The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1964) Season 1 | spy fiction

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. is an American spy fiction television series produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television and first broadcast on NBC. The series follows secret agents Napoleon Solo, played by Robert Vaughn, and Illya Kuryakin, played by David McCallum, who work for a secret international counterespionage and law-enforcement agency called U.N.C.L.E. (United Network Command for Law and Enforcement). The series premiered on September 22, 1964, and completed its run on January 15, 1968. The program was part of the spy-fiction craze on television, and by 1966 there were nearly a dozen imitators. Several episodes were successfully released to theaters as B movies or double features. There was also a spin-off series, The Girl from U.N.C.L.E., a series of novels and comic books, and merchandising.

With few recurring characters, the series attracted many high-profile guest stars. Props from the series are exhibited at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum and at the museums of the Central Intelligence Agency and other US intelligence agencies. The series won the Golden Globe Award for Best TV Show in 1966.

Originally, co-creator Sam Rolfe (of Have Gun – Will Travel fame) wanted to leave the meaning of U.N.C.L.E. ambiguous so it could refer to either "Uncle Sam" or the United Nations.: 14  Concerns by the MGM legal department about using "U.N." for commercial purposes caused U.N.C.L.E. to become an acronym for the United Network Command for Law and Enforcement. Each episode had a spurious "We wish to thank" acknowledgement to U.N.C.L.E. in the end titles.