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High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! McGoohan left school aged sixteen and returned to Sheffield where he worked as a chicken farmer, a bank clerk and a lorry driver before getting a job as a stage manager at Sheffield Repertory Theatre. When one of the actors became ill, McGoohan filled in, launching his acting career.He fell in love with an actress named Joan Drummond, to whom he reportedly wrote love notes every day. They were married on May 19, 1951. They had three daughters, Catherine, Anne and Frances.In 1955, McGoohan starred in a West End production of a play called Serious Charge in the role of a priest accused of being gay. Orson Welles was so impressed by McGoohan's stage presence that he cast him as Starbuck in his York theatre production of Moby Dick Rehearsed.While working as a stand-in during actress screen tests, McGoohan was signed to a contract with the Rank Organisation, the largest European production company between 1930 and 1960. ... Read more

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Chapters: Portmeirion, Danger Man, Shattered Visage, the Village, the Prisoner in Popular Culture, Patrick Mcgoohan, the Prisoner in Other Media, Rover, Opening and Closing Sequences of the Prisoner, the Computer Wore Menace Shoes, John Drake, List of the Prisoner Cast Members. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 114. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: The Prisoner is a 17-episode British television series first broadcast in the UK from 29 September 1967 to 1 February 1968. Starring and co-created by Patrick McGoohan, it combined spy fiction with elements of science fiction, allegory, and psychological drama. The series follows a British former secret agent who is held prisoner in a mysterious seaside village where his captors try to find out why he abruptly resigned from his job. Although sold as a thriller in the mould of McGoohan's previous series, Danger Man (called Secret Agent in its U.S. release), the show's combination of 1960s countercultural themes and surreal setting had a far-reaching effect on science fiction/fantasy programming, and on popular culture in general. A TV miniseries remake aired on the U.S. cable channel AMC November 1517, 2009. Additionally, Christopher Nolan has been widely reported to be considering a film version. The show was co-created by Patrick McGoohan and George Markstein. Markstein, script editor of Danger Man, remembered that during World War II some people were incarcerated in a resort-like prison. A documented situation with some similarities was Operation Epsilon: German atomic scientists were detained post-war in relatively comfortable isolation in a mansion in England, while their conversations were recorded. Markstein suggested that the Danger Man lead, John Drake, could suddenly resign, and be kidnapped and sent to such a location. Markstein ...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=31253 ... Read more

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Patrick McGoohan changed the history of television with his landmark series The Prisoner. Many TV series since have cited The Prisoner as an inspiration, including Lost. But there is a lot more to McGoohan than The Prisoner. This renowned actor has an impressive CV of stage, screen and TV productions, and is often declared to be one of the best actors to have ever come out of Britain. Yet, his obsessive protection of his privacy and the often conflicting and provocative remarks made to the press over the years have created a need to set the record straight. This first ever biography of McGoohan does just that. It chronicles a career that begins on the Sheffield stage and ends with international stardom. The book details McGoohan's classic television series Danger Man and The Prisoner; it explains why McGoohan was top choice for James Bond, and why he turned down the role; it explores the impact he had on both actors and directors he has worked with; and highlights McGoohan's friendship with Peter Falk. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Biography or Prisoner Appreciation?
As a big McGoohan fan, was hoping for a little more biographical info, particularly about years prior to theatrical career.Subject famous for protecting his family's privacy; I did not expect details of marriage or daughters.Also did not expect an extensive hashing over of possible Prisoner interpretations, while Danger Man/Secret Agent gets relatively short shrift.Unless a posthumous autobiography appears someday, this may be the best one can do.As they say, six of one, half a dozen of the other.

Avoid
There are great actor bios such as Callow's Orson Welles. There are middling actor bios such as Chandler's Joan Crawford.

Then there are actor bios such as this rather awful book.

Apart from a few new interviews regarding McGoohan's early career, there is precious little information in here which has not been previously published or which is not available online.

So if you want some detail on his formative years, by all means go ahead and buy the book. But if you are like me and were expecting some insight on his actual career, you will be sorely disappointed. The book is particularly poor when attempting to discuss his body of film work following his brief television stardom in the sixties.

Unique insight into a very private man
As someone who grew up with "The Prisoner" in the 1960's and never really understood the final "Fall-Out" episode, I'm very grateful to Roger Langley for taking the time to put so much information on Patrick McGoohan between covers.

Not that this explains "Fall Out" of course, but what it does do is give some insight into what McGoohan was thinking at the time, which in itself is fascinating, as is the rest of the book - which takes the reader right from McGoohan's acting experiences at school up to his experience of appearing (and indeed Directing)some of the most successful episodes of the "Columbo" detective series with Peter Falk.

