Behind the Scenes: Dr David Keel Era
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Behind the Scenes: Dr David Keel Era |
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The Origins of John Steed The original secret agent side-kick might have been inspired by Phillip John Stead, a British secret agent during WWII, who was a codes and security expert. By the time The Avengers was on the air, he had retired into academia. He became an expert on police systems and an author; among his works are The Master of Ringsmark (1951), The Police of Paris (1957), New Dimensions in Transnational Crime (1981), The Police of Britain (1985), and a number of French to English translations. Vice Chancellor and Criminal Justice Professor Dick Ward of the University of Illinois at Chicago knew him personally, and had him guest lecture graduate classes in Criminal Justice by speaker conference phone. He would tell the class, "Please don't bring up that Avengers show, it makes him irritated." It is uncertain if Phillip John Stead was indeed the inspiration for Sydney Newman's character, John Steed, or if it was all just a strange coincidence. (With thanks to Silky) |
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