When I Was ‘The Man from U.N.C.L.E.’

    They sat at the end of two long driveways. 

The driveways themselves were unique, those that had

only concrete for the tires alone. If my memory serves me correctly, there were two, maybe three homes toward the outside of each driveway. And between the drives were a line of deciduous trees. As a boy in the 1960’s this home holds some of the greatest of memories.

For children, likely the predominant ingredient to growth & enjoyment is merely imagination. And for a city raised boy, this home on Eucalyptus Ave in Hawthorne, California, with a field for a playground, not much more was required. Yet, more is exactly what we were about to receive!

Most adults would likely see the weeping willows that sat at the end of the driveways. Yeah, they were cool. But ~~ sitting in a ditch between the willows lay two vintage cars. I was seven, perhaps eight years old, so cars were not part of my repertoire. Not only was ‘Google’ not available, their inventors had yet to be born. So, I was up to my own to research on these fine antique cars. I discovered that they were 1930’s or 40’s Studebaker Champions¹. I’m sure that someone left these beauties behind just for Georgie and me.

Now yes, most of my spare time you’d find me outside, playing ‘Hot Wheels’ in the city that Georgie and I created within the deciduous trees. But it was the mid-1960’s and TV shows made for kids were plentiful. Whether it was the Andy Griffith Show and my favorite Don Knotts, Gunsmoke, The Addams Family or even ‘Batman’, of which I sat in the original ‘Batmobile’... Oh yes I did :) None could match my favorite childhood show ~~ ‘The Man from U.N.C.L.E.’ Such a favorite, that for one Christmas, mom wrapped the best present ever, my very own U.N.C.L.E. ‘Spy Kit’.

So with Weeping Willows, Studebaker's, my ‘Man from U.N.C.L.E’ spy kit, the only other ingredient, you guessed it ~ 'imagination'~. I became the better looking Kuryakin … I could never say his first name. So off to the Studebaker’s were Georgie, as ‘Solo’ and me (Ricky) as Kuryakin. I’m pretty sure we were able to solve and protect our country from all and every type of threat possible.

That old home ~~ now a parking lot for the U.S. Post Office. And ‘Kuryakin’, played by David McCallum, now plays ‘Ducky’ in one of my current favorite TV shows, NCIS. 

 

 RIP David McCallum ~ September 25, 2023