Episode #98 - 6-1

The Gadic Collection

CAST:
Peter Wyngarde - Turen
Georgia Brown - Diya
Michael Ripper - Sukan
Martin Benson - Inspector Yolu
Andre van Gyseghem - Ahmed Bayer
Nicole Shelby - Ayesha
Hedger Wallace - Geoffrey Bane
Henry Soskin - Kemal
Paul Darrow - Omar
Geoff Cheshire - Zoltan
Ann Tirard - The Old Woman
Andreas Malandrinos - The Old Man
Bakshi Prem - The Waiter

Directed by Freddie Francis

STORY:
Simon visits his friend Geoffrey Bane in a museum in Istanbul. A girl appears who has some illegal photos of the Gadic Collection with her. When were they taken? The Gadic Collection was restaurated some time ago by a man named Kemal. When Templar and Bane question Kemal he denies anything. On the same evening Bane is murdered in the museum when he inspects the Gadic Collection... suspect: Simon Templar.

OPINION: A very good episode with very good actors and a lot of suspension. Even Leslie Charteris liked the script! (see below)

NOTES:
* Strangely enough there is no mention of the screenplay writer of this episode! Not even in the book by Mechele & Fiddy based on the official archives. The DVD cover says it's by Philip Broadlay.
* Peter Wyngarde would later play Jason King in the series "Department S".
* Peter Wyngarde also appears in Episode #79 "The Man Who Liked Lions"
* Hedger Wallace also appears in Episode #116 "The Man Who Gambled with Life"
* Henry Soskin also appears in Episode #91 "The Counterfeit Countess"
* Andreas Malandrinos also appears in Episodes #36 "Sophia" and #83 "Locate and Destroy"
The ferry footage was also used in Episode #77 "The Convenient Monster".  For information see below. (0:16)
Is a close-up of a fake moustache a good idea? (0:39)
  Shoot first, ask later? Is this the way the Turkish police works? Besides, the stuntman doesn't look -at all- like the actor. (0:45)
This corridor was used several times in the colour episodes as a set.
* An audio introduction to this episode by Peter Wyngarde can be found on the Umbrella DVD.

Leslie Charteris, 16th December 1966: <<The outline for "The Gadic Collection" [based on a factual story] seems as if it could provide an excellent script.>> (Barer, p.146)
Leslie Charteris, 25th January 1967: <<No serious complaints at all about the script of "The Gadic Collection.">> (Barer, p.146)

Freddie Francis: <<Unfortunately, one had so little freedom on them [doing TV shows] that I didn't like them very much. I'm afraid dear old Roger wasn't keen on experimenting. [...]
I had worked with Peter [Wyngarde] before on The Innocents and actually he and Georgia Brown were tremendous fun. Georgia Brown was a great girl - couldn't care less about anybody or anything. So anything in the scene we fancied playing about with we did, which I'm sure annoyed Berman and Baker no end.>>
About Michael Ripper (Sukan): <<Another one of my repertory company. I usually found a part for Michael. [...] The reason you used the same people again was that we were on such tight schedules that one couldn't devote a great deal of time to directing everybody, so with those actors you could just say get on with it and you knew they could do it." (Simper, p.54)
About the Istanbul stock footage: <<After my first film, A Hill in Korea, there were plans to do a war film in Istanbul. [...] I think probably I suggested they use some of that for The Saint." (Simper, p.55)

AIRDATE:
UK: 22nd September 1968

GERMAN TITLE:
Heisser Kuss am Bosporus

AVAILABLE ON:
* DVD (NTSC): AAE-70465 (2002)

THE SAINT
www.simontemplar.de

Last Updated: 02/24/2018