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| Saint or Stooge? Templar or traveler? Adventurer or Ad-libber? Wise, or merely weary (and jet-lagged)? You decide. |
In The Saint episode “The Paper Chase,” Simon Templar walks
across Westminster Bridge. Against a dull,
gray sky, Westminster Palace, also known as the Houses of Parliament, rises in the distance. As he walks down the steps to the Victoria
Embankment, we hear him intone: “London, Five a.m., Westminster. The Embankment, a boulevard or a bedroom,
depending on how Fate dealt its hand. For
those of us who are not asleep it is a time to love, pray, hate, argue, cheat,
sometimes even kill.” He walks past a
man sleeping on a park bench, covered in newspapers, and pauses to stare out
upon the Thames. Already, boats ply the dark waters. Nearby, two men
argue. Although he does not yet know it,
he will soon become embroiled with those two men, when a member of British
Intelligence begs him to travel to Germany to secure information one of them
carries.
The Saint came before my time. Growing up in America, I did not notice all
the books written by Leslie Charteris in my library. I did not watch reruns on the TV. If the comic strips made their way to
American newspapers, I did not notice.
When the movie version of “The Saint,” starring Val Kilmer, appeared in
theaters in 1997, I knew nothing of the character’s rich fictional heritage.
Discovering this old TV series has been a
joy. Everyday, Family Network plays an
episode. Some were shot in
Black and White, some in Color. Much of
the scenery grows familiar after awhile, as studio interiors and exteriors are redressed to match the current story.
Many of the same actors reappear, playing different characters. Only the Saint remains unique,
mysterious. What is he? Who is he?
Why do the authorities constantly suspect him of wrongdoing, yet rely on
his assistance in bringing criminals to justice? How does he manage to live such a lavish
lifestyle, have so many friends, and drop anything on a moment’s notice for a
person in need? Played by Roger Moore,
who would later take over the role of James Bond, Simon Templar seems a better man than
the more famous secret agent. Watching
him as The Saint, I understand why I liked Roger Moore so well as Bond. Perhaps some of the Saint rubbed off on him. Roger Moore was certainly aware of how young people
idolized Bond, and always fought to soften the rough edges of Ian Fleming's hero. Unlike Timothy Dalton and Daniel Craig, his James Bond never gloated when vanquishing an enemy. He never smiled while others died.
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| The British call these dolphins. Don't ask me why. |
Perhaps this time I’ll even ride the London Eye, the famous
ferris wheel erected to celebrate the Millennium. That’s probably the only thing Simon Templar
couldn’t have done back in 1960s London.
But only because it did not then exist.
Dragon Dave
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