Man in a Suitcase: The Best Spy TV Series You May Have Never Heard Of

By 1968, the British spy craze in film and television was on a downward trajectory. Sean Connery had departed (temporarily) from the Bond films. Patrick McGoohan's long-running Danger Man (aka Secret Agent) TV series had ended. The Avengers had moved on without Diana Rigg. Still, ITC Entertainment, best known for producing Danger Man and The Saint, believed there was life remaining in the genre--especially if it came with a built-in appeal for American audiences. The result was Man in a Suitcase, a sharply-played, well-written series starring American actor Richard Bradford as a disgraced former espionage agent known only as McGill.

Branded a traitor by U.S. intelligence, McGill makes a living doing free-lance work in Europe and Africa--dealing with blackmailers, protecting stool pigeons, finding kidnapped victims, recovering lost art treasures, etc. He charges $300 to $500 a week, depending on the job, plus expenses. When a potential client gripes about the high fee for a "disgraced American agent with a gun for hire," McGill quips: "I'm expensive...I call it my self-respect bonus."

McGill's backstory is revealed in the series' sixth episode (originally intended as the first and best viewed that way). It explains that his government superiors framed him as a traitor to protect a mole behind the Iron Curtain. Proving his innocence is not an option--McGill recognizes that his false disgrace is a price that must be paid. These kinds of difficult decisions and realistic conclusions elevate Man in a Suitcase above its more conventional rivals. It's not unusual for clients being guarded by McGill to be murdered anyway. And in one episode, after McGill fails to secure blackmail evidence, the victim sacrifices his ethics to protect his reputation.

Much of the show's success, though, can be attributed to Bradford, a relative unknown when ITC signed him for Man in a Suitcase. A graduate of the Actors Studio, Bradford's previous biggest part was as a cheating husband and bigot in a small Southern town in Arthur Penn's The Chase (1966). The role provided Bradford the opportunity to play opposite one of his acting idols, Marlon Brando (in one scene, Bradford brutally beats up Brando).

McGill's Hillman Imp.

Bradford brings a quiet intensity to McGill, a complex character who is outwardly calm but prone to quick bursts of anger and whose cynical perspective is balanced by his innate desire to do the right thing. With his gray hair and a cigarette often dangling from his mouth, McGill even looks different from his contemporary TV rivals like John Steed and Simon Templar. In lieu of a distinctive car, he drives a Hillman Imp sedan. He carries a gun only if the situation requires; his only apparent possession is a beat-up brown leather suitcase. But the most remarkable aspect of the character is his consistency across the 30 episodes. After watching McGill for half a season, one can almost predict how he's going to act in specific situations.

In an interview in Acorn's second DVD boxed set, Bradford criticizes the quality of some of the scripts. There are a handful of weak episodes, such as the first one, which features a brainwashing plot that goes on too long. However, for the most part, the plots are inventive and the writing is very strong, as shown in this dialogue in which a politician's wife (Barbara Shelley) reveals to McGill that she has long been aware of her husband's illegitmate son:

Guest star Barbara Shelley in the
episode "All That Glitters."

"I know about Steve. I haven't been officially informed...but I knew when he was born, when his mother died. I knew when he was ill. I know from the expression on my husband's face whether his monthly visit with the boy has been satisfactory or not. Oh, yes, I know all about Steve."

The production values in Man in a Suitcase are higher than most ITC productions of the late 1960s. Exterior locations and stock footage are well integrated with the studio-shot scenes. Ron Grainer composed the incredibly catchy, jazz-infused title theme (hummed in my household for weeks). The Acorn DVDs look sharp and, surprisingly, the color shows little fading.

Checking for broken teeth after a fight.

Unfortunately, Man in a Suitcase lasted just one season. Still, one has to be thankful for the opportunity to watch such excellent episodes as:  "The Girl Who Never Was" (McGill tracks down a painting stolen during World War II); "Dead Man's Shoes" (a town protects a wounded spy returning to his home); "Burden of Proof" (a man of integrity mysteriously embezzles a fortune and hires McGill for protection);  and "The Whisper" (McGill learns a priest in a small African village was a ruthless mercenary). Stylish and well-acted, Man in a Suitcase is a must-see for conoisseurs of vintage television drama.

Acorn Media provided a review copy of Man in a Suitcase Set 2.

Jack Nicholson Directs Goin' South

Henry Lloyd Moon--a second-rate outlaw with a third-rate gang--learns the hard way that it doesn't pay to tease a posse. After crossing the border to Mexico, Moon stops to laugh at the pursuing posse. The sheriff pauses for a few minutes, then rides across the river and arrests Moon. Following his delivery to the jail in Longhorn, Moon is sentenced to hang.

Mary Steenburgen.

However, on the way to the gallows, he finds out about an usual local ordinance. Any single woman can save a condemned man by marrying him. Moon becomes ecstatic when an elderly woman proposes marriage--but, unfortunately, she dies before they can be hitched. With the noose around his neck, he is saved a second time when the attractive Julia Tate "claims" him. She makes it clear that the marriage is strictly a business proposition because she needs help on her farm. However, since the two characters are played by Mary Steenburgen and Jack Nicholson, it's pretty obvious how the plot will unfold.

Made in 1978, the story behind the making of Goin' South is more interesting than the film itself. Elliott Gould and Candice Bergen were originally cast as the leads, with Mike Nichols attached as director. That production never came to fruition and the script sat on the shelf. Meanwhile, Jack Nicholson was developing Moontrap, an adaptation of Don Berry's 1971 novel about a former mountain man's adventures in the Oregon Territory in 1850. Nicholson wanted to direct Moontrap, but not star in it. He eventually relented and agreed to take a supporting role in the hope of getting the film made. Yet, despite his efforts, Nicholson could never bring Moontrap to the screen.

Christopher Lloyd and John Belushi.

When the opportunity to direct Goin' South came along, Nicholson took it. With the exception of newcomer Steenburgen, Nicholson surrounded himself with cronies: co-writer John Herman Shaner; production designer Toby Carr Rafelson (director Bob Rafelson's ex-wife); producer Harry Gittes (who worked with Nicholson on Drive, He Said); One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest co-stars Christopher Lloyd and Danny DeVito; and Nicholson's frequent co-star Luana Anders. There are even more familiar faces in the rest of the supporting cast, to include: Veronica Cartwright (Alien, The Birds); John Belushi (playing a Mexican deputy); Richard Bradford (Man in a Suitcase); Anne Ramsey (who would later team with DeVito in Throw Mama from the Train); and Ed Begley, Jr.

Steenburgen and Nicholson.

In a recent interview with the Café, Cartwright described working with Nicholson the director: "Jack is just nuts. He’s great. It’s like one big giant party." Surprisingly, that approach doesn't show up on the screen; the first hour of Goin' South is a pleasant romantic comedy effectively played by Steenburgen and Nicholson. However, once their characters' love for one another is established, the film loses momentum and lumbers to its conclusion. In Dennis McDougal's biography of Jack Nicholson, Five Easy Decades: How Jack Nicholson Became the Biggest Movie Star in Modern Times, the author notes Nicholson's disappointment that critics and viewers ignored that Moon's gang were social miscasts. He quotes Nicholson: "(They were) all members of Quantrill's Raiders, the original guerrilla warfare unit in America. And what do you do with these people once they're home?"

Jack Nicholson followed up Goin' South by starring in The Shining. Kubrick's film prevented Nicholson from doing Melvin and Howard. However, he lent a copy of the script to Mary Steenburgen while making Goin' South. She later won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her performance in Melvin and Howard.