Patrick McGoohan: 1928-2009
Yesterday, we lost someone who may not be known to the majority of the US, but geeks know him all too well. Patrick McGoohan passed away on Tuesday, according to an Associated Press story. He was 80 years old.
Mr. McGoohan was known as various characters depending on who you talked to. For some film geeks, he was King Edward Longshanks in Braveheart. His most known role is recognized by TV buffs as Number Six in the amazing British show, The Prisoner. If you haven’t checked it out, you really need to do yourself a favor and rent it or stream it over at AMC.
Growing up as the Disney kid I was, I grew to know who Mr. McGoohan was in watching the Disney Channel on my grandparents’ 35-foot satellite dish and finding this really cool show on The Wonderful World of Disney called Dr Syn: The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh. I only got to see it once in awhile, but I remember being young and always hoping that it would be on whenever they would air WWoD reruns. I had no idea that they only made three episodes. Mr. McGoohan has resurfaced in geek culture thanks to the Walt Disney Treasures release of Dr. Syn, which I was fortunate enough to get a copy of. I’ll just say that if you think revolutionaries were only in the colonies, you need to watch this show. It looks like Netflix was unable to get a copy before it went out of print, but it is available to rent from Blockbuster Online.
Mr. McGoohan made a great legacy in geekdom and he will be missed.
