RIP ILLYA KURYAKIN

                                      SAD NEWS FROM THE WORLD OF ENTERTAINMENT - 

David McCallum, who starred as Illya Kuryakin alongside Robert Vaughn’s Napoleon Solo in the 1960s hit spy drama “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.” and had a supporting role as pathologist Dr. Donald “Ducky” Mallard on the top-rated series “NCIS” decades later, died Monday of natural causes in New York City. He was 90.

                                                  As Ashley-Pitt in THE GREAT ESCAPE

                                                                       Ducky Mallard in NCIS

As Illya Kuryakin with Robert Vaughn as Napoleon Solo in

                                                         THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.

He was in THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD as Judas Iscariot, THE GREAT ESCAPE, SOL MADRID, AROUND THE WORLD UNDER THE SEA, TV's The Invisible Man, Sapphire & Steel TV series, NCIS as Ducky Mallard and many other distinguished roles, but he will always be Illya Kuryakin to me!  - RIP David McCallum -

                          Listen to Hugo Montenegro's recording of the song ILLYA, from the

                                 1965 LP Original Music From The Man From U.N.C.L.E.

                     

COLUMBO: The End of the Series

COLUMBO was an American TV series starring Peter Falk, which had its premiere  as a TV Movie of the Week on February 20, 1968 under the title PRESCRIPTION MURDER and also starring Gene Barry as Dr. Ray Flemming, a psychiatrist who murders his wife when she discovers he's having an affair with one of his patients. The movie pretty much establishes the character of Lt. Columbo of the LAPD. Here, Columbo establishes two of his most famous trademarks by needing to borrow a pencil and, just before leaving the psychiatrist's office, by saying, "There's one more thing . . . ". 

With Gene Barry

Three years later, on March 1st, 1971, the second COLUMBO TV Movie was telecast, starring Lee Grant as attorney Leslie Williams, who is so bored with her husband, she decides to fake his kidnapping after killing him and then plans to keep the ransom.

 Lee Grant

Finally, COLUMBO became one of three rotating programs of The NBC MYSTERY MOVIE and the first episode titled MURDER BY THE BOOK with guest star Jack Cassidy premiered on September 15, 1971. The rest, as the cliché goes, is history.

 Jack Cassidy

Robert Culp

 Robert Vaughn

 Dick Van Dyke

 John Cassavetes

Kim Hunter, Don Ameche and Ross Martin

 Susan Clark and Leslie Nielsen

Robert Vaughn

 Martin Landau

Jackie Cooper

 Patrick O'Neal

Donald Pleasence

Patrick McGoohan

Patrick McGoohan

Patrick McGoohan

Sally Kellerman, Patrick McGoohan and Rue McClanahan

And eventually, after some 69 episodes, COLUMBO appeared solving his last case, exactly twenty years ago, on January 30, 2003 in the episode COLUMBO LIKES THE NIGHTLIFE.

Peter Falk passed away on June 23rd, 2011 at 83.

After so many years it is understandable that some episodes were not as good as others but for me, the first seven seasons, from 1971 to 1978, were all winners.  Peter Falk had a long and distinguished career playing all sorts of roles, in comedy and drama but his ultimate legacy will always be as Lt. Columbo, the classic and unforgettable lieutenant who solved murders by sheer ingenuity, logic, lots of luck, and his uncanny powers of observation.

"Oh, there's one more thing!..."

BULLITT

BULLIT, starring Steve McQueen as Lt. Frank Bullitt was released on October 17, 1968.

              It was directed by Peter Yates with a screenplay by Alan R. Trustman and Harry Kleiner, 

                                          based on the book MUTE WITNESS by Robert L. Pike.  

The plot was fairly simple and dealt with San Francisco police detective Lieutenant Frank Bullitt and his team, Delgetti and Stanton who are tasked by Walter Chalmers with guarding Ross over the weekend, until he can be presented as a witness to a Senate subcommittee hearing on organized crime on Monday morning.

BULLIT became one of my all time favorite films. I remember exactly the day I went to see it back in my hometown of Mexico City. I was 17 years old and I immediately bought the soundtrack LP and attired myself with a dark blue turtleneck sweater and a pair of boots similar to the ones worn by McQueen.

                                                              

I'm just glad I didn't own a car back then or I would've certainly totalled it trying to emulate the famous car chase which is still considered to be one of the greatest car chases in cinema history. 

Of course, as was the case with almost every great film of the sixties, MAD Magazine featured a very funny spoof of the movie, written by Al Jaffee and illustrated by the master of caricature, Mort Drucker.

And, as I frequently do whether the occasion fits or not, I shall celebrate this event by listening to Lalo Schifrin's excellent jazz score and watching BULLITT for the umpteenth time!

VA-ROOOO-OOOOOM!

                                                       The complete story of the film can be found here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bullitt

And more photos from BULLITT here:

https://www.pinterest.com.mx/ferllera/bullitt/