It just goes to show

[spikesgirl58]

Even after being involved with the show for as long as I have, there are still things I don't know.

This came from the Decades page - 11 To Secret Facts about MFUReuben Klamer invented the classic Milton Bradley board game The Game of Life - you know, the one with little pink and blue pegs cruising around in a tiny convertible. He went from

Comments

[eilidhsd]

I didn't know the Thrush/Moriarty connection, and still don't see where that is coming from.

[elmey]

I think that also comes from one of the McDaniel novels, there's no actual connection to the TV series. I'm also not convinced about the genesis of Illya's name that the article presents, it's clearly a common Russian man's name. Fake News! :D :D

[st_crispins]

No. 2 is not true. David McDaniel did link Thrush to Moriarty, but the TV series did not. [see Adriatic Express Aff.]

Illya was not inspired by Never on Sunday. Rolfe named him and never said where it came from, only that he knew later he misspelled it because he really didn't know Russian. Actually, as covered in my book, it may actually have come from War and Peace.

The entire story of April's creation is also covered in detail in my book. A show starring a female agent was actually suggested by the wife of an NBC exec after she saw The Avengers in England. She came up with the name Cookie Fortune but it was too close to the movie, The Fortune Cookie, out at that time, so they decided to change it. They went back to Fleming's original notes and found April Dancer, who was originally a secretary. Rolfe hated the name. Norman wasn't too keen either but they used it.

[st_crispins]

Here is the entire story of the origin of The U.N.C.L.E. Special.

http://www.manfromuncle.org/gun.htm