Hi Tatia,

I'm giving some serious consideration to purchasing Marc's book, but I was wondering if they have a PRODUCTION ORDER episode guide in it. Every time that I discover an "I Spy" episode guide online, it lists "So Long, Patrick Henry" as the first episode produced, when that distinction REALLY belongs to "Affair in T'Sien Cha," as far as I can tell.

I've got the complete run of the original Image DVDs and have been aching to watch these in the order of production, which is my favorite way to enjoy classic television. That way we can watch the characters and relationships develop organically, rather than at a whim of a short-sighted television executive.

I'd love to see a production order for this fine series.

Thanks!

Hi Bill,

First - DEFINITELY get Marc and Linda's I SPY book! Do not pass GO, do not collect your two hundred dollars, just go order it!! This book is "required" reading for any I SPY fan!! We are really very fortunate that such a thoroughly entertaining, well-researched, and well-written book of this caliber finally came to fruition. (O.K. so we had to wait 40 years, but it was worth the wait! ) And considering your job, you really need this book for professional background.





Secondly, please don't think of this book as an "Episode Guide" like so many others out there on other shows. It has been described as "a biography of I SPY" and that is an apt description for it. Not only do they talk about the stars, the history of the show, all the production aspects, it includes "The Story Behind the Story" for the different episodes, Culp & Cosby Rewrites, censor's reports (often very funny), and interviews with the writers and production staff. Culp was interviewed extensively for the book, and Cosby contributed also.

Yes, the first episode reviewed is "Affair in T'Sein Cha" - and it goes into detail as to why it was not aired as the first show. Marc and Linda divided the discussions of the episodes into 9 blocks - and in parallel, also discuss what else was happening at the time, as each of these groups were being aired - which adds a delightful historical and sociological viewpoint and perspective. They also discuss the "Fourth Season" that never was, the different theories as to why the show ended, and the later Culp/Cosby reunions, plus the I SPY movies that were never made.

Here is a review/posting from when the book came out.

http://www.network54.com/Forum/172251/message/1172278551/



And besides Bill, everyone is reading it!!







Anyone else want to add their opinions and advice here for Bill??


All my best,

Tatia



~ ~

The book is absolutely essential for the I SPY fan, and as Tatia says, it is far far more than an 'Episode Guide'. An absolute MUST.

Hi Bill. There is no concise production order list of episodes in the book, but the episodes are discussed and reviewed (and numbered) in "order of completion" according to the note at the top of page 48.

Jimmy

Hi Bill,

I dropped by the Forum to see what everyone thought of the new DVD box sets ... and I saw your question.

The book presents the episodes in the order in which they were meant to be viewed, as arranged by the producers. This is also, for the most part, the order in which they were filmed, and certainly the order in which they were completed.

I Spy was shot in blocks of nine (usually). The Company would do the location filming first - for instance, shooting all the location sequences for the episodes in Hong Kong - then returning to Desilu to shoot the studio portions. The book will show you the order in which the episodes were completed once the Company was back home, which, again, was also the order in which the producers felt the shows could best be aired. NBC, however, would change that order, which sometimes caused confusion. We would see Kelly and Scott in Palm Springs, then in Vegas, then back to Palm Springs, then to Los Angeles, then back to Vegas ... or getting excited because they were going to San Francisco, when we had just seen them in San Francisco the previous week! Or we would see a recurring characters, like the double-agent Troy Duncan, get killed, then return the following week quite alive and giving assignments to Kelly and Scott. Maddening!

Sadly this problem also occurs to a certain degree in syndication, because this order was based on that miss-leading production numbering system, which was actually the script numbering system. These numbers merely designated the order in which the script assignments were given out.

I haven't seen the new box sets yet, but my guess is the episodes will either be arranged as NBC aired them, or as they were shown in syndication.

Try watching them in the order that the book lists them. This is what Friedkin and Fine had wanted, and it will be a much smoother ride.

Best, Marc Cushman