http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=fkUHjN2IysA

randy

“We never find out why Six resigned, but those of us playing at home come closer to figuring it than any of the various Number Twos. For McGoohan, motivation is a personal thing, and regardless of how insignificant the questions may seem, the right not to answer them is of innumerable value. At its heart, The Prisoner is about the ways in which society seeks to crush and compromise the individual, to force people into blind acceptance so that the trains run on time, the clocks are always set, and faces are forever smiling. Out of all his movie and TV work, it’s here that McGoohan’s fury finds its true purpose. His is the passion of anyone who’s ever been told to fit in, to quiet down, to agree more, to listen less, to know one’s place, to never question it. For once, we aren’t the target of his anger, we share it. For all the outcasts, here is someone who wouldn’t compromise how nicely he was asked to.”

That decision aside, McGoohan also grabbed my attention at an impressionable age but the Prisoner was my secret. After watching the series I shared with friends but I did so reluctantly. I knew while watching it that I would never be able to watch it again with ‘fresh eyes’ (that was the first time I ever had that realization) so I passed the video cassettes to friends as if they were a prize that needed to be earned. I was disappointed when they weren’t as revved as I was for the thing.

So in a weird way I am happy to see the appreciation he is getting today. I am sorry to see him go but I am glad I am not the only one that is bummed about it. He was that good.

http://www.amctv.com/originals/the-prisoner-1960s-series/

The last two episodes may be the greatest two hours of original programming ever televised. I can’t imagine how he got away with it. It makes you feel like there was a parallel world where this sort of thing was possible, was wanted, was expected, was normal.

I am a person of tender years, but I describe the plot of this show to people my age and they just stare at me, suspicious.

“You mean like “Lost?”

“Yes, except written by a human being with actual thoughts and preoccupations, and not by a committee of self-important cocaine addicts.”

http://www.dvdvideosoft.com/free-dvd-video-software.htm

Then here:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Sv813f2Xtrg