The Girl from U.N.C.L.E.

The Girl from U.N.C.L.E. is an American spy fiction TV series that aired on NBC for one season from September 16, 1966, to April 11, 1967. The series was a spin-off from The Man from U.N.C.L.E. and used the same theme music composed by Jerry Goldsmith, in a different arrangement by Dave Grusin.

The Girl from U.N.C.L.E.
GenreSpy fiction
Action
Created byNorman Felton
Directed byRichard C. Bennett
John Brahm
Herschel Daugherty
E. Darrell Hallenbeck
Alf Kjellin
Mitchell Leisen
Sherman Marks
Leo Penn
Richard C. Sarafian
Joseph Sargent
Barry Shear
Jud Taylor
StarringStefanie Powers
Noel Harrison
Leo G. Carroll
Randy Kirby
Theme music composertheme composed by
Jerry Goldsmith,
arranged by
Dave Grusin
ComposersDave Grusin
Jack Marshall
Richard Shores
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes29 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producerNorman Felton
ProducerDouglas Benton
Running time50 minutes
(Without Commercials)
Production companiesArena Productions
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television
DistributorWarner Bros. Television Distribution
Release
Original networkNBC
Audio formatMonaural
Original releaseSeptember 16, 1966 (1966-09-16) 
April 11, 1967 (1967-04-11)
Chronology
Related showsThe Man from U.N.C.L.E.

Synopsis

The Girl from U.N.C.L.E. stars Stefanie Powers as American U.N.C.L.E. agent April Dancer and Noel Harrison (son of Rex Harrison) as her British partner, Mark Slate. Leo G. Carroll plays their superior, Alexander Waverly. The character name "April Dancer" was suggested by James Bond creator Ian Fleming who was a consultant in the creation of the parent program shortly before his death.

The series was not as successful as its parent program and was cancelled after 29 episodes due to low ratings. Several crossover episodes were produced in conjunction with The Man from U.N.C.L.E., including the episode that introduced April and Mark. In their first appearance they were portrayed by Mary Ann Mobley and Norman Fell, respectively. In the Girl crossover episode "The Mother Muffin Affair", Napoleon Solo (Robert Vaughn) teamed up with April Dancer.

Similar to the later spy series Alias, April Dancer often went on undercover missions where she had to affect a foreign accent (Powers is fluent in several languages). Her dance training was also put to good use in several episodes, particularly "The Mata Hari Affair" where Powers recreated the dance performed by Greta Garbo in the film Mata Hari (1931) and The Drublegratz Affair, where April Dancer went undercover as a go-go dancer.

Another feature was the sometimes outlandish avant-garde outfits worn by Powers intended to make her appear hip and modern. She was featured on the cover of TV Guide (December 31, 1966 – January 6, 1967), and the article on her mentions the show "...allocating roughly $1,000 an episode for stretch vinyl jackets and skirts, a bare-midriff harem-dancer outfit, miniskirts and the latest mod fashions from Swinging London's Carnaby Street."

The article also underscores the show's major flaw: "Unlike her fellow U.N.C.L.E. agents, the ladylike April is not required to kill the bad guys. Her feminine charms serve as the bait, while her partner Noel Harrison provides the fireworks. She does carry, however, a perfume atomizer that sprays gas, earrings and charm bracelets that explode, among other interesting gadgets."

In contrast to her keen martial arts contemporaries, the lead character in Honey West and Emma Peel in The Avengers, the more demure conception of April Dancer weakened the character and often turned her into a helpless damsel-in-distress. April was often knocked unconscious by T.H.R.U.S.H agents and also frequently kidnapped and left in some very perilous positions. Arming her with gimmicks and gadgets was not enough.

Additionally, the stories generally leaned toward parody, campy humor and cartoonish villains instead of the more realistic action-suspense format of its progenitor. This is largely due to the influence of the Batman series which became an instant sensation in early 1966. During the 1966–1967 season, The Man from U.N.C.L.E. also suffered a decline in ratings due to a change in format designed to appeal to Batman fans.

Despite attempts at cross-promotion with its parent series — Harrison appeared as Slate in an episode of Man from U.N.C.L.E. while Robert Vaughn appeared as Napoleon Solo in an episode of Girl — the show failed to build an audience and lasted only one season. According to The Man from U.N.C.L.E. Book by Jon Heitland, and commentary on the DVD release of the parent series, the failure of Girl from U.N.C.L.E. was considered a contributing factor in Man's mid-season cancellation in early 1968.[1]

Cast

  • Stefanie Powers as April Dancer
  • Noel Harrison as Mark Slate
  • Leo G. Carroll as Alexander Waverly; chief of U.N.C.L.E.
  • Randy Kirby as Agent Randy Kovacs

Notable guest stars

Episodes

Backdoor pilot (1966)

The backdoor pilot, entitled "The Moonglow Affair", originally aired as 52nd episode (S02E23) of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. on February 25, 1966.

TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
"The Moonglow Affair"Joseph SargentDean HargroveFebruary 25, 1966 (1966-02-25)
When Solo and Kuryakin are incapacitated, Waverly assigns agent April Dancer (Mary Ann Mobley) and Mark Slate (Norman Fell) to complete their mission.

Season 1 (1966–67)

No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateProd.
code
1"The Dog-Gone Affair"Barry ShearTony BarrettSeptember 13, 1966 (1966-09-13)8622
April Dancer is on her way to a Greek island with a dog whose fleas contain the antidote to a THRUSH developed drug. A man named Fromage sits next to April and suspecting he is a THRUSH agent, she contacts Mark and attaching a parachute to the dog, throws it from the plane. Mark is captured briefly but the dog escapes. Later Mark and April meet and using a dog whistle April attracts the dog. However, it escapes again and when April gives chase, she is karate chopped on the neck and April Dancer faints and is kidnapped. When she revives, she is questioned by Zakinthios, who leads the mission for THRUSH. Refusing to talk, April is quickly knocked out again. She wakes up tied to a swing over a pool of piranhas but April escapes in the nick of time, manages to retrieve the dog yet again and Mark defeats Zakinthios in a fight. April and Mark eventually hand the dog over to the authorities to enable them to make the antidote.
2"The Prisoner of Zalamar Affair"Herschel DaughertyMax HodgeSeptember 20, 1966 (1966-09-20)8611
3"The Mother Muffin Affair"Sherman MarksJoseph CalvelliSeptember 27, 1966 (1966-09-27)8624
4"The Mata Hari Affair"Joseph SargentSamuel PeeplesOctober 4, 1966 (1966-10-04)8617
5"The Montori Device Affair"John BrahmBoris SobelmanOctober 11, 1966 (1966-10-11)8601
6"The Horns-of-the-Dilemma Affair"John BrahmTony BarrettOctober 18, 1966 (1966-10-18)8606
7"The Danish Blue Affair"Mitchell LeisenArthur WeingartenOctober 25, 1966 (1966-10-25)8615
8"The Garden of Evil Affair"Jud TaylorJohn O'Dea & Arthur RoweNovember 1, 1966 (1966-11-01)8607
9"The Atlantis Affair"E. Darrell HallenbeckRichard MathesonNovember 15, 1966 (1966-11-15)8609
10"The Paradise Lost Affair"Alf KjellinJohn O'Dea & Arthur RoweNovember 22, 1966 (1966-11-22)8621
11"The Lethal Eagle Affair"John BrahmRobert HillNovember 29, 1966 (1966-11-29)8626
12"The Romany Lie Affair"Richard SarafianTony BarrettDecember 6, 1966 (1966-12-06)8630
13"The Little John Doe Affair"Leo PennJoseph CalvelliDecember 13, 1966 (1966-12-13)8628
14"The Jewels of Topango Affair"John BrahmBerne GilerDecember 20, 1966 (1966-12-20)8614
15"The Faustus Affair"Barry ShearJerry McNeelyDecember 27, 1966 (1966-12-27)8613
16"The U.F.O. Affair"Barry ShearWarren DuffJanuary 3, 1967 (1967-01-03)8623
17"The Moulin Ruse Affair"Barry ShearStory by: Jay Simms
Teleplay by: Jay Simms & Fred Eggers
January 17, 1967 (1967-01-17)8610
18"The Catacomb and Dogma Affair"E. Darrell HallenbeckWarren DuffJanuary 24, 1967 (1967-01-24)8629
19"The Drublegratz Affair"Mitchell LeisenBoris SobelmanJanuary 31, 1967 (1967-01-31)8625
20"The Fountain of Youth Affair"E. Darrell HallenbeckStory by: Robert Bloch & Richard DeRoy
Teleplay by: Richard DeRoy
February 7, 1967 (1967-02-07)8605
21"The Carpathian Caper Affair"Barry ShearArthur WeingartenFebruary 14, 1967 (1967-02-14)8631
22"The Furnace Flats Affair"Barry ShearArchie TeglandFebruary 21, 1967 (1967-02-21)8603
23"The Low Blue C Affair"Barry ShearBerne GilerFebruary 28, 1967 (1967-02-28)8632
24"The Petit Prix Affair"Mitchell LeisenRobert HillMarch 7, 1967 (1967-03-07)8634
25"The Phi Beta Killer Affair"Barry ShearJackson GillisMarch 14, 1967 (1967-03-14)8619
26"The Double-O-Nothing Affair"John BrahmDean HargroveMarch 21, 1967 (1967-03-21)8638
27"The U.N.C.L.E. Samurai Affair"Alf KjellinTony BarrettMarch 28, 1967 (1967-03-28)8636
28"The High and the Deadly Affair"Dick BennettJameson BrewerApril 4, 1967 (1967-04-04)8620
29"The Kooky Spook Affair"Dick BennettJohn O'Dea & Arthur RoweApril 11, 1967 (1967-04-11)8640

