[Doofy]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7829267.stm

Emmy-winning actor Patrick McGoohan, best known for starring in cult 1960s TV show The Prisoner, has died at the age of 80.

[flabasha]

Yeah, SERIOUS bummer. I know he had been in ill health for a while.

I remember when I was a young writer, about ten years ago, I was walking down the 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica with my writing partner, and I noticed a very bearded McGoohan walking by himself, puffing a thin cigar. I never do this, but knowing it would be my only chance (he must've been in town for the AFM film market), I caught up with him and did the "Sorry, I'm a huge fan, I wanted to thank you" thing...

He silently peered at me with those flinty blue eyes, and I got a nervous lump in my throat. He looked at my hands, which held a script I was working on, and said in that clipped brogue of his "What's that?" "Oh, it's nothing, it's just a script I'm writing-" "Let me have a look at it."

At this point, I about dumped myself. I handed over the script, and he, in turn, walked over to a large trashcan. For a moment I thought he was going to toss it in. But he laid the script on the edge of the trashcan, opened to the first page and started reading. My partner and I stood there, anxiously, as one of my writing heroes scanned my work in the middle of the crowded Promenade.

As he finished (the rather wordy and screen-direction laden) first page, he looked into my eyes and said.

"I know what you're doing." (pause) "And I like it."

He smiled, handed the script back to me, puffed on his French cigar, and was off (after I got him to autograph the title page).


Be seeing you, Number Six. You're the man.

[- - e r i k - -]

So what happened to the script?

[flabasha]

Well, it helped get us an agent, but was deemed "too smart by half" (whatever the #@! that means) to be a Hollywood comedy, so the agent never went out with it.

So we dumbed our comedy down, and started getting scripts bought. Ah, Hollywood.

I've actually thought about that since, in regard to McGoohan, in that he REFUSED to sell out. Which is why he rarely worked, and why he demanded that the Prisoner, though wildly successful, not be allowed to go more than one season.

I often wish I had his strength as a writer to not sell out, but I've never figured out how to do that and still eat.

[- - e r i k - -]

Ah, selling out. The bread and butter of the creatives.

[Dakar V]

Awesome guy. Always loved his accent, not quite english, not quite american.

[- - e r i k - -]

At least you still got paid right? My synopsis just got pilched, rewrote from a drama to a comedy series and voila.

[flabasha]

Yeah, got paid, but not enough...

So... wait, did they rip the idea from you, or did you get credit/cash?

[Maflynn]

RIP,

that was a great tv show and he was awesome in braveheart.