Angels—— Actor David McCallum, who became a teen heartthrob in the hit 1960s TV series “The Man From Uncle” and 40 years later in the hit TV series “NCIS,” has died Serve as an eccentric medical examiner. He is 90 years old.
McCallum died of natural causes at New York-Presbyterian Hospital on Monday surrounded by his family, CBS said in a statement.
“David was a talented actor and writer who was loved by many around the world. He lived an incredible life and his legacy will never fade away through his family and countless hours in film and television. on forever,” one person said in a CBS statement.
McCallum, who was born in Scotland, has excelled in films such as “A Night to Remember” (about the Titanic), “The Great Escape” and “The Greatest Story Ever Told” (as Judas). But it was The Man Who Came From Uncle that made the blond actor with the Beatles haircut a household name in the mid-1960s.
The success of the James Bond books and movies set off a chain reaction that saw the number of agents on screens large and small explode. In fact, according to Jon Heitland’s The Man From UNCLE Book, Bond creator Ian Fleming contributed to The Man From UNCLE’s development. some thoughts.
The show, which first aired in 1964, stars Robert Vaughn as Napoleon Solo, an agent in a secret high-tech crime-fighting squad whose initials stand for Joint Cyber Law Enforcement Command. United Network Command for Law and Enforcement). Despite being in the Cold War, the agency still has an international staff, with McCallum playing Solo’s Russian aide Illya Kuryakin.
McCallum recalled that the role was relatively small at first, adding in a 1998 interview, “I had never heard the word ‘sidekick’ before.”
The show drew mixed reviews, but eventually became popular, especially among teenage girls who were attracted to McCallum’s handsome appearance and mysterious, intellectual personality. By 1965, Elijah had become Vaughn’s character’s official partner, and both stars were under siege during their personal appearances.
The show ran until 1968. In 1983, Vaughn and McCallum reunited in “The Return of Uncle,” a nostalgic TV movie in which agents are lured out of retirement to once again save the world.
In 2003, McCallum returned to television with another CBS series, NCIS. He plays Dr. Donald “Ducky” Mallard, a bookish pathologist who works for the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, the agency that handles crimes involving the Navy or Marine Corps. Mark Harmon plays the boss of NCIS.
McCallum said he thought Ducky, who wore glasses and a bow tie and had an eye for beautiful women, “looked a little silly, but was fun to do.” He also took the role seriously, spending time in Los Angeles The coroner’s office provides insight into how an autopsy is conducted.
Co-star Lauren Holly mourned on X (formerly Twitter): “You were the kindest person. Thank you.” Previously announced Monday night’s NCIS 20th anniversary marathon now A “memory” card will be included in McCallum’s memory.
The show gradually attracted viewers and eventually ranked among the top ten series. During the filming of “NCIS,” McCallum, who lives in New York, lived in a one-bedroom apartment in Santa Monica.
“He was a scholar and a gentleman, always affable, a consummate professional and never a joke. It was a privilege to work with him from day one and he never let us down. He Quite simply, “He was a legend,” NCIS executive producers Steven D. Binder and David North said in a statement.
McCallum was nominated for two Emmy Awards for “UNCLE” and won a third for his role as an educator struggling with alcoholism in the 1969 Hallmark Hall of Fame drama “Teacher, Teacher.” Emmy Award Nominated.
In 1975, he had a starring role in the short-lived science fiction series The Invisible Man, and from 1979 to 1982 he played Steel in the British science fiction series Sapphires and Steel. He has also guest-starred on numerous television shows over the years, including Murder, She Wrote and Sex and the City.
He appeared on Broadway in the 1968 comedy “The Flip Side” and in the 1999 remake of “Momadex” starring Michael Sheen and David Suchet. He also appeared in several off-Broadway productions.
McCallum, a longtime U.S. citizen who has lived in the United States since the 1960s, told The Associated Press in 2003, “I’ve always loved the freedom of this country and everything it stands for. I live here , I love voting here.”
David Keith McCallum was born in Glasgow in 1933. His parents are both musicians. His father, also named David, played the violin and his mother played the cello. When David was three, the family moved to London, where David Sr. performed with the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
Young David attended the Royal College of Music, where he studied oboe. He didn’t think he was good enough, so he turned to drama, studying briefly at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. But he commented in a 2009 interview with the Los Angeles Times: “I’m a short, skinny blonde with sunken breasts, so there aren’t a lot of areas that work for me.”
After completing his military service, he returned to London and began working in live television and film. In 1957 he starred in The Heist, an adventure film set in early Australia, starring alongside a rising actress, Jill Ireland. The couple married the same year.
In 1963, McCallum became a member of the cast of The Great Escape, and he and his wife became friends with Charles Bronson, who was also in the film. Ireland eventually fell in love with Bronson and divorced McCallum in 1967. She married Bronson in 1968.
“It all went really well,” McCallum said in 2009, “because not long after that I was married to Katherine[Carpenter, a former model]and we’ve been happily married for 42 years.”
McCallum has three sons from his first marriage: Paul, Jason and Valentine, and a son and daughter from his second marriage: Peter and Sophie. Jason died of a drug overdose.
“He was a true Renaissance man – he was fascinated by science and culture and turned these passions into knowledge. For example, he had the ability to conduct a symphony orchestra and (if needed) actually conduct a symphony orchestra based on his several A decade of autopsy – Peter McCallum said in a statement: “We conducted a long-term study of his role on NCIS. “
In 2007, while he was working on “NCIS,” McCallum told reporters: “I always felt like the harder I worked, the luckier I got. I believed in random things happening, but at the same time, dedicating yourself to Give it to those things that happen by chance.” What you are doing is the best way to get along in this life. “
Bob Thomas, a senior reporter for The Associated Press who died in 2014, was the lead contributor to this obituary.
