-tech gadgets, Drake never came across as a Bond rip-off. He was always much more subdued, and though devilishly charming never really that much of a ladies´ man. John Drake was all-business all the time.
The boxed set from A&E includes all 86 episodes of "Danger Man" from its initial run of 39 half-hour episodes to its second 45 episode run from 1964-1966 as well as the two color episodes from 1968 which unofficially wrapped up the series. It was only the second run that was seen in the United States beginning in 1965, spawning the Johnny Rivers´ smash-hit song that was (and probably still is) more famous than the show.
There are sixteen discs in the boxed set. The first five include seven or eight episodes each from the series´ initial run of half-hour episodes. The rest of the discs include three or four of the hour-long episodes each.
The first series ran for a little less than three years and 39 episodes, most of which repeated the same pattern. A crime is committed, Drake shows up in the exotic locale where it was committed, always using his name but often proffering phony credentials (he was everything from a lawyer to a butler to a radio DJ) in order to ferret out the bad guys, and usually winds up punching out three or four of them in one fell swoop: Drake particularly liked chucking conveniently-placed tables at a conveniently placed pair of baddies, leaving just one goon for him to take out the hard way.
"Danger Man" was a modest success in Britain, but didn´t play abroad, and it was cancelled in 1962. But plans changed after the smash hit of a humble little film called "Dr. No" (1962) helped reinvigorate interest in spies and particularly in British spies. As a result, "Danger Man" was "re-imagined" and re-launched in 1964 with a bigger budget and double the running length. There were even bigger changes for the show, however, as John Drake, American N.A.T.O. agent mysteriously morphed into John Drake, British Special Security Agent for MI9. McGoohan seemed much more comfortable tackling the British accent.
The show followed more or less the same formula, only with higher production values and more elaborate plots. However, the series continued to change with the times, becoming increasingly stylized, moving towards more of a pop art aesthetic by the late 1960s. Funky editing and inventive camera work made the show more of a treat for the eyes even as the plots became increasingly less comprehensible. When the series ended in 1966 (except for two color 1968 episodes), McGoohan made a logical and seamless transition into the far funkier and even less-comprehensible cult hit "The Prisoner" which began airing in 1967.
"Danger Man" improved greatly as the series progressed. The early half-hour episodes have a quaint charm to them, but they´re rather stiff and clunky, and Drake is little more than a pair of shoulders holding up a suit. The hour-long series allowed for more complex intrigue, though the writers often held back enough information that viewers couldn´t so much play along as simply watch Drake engage in some inscrutable espionage activities to solve a mystery that really hadn´t been explained much in the first place. Drake´s mission was also pretty obscure. He could show up anywhere and investigate anything, from the murder of a fellow agent to a crooked game-hunting scheme. Though the hour-long shows did feature plenty of high-tech gadgets, Drake never came across as a Bond rip-off. He was always much more subdued, and though devilishly charming never really that much of a ladies´ man. John Drake was all-business all the time.
The boxed set from A&E includes all 86 episodes of "Danger Man" from its initial run of 39 half-hour episodes to its second 45 episode run from 1964-1966 as well as the two color episodes from 1968 which unofficially wrapped up the series. It was only the second run that was seen in the United States beginning in 1965, spawning the Johnny Rivers´ smash-hit song that was (and probably still is) more famous than the show.
There are sixteen discs in the boxed set. The first five include seven or eight episodes each from the series´ initial run of half-hour episodes. The rest of the discs include three or four of the hour-long episodes each.
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