patrick mcgoohan dangerman or prisoner
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A really good read about this enigmatic star with lots of good and unusual photos including some nice behind the scenes pictures as well . The extensive appendices list McGoohan`s work on screen , TV and theatre in great detail .
A well laid out book covering all aspects of McGoohan`s work and a must for all Danger Man and Prisoner fans as well as anyone interested in the man himself . Recommended !!
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"The Source for, all things McGoohan "
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Considering McGoohan's well known reluctance to get involved in anything to do with fandom and with an impressive foreword by non other than Columbo himself Peter Falk, this biography comes as a rewarding source of the man and his career.
As the title of the book suggests, a good deal of attention is given to McGoohan's most prominent period, the development of the series Danger Man and of course The Prisoner. Both are explored with due thoroughness and presented in a accessible style to appeal to the dedicated fan and the casual interested reader alike. The detailed information continues through out the book, which has been presented in a chronological order which skilfully avoids the prose getting too heavy or bogged down. lavishly reinforced by a variety of rare photographs and other related media images many of which will be new to some readers, all help making this book a principal source for all things McGoohan.
However, Langley makes a point in returning to McGoohan's roots, bringing to the readers attention not only details of the hitherto completely unknown earliest periods in his life, but explores some of the experiences which later forged the way McGoohan would present his image upon the stage and screen.
The author has gone to the trouble in obtaining first hand testimony from many individuals spanning McGoohan's whole career. All skilfully used to gain insight into a intensely complex and private man.
Langley completes the biography with a series of 7 remarkable and thorough appendix chapters. Which list every thing McGoohan has done on stage, screen or radio from his earliest youth club appearances in 1945 to retirement in 2000. Even a psychological questionnaire McGoohan filled in in the early 1960's is included for the reader to mull over.
I was initially put off by some of the negative comments concerning this book. But now having read and explored it I'm unsure if they were reading the same publication as me ?
With a total of 340 pages all in all, a well presented and essential publication for the McGoohan fan in particular, and for any one interested in ITV 4 nostalgia programming in general.
Tomahawk press should be congratulated in publishing the best McGoohan biography to date ?
Recommended !
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A REALLY GOOD READ
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Our group were pleased to see that this book was coming out, as most of us are of an age where we've watching Mr. McGoohan in a variety of things - Danger Man, The Prisoner, Dr. Syn etc. We weren't disappointed! This is a great book - a really good read, packed with loads of information and pictures we'd never come across before. We highly recommend the book to all admirers of Mr. McGoohan's work.
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EAGERLY AWAITED
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This must be for McGoohan fans that most eagerly awaited of all books. A biography. And what a biography. This well structured work glitters, every page well composed, literate, and absorbing, every fact meticulously researched and detailed. Does this work do justice to this most private and retiring of actors? The answer is an emphatic 'Yes'. McGoohan is a man who acts, he is not a publicity seeking celebrity. A man with deep uncompromising beliefs, who in essence shuns the limelight, preferring to let his work speak for itself. This biography respects the man and his privacy, striking exactly the right note in the telling of this extraordinarily gifted man's life. This is a work undertaken with both affection and respect.
Preceded by a foreword written by Patrick McGoohan's great friend, Peter Falk, and coming in at some 280 pages, complemented by 7 highly detailed and factual appendices, plus index, totalling a further 60 pages, this work will surely stand as the ultimate correlation and summarisation of McGoohan's career and achievements. There is no doubt that this book has been a labour of love for the author, and it is obvious that this work has involved many years of dedicated sourcing, gathering and cataloguing of strands of information.
