Patrick McGoohan has passed away in Los Angeles, he was 80.
Born in New York but raised in England and Ireland, he is perhaps best known for creating, writing (several episodes) and starring in the late 1960s series “The Prisoner”, a follow-on to his series “Danger Man/Secret Agent”.
That was a great series. I loved the escape episode with the Meteor and his beloved Lotus Seven (which is in the Cars of the Stars museum in Keswick).
His last major role was in “Braveheart”.
He was married to the same woman for 57 years…something sadly rare nowdays.
RIP…
By: scotavia - 17th January 2009 at 10:04
Many from the acting film world found him a total sod to work with.Derek Lord in yesterdays Press and Journal gave an account which was revealing. And similiar references are in Roger Moores book.
By: Moggy C - 17th January 2009 at 00:56
Maybe not his finest performance, but my particular favourite was as ‘Red’ the top driver at the gravel trucking company Stanley Baker joins. (Hell Drivers).
He had a particularly fine way of opening a bottle of Guinness using the steering wheel of the ex-army truck doing about 100mph on a road at the edge of a gravel quarry.
Moggy
By: steve rowell - 16th January 2009 at 01:09
One of his finest performances was as the Warden in Escape from Alcatraz with Clint Eastwood
By: Joglo - 15th January 2009 at 08:13
These obits for people I considered my peers are annoying, a constant reminder that my time is drawing to a close.:(
By: barrythemod - 15th January 2009 at 08:05
Won’t miss him as I’ve got every episode on DVD:D
more on KAR 120C….
http://www.theprisoneronline.com/More-Information/KAR-120C-Lotus-7.html
Sleep well Number 6,you are now a free man.
By: steve rowell - 15th January 2009 at 06:12
Somebody has already posted it i’m afraid!!!
By: Flying-A - 15th January 2009 at 04:34
Farewell, John Drake/No. 6
By the way, the rocket launched in the last episode of The Prisoner was a Blue Streak.
‘Columbo,’ ‘Prisoner’ Star Patrick McGoohan Dead at 80
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
AP
ADVERTISEMENTLOS ANGELES —
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
By: steve rowell - 14th January 2009 at 22:31
I remember him in Danger Man…he was a fine actor
By: Newforest - 14th January 2009 at 20:24
Obit. from the L.A. Times.
http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-patrick-mcgoohan15-2009jan15,0,3951859.story
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January 14, 2009 at 7:36 pm