A unique insight into a very private and gifted artist, which crams an enormous amount of information and photographs into one volume, this is essential reading for McGoohan and "Prisoner" fans, as well as an interesting read for the rest of us.

Be seeing you!

Just-adequate book, misleadingly represented!
Let's get the big objection out of the way up front.The Amazon product description credits Peter Falk as one AUTHOR of this book.This is simply false!Peter Falk wrote the foreword... one page with lots and lots of white space in it, basically plugging his own autobiography.Nothing wrong with that, by itself; but the thing is, this volume is no more written "by" Peter Falk than it is written "by" me for having annotated the margins of my own copy!The product description really needs to be revised for accuracy.

Roger Langley is THE author, period.And that fact is a mixed blessing.Langley probably has better knowledge of his subject than any other would-be biographer, but it is still incomplete and sketchy knowledge with regard to Patrick McGoohan's personality and motivations.That sketchiness is reflected in the hodgepodge organization of the very disparate material assembled for the book.

Don't get me wrong: there is plenty of good information in this volume.But you'll have to work to make sense of it.And, while I would have preferred to see some of the photographs reproduced a bit larger or more clearly, the fact remains that most of us would never have a chance to run across most of those photos on our own, so I'm glad for them.

It's not a bad book.It's just not as good as it could have been if someone like Peter Falk really HAD been one of the authors and shared his insights with us.If you don't buy it with that expectation in mind, you probably will find it an adequate read.

Recycling
This book has been mainly assembled from previous articles and clippings (including the much lauded Peter Faulk introduction) and is presented in the author's usual labourious and cluttered manner, with badly cropped photos and poor reproduction. This is fine as a compendium of reference articles but as a biography of a much respected and beloved actor, buyer beware. ... Read more

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Chapters: Patrick Peyton, Patrick Mcgoohan, Declan Lowney, Michael O'herlihy, Pat Shortt, Steve Carson, Nial Fulton, Tony Mcauley, Brigie de Courcy, Sid Rainey, Simon Delaney, Ciaran Donnelly, Mark O'neill. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 57. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Reverend Father Patrick Peyton, CSC ·) (January 9, 1909 June 3, 1992) is an Irish-born Roman Catholic priest, devout promoter of the works ... Read more

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Chapters: Anthony Durnford, Gilbert Potter, Patrick Mcgoohan, Katherine Lynch, Pat Quinn, John Mcgahern, James Kilfedder, James Mccombs, Paul Williams, Colm O'rourke, John Willoughby Crawford, Thomas Heazle Parke, Seán Mac Diarmada, John Hart, John Joe Mcgirl, Robert Strawbridge, Charles Irwin, Patrick Duigenan, Patrick O'hely, Gordon Wilson, James Gralton, Mary Reynolds, Bernard Maguire, Patrick Reynolds, Tighearnán Ua Ruairc, Anthony Mulvey, Vincent Woods, John Joe O'reilly, Farrell Mcelgunn, Stephen Flynn, William Dowler Morris, Sean Godley, Eleanor Shanley, Joseph Roddy. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 119. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Gilbert Norman Potter, (10 July 1887 - 27 April 1921), was a District Inspector of the Royal Irish Constabulary.He was born at Dromahair, County Leitrim and was laterally stationed at Cahir, County Tipperary, during the Irish War of Independence. In April 1921 he was captured and executed by the Irish Republican Army in reprisal for the British execution of one of their men. Potter received his commission as District Inspector on 27 April 1901 having completed his cadetship at the Depot, Phoenix Park, Dublin. His first assignment was to Castlepollard, County Westmeath. During the 1909 ITGWU strike in Cork, he was temporarily posted there from Dublin and was also involved in policing the August 14 marches in Portadown. Having had charge of No. 4 Company at the Depot, he was assigned to Cahir in 1912. On 23 April, 1921 District Inspector Potter was captured by the 3rd (South) Tipperary Brigade, IRA, following the Hyland's Cross Ambush. This occurred near Curraghcloney, close to the village of Ballylooby.The ambush party was initially made up of a combination of the 1st and 2nd Flying Columns 3rd Tipperary Brigade.This was the largest force a...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=17075701 ... Read more