The author has painstakingly gathered from seemingly every article, every quote, every conversation, that McGoohan has given. His research has taken him to interview many of the characters that McGoohan has come into contact with during his life. Apart from those who worked on both 'Danger Man' and 'The Prisoner', Langley has even interviewed contemporaries from McGoohan's youth in Sheffield. Collected together we hear evocative stories recalling the early years spent there. Every quote, every aside, is comprehensively referenced. The joy is that the writing is accessible, and excites the reader, as we are treated to an almost spectator like view of the life of McGoohan, the incidents, both insignificant and towering, that have not only shaped McGoohan's life, but have propelled him to the career and rightful critical acclaim deserved. Reading this book we understand a little of what makes the man. Never intrusive, the author preserves the man's privacy; however by the time I concluded this book, I understood far better what makes McGoohan tick than anything and everything I'd read or seen or heard ever before, if all collected as one.
To give an indication of just what an engrossing read this book is, I received the book on a Thursday, and had devoured it - including appendices - by Monday night. The narrative drive is clear, never straying unnecessarily, the writing concise, professional and human. The sheer scale of the work will ensure it becomes invaluable for anyone wanting to know more about McGoohan.
This work naturally has at its core both 'Danger Man' and 'The Prisoner', yet so much else is explored, professionally: McGoohan's early days in repertory in Sheffield, his career which brought him to the defining role of 'Brand', and all the other films and performances, whether early or post-Prisoner, in previous accounts merely mentioned briefly, or glossed over. His 80 years are brought vividly to life, his thoughts, views, feeling, beliefs, are all represented, all add rich colour, and allow us to understand McGoohan a little better. From his early years, the background of his parents, early jobs prior to his discovery of acting, meeting wife-to-be Joan Drummond, the casting of 'Brand', 'Danger Man', 'The Prisoner' and beyond, all aspects are treated with the right note of discretion, informing yet not intrusive.
The calibre of the writing, and the carefully crafted choice of words, demonstrate that much thought was given to the rhythm, structure and timbre of each sentence. Again, illustrating the depth of thought that has gone into this work, the author quotes a reporter as saying of 'The Prisoner', "The first TV show to prove that the journey is more important than the destination..." Langley comments on this quote, "McGoohan achieved something with 'The Prisoner' which is often missed by reviewers: he created the vogue for a deeper analysis of mainstream television." This is true, and I'm not sure that element has been articulated before.
Liberally distributed throughout the book are over 450 photographs, many of which have never been seen before. These include images of every film poster and virtually every role undertaken by the actor - right back to youth club days. From McGoohan himself there are several messages, each giving us a little insight into this man's way of thinking. With the additional 60 pages of appendices and index - surely some sort of screenography in its own right - my guess is that this section's material will be referred to, and plundered, for years to come. This is the benchmark, the research is exhaustive, every scrap of information ever available has been catalogued and presented in its natural and rightful place. This must be the ultimate work on McGoohan, every page brimming with material, never a sentence wasted or ill-used.
By now you will have deduced that this reviewer highly recommends this biography. You will be as captivated as I was. I suspect that it will also bring a quiet nod of appreciation from its subject. My guess is that Mr. McGoohan will even be quietly pleased. How fortunate that this biography of a man of principle, beliefs, ideals, modesty, and dedication, has been written by someone who also understands these attributes. Believe me, this is a book that you'll certainly be reaching for, again and again. Don't think twice.
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A most excellent book
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Finally, here it is: a well thought out, well produced and expertly researched biography of the one of the greatest actors of the century Patrick McGoohan. There have been far too many failed cash-in biographys written in the past on all manners of subjects, but Roger Langley has succeded in providing fans with a well rounded biography filled with extensive research, lavish photographs which many of us have never before had accses to, and a powerful insight into the man whom many of us still adore. This book held my attention throughout and there wasn't a page where I didn't find myself absolutely fascinated by Langley's account of McGoohan's career. Honestly, I cannot sing Roger Langley's praises enough; if you're one of the thousands of people who were spellbinded by The Prisoner and Patrick Mcgoohan first time round then this book is ESSENTIAL reading. Langley has provided what many of us have been waiting for far too long; a well written, skilled book that demands respect.
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