Syndication

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Beginning in 1968, reruns of all 29 episodes of The Girl from U.N.C.L.E., including 99 of 105 of its parent series, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., were combined into a 128 episode syndication package in the United States.[2] Years later, a few more episodes were added to the package, rounding it out to 132.[3]

Home media

On August 23, 2011, Warner Bros. released the complete series in two parts on DVD in Region 1 via their Warner Archive Collection. The two 4-disc collections contain all 29 episodes of the series. These are Manufacture-on-Demand (MOD) releases, available exclusively through Warner's online store and only in the US.[4][5]

Soundtrack

Jerry Goldsmith's theme for The Man from U.N.C.L.E. was adapted for the series by Dave Grusin in an energetic variation. Of the 29 episodes, eight had complete original scores and six were partial scores, with the rest being tracked by the previously written material.[6]

Grusin wrote four complete scores ("The Dog-Gone Affair," "The Mother Muffin Affair," "The Mata Hari Affair" and "The Furnace Flats Affair"), Richard Shores – who would be the principal composer for The Man from U.N.C.L.E the following season – did three ("The Montori Device Affair," "The Prisoner of Zalamar Affair" and "The Danish Blue Affair") and Jack Marshall composed his only score for either U.N.C.L.E. series with "The Horns-of-the-Dilemma Affair." Jeff Alexander, also writing his only U.N.C.L.E. music, provided a partial score for "The Garden of Evil Affair," sharing "Music Score by" credit with Grusin and Shores (the latter two share the credit on all the other episodes, tracked and partial score alike). The opening and closing title themes and suites from the episodes "The Dog-Gone Affair," "The Prisoner of Zalamar Affair," "The Mother Muffin Affair," "The Mata Hari Affair," "The Montori Device Affair" and "The Horns-of-the-Dilemma Affair" are included on the third FSM album of music from The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

Original novels

First Girl from U.N.C.L.E. novel. Pictured: Stefanie Powers as April Dancer. Note misspelling of Powers' first name.

The Girl from U.N.C.L.E. was featured in five original novels, only two of which were published in the United States:

  • The Birds of a Feather Affair by Michael Avallone
  • The Blazing Affair by Michael Avallone
  • The Global Globules AffairSimon Latter (published in United Kingdom, and in France as L'affaire des Globules)
  • The Golden Boats of Taradata Affair – Simon Latter (published in United Kingdom only)
  • The Cornish Pixie Affair – Peter Leslie (published in United Kingdom only)

Unlike the series, the novels were quite serious, with the plot of The Birds of a Feather Affair ending in tragedy for April when the 'innocent' character usually featured in the TV show dies despite what April does to stop the villains. In addition, the prohibition on April using deadly force on the TV series (described earlier) did not apply to the novels.[7]

A Girl from U.N.C.L.E. digest magazine was also briefly published, which included novellas not published elsewhere. Gold Key Comics also published a short-lived (5 issue) comic book.

References

  1. Heitland, Jon (2003). Man from U.N.C.L.E. Book: The Behind-the-Scenes Story of a Television Classic. Griffin. ISBN 9780312292157.
  2. "Girl from U.N.C.L.E., The: The Complete Series Part One DVD – Warner Bros. Archive: WBshop.com – The Official Online Store of Warner Bros. Studios". WBshop.com. Retrieved 2012-01-01.
  3. "Girl from U.N.C.L.E., The: The Complete Series Part Two DVD – Warner Bros. Archive: WBshop.com – The Official Online Store of Warner Bros. Studios". WBshop.com. Retrieved 2012-01-01.
  4. Jon Burlingame, liner notes, The Man From U.N.C.L.E. Volume 3, featuring The Girl From U.N.C.L.E., FSM Vol. 7, No. 14
  5. "Television Obscurities – Bookshelf: The Girl from U.N.C.L.E. #1, "The Birds of a Feather Affair"". 2009-10-21. Retrieved 2012-12-03.
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