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Braveheart is a 1995 Academy-award winning action-dramafilm produced and directed by Mel Gibson, who also starredin the title role. The film was written for screen and thennovelized by Randall Wallace. Gibson portrays the legendaryScot, William Wallace, who gained recognition when he cameto the forefront of the First War of Scottish Independenceby opposing Edward I of England, also known as Edward theLongshanks, (portrayed by Patrick McGoohan) andsubsequently abetted by Edward's daughter-in-law PrincessIsabelle (played by Sophie Marceau) and a claimant to theScottish throne, Robert the Bruce (played by AngusMacfadyen). The film won five Academy Awards at the 68thAcademy Awards, including the Academy Award for BestPicture and Best Director, and had been nominated for anadditional five. The film was produced by Icon Productionsfor Paramount Pictures. ... Read more

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All this is New from when the Movie THE PHANTOM was made in 1996. The booklet is 22 pages and gives a complete synopsis of the movie. This is all from Paramount Pictures and comes in a folder with their name on the cover. Great Nostalgia Item for the Movie Buff. There are also 62 Original Movie Slides that are in a vinyl slip case. All is new and guaranteed to you. There are a total of 13 Glossy Black and White photo's, they are all not showing here. All are mint. ... Read more

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Three video set of the popular series The Prisoner ... Read more

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Rare import novel about Patrick McGoohan's The Prisoner. ... Read more

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This digital document is an article from St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture, brought to you by Gale®, a part of Cengage Learning, a world leader in e-research and educational publishing for libraries, schools and businesses.The length of the article is 169 words.The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase.You can view it with any web browser.Signed essays ranging from 500 to 2,500 words, written by subject experts and edited to form a consistent, readable, and straightforward reference. Entries include subject-specific bibliographies and textual cross-references to related essays. ... Read more

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Paperback © 1969 Ace #67900. Tight, no spine crease;Text-no inscription, tears or bends; pages tanning. Cover-(photo from TV show), lite reading crease, clean, minor water damage to bottom edge.PRIVATE. No remainder or library marks. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

The First of Three '60s-'70s Prisoner Paperbacks
First of all, the editorial review listed above is completely wrong: "Editorial Reviews - From Library Journal - Disch's 1967 sf novel was the basis for the cult favorite TV show of the same name". Just the opposite is true, the book was written from the series, along with two others by different authors -- all of which were enjoyable.

For those disappointed that this book didn't answering any lingering questions, it is good to remember that "Questions are a burden to others. Answers are a prison for oneself."BE SEEING YOU!

Nice Change from the Ordinary Science Fiction
I thoroughly enjoyed Thomas M. Disch's book, "The Prisoner." Like some of the other reviewers, I watched many "The Prisoner"episodes on television several decades ago. As a youngster, I never understood the television series and I won't claim to understand this book, but I liked the show because it was a change from the "norm."

In a nutshell (pun intended), I enjoyed this book soley for its entertainment merit. I wasn't looking for something "new" that was not revealed in the television episodes. I was looking for a "story" and found one.

Do you want to buy this book? I would say "yes" if you are looking for a change of entertainment pace--regardless of the story itself and Note: you don't need to be familiar with the TV series to understand the story.

Really Bad
Let me start off by saying I've never seen the TV show.

I've also never heard of Thomas Disch before.I stumbled across his name in a book review for a Margaret Atwood novel.I liked his writing style, and this book sounded interesting so I picked it up.

It's trash.The best thing I can say about it is it's not long, so the pain is over quickly.

Disch beats (and beats and beats) you over the head with his not-so-clever connection between No. 6's prison and the everyday lives we live in the modern age.Most of the time this is pointed at the not-so-original target of suburbia, but during an escape to London the novel turns its dull wit towards the almost as un-original urban business climate.

The author's writing style, which appealed to me in his review, is garbage in this story.An otherwise dull narrative section will be interrupted by abrupt and overdone imagery.The characters lack any sort of depth and don't seem at all real;No. 6 has decided to retire because it's what the character needs to start the story.The plot has what you could call twists, but it goes between them directly and orderly, as if the writer himself wanted to get rid of each one in turn to relieve the burden of having to write any further complications.The ending (revealing the uninteresting mystery of No. 1's identity) as noted in other reviews, is bizarre and seems completely out of place.

Leave it.I recommend this book to sadists and those who want a break from reading the dictionary.

Very Disappointing
I bought a used copy of Disch's Prisoner novel because I greatly enjoyed Disch's nonfiction book on sf, The Dreams Our Stuff Is Made Of, had never read his fiction, and also hungered for a new story about No. 6. This novel was a great disappointment. It seems to combine elements from several Prisoner TV episodes (like the dream visualization technique and the female doctor from A,B&C) to no great advantage. Apart from those elements, the story has no great premise or narrative drive, and even the conclusion was confusing. Disch may be a great prose stylist, but if he is elsewhere, he isn't here.

No Need
There was no need for this book.It doesn't answer any questions, the story goes nowhere new. ... Read more