Los protectores

Don't ask why some things stick in one's head 30 years later, but the opening theme of "The Protectors" went like this:

In the avenues and alley-ways Where the soul of man is easy to buy, Everybody's wheelin', everybody's dealin' All the lower living are high.

Every city's got 'em, Can we ever stop 'em? Some of us are gonna try...

Dum-dumm-DE-Dum-dum..

For the cosmic two cents that it's worth.

Rather than the glib UNCLE show, this effort for Robert V. had a believable conceit - a small group of bodyguard/detectives hires themselves out to whomever can afford them (without crossing their moral scruples). CEOs and governments were frequent customers of The Protectors, never mob or terrorist elements. As with the best in series television, a good premise and tight chemistry in the cast usually overcame mediocre scripts.

How could you not resist singing along to Tony Christie's wonderful rendition of "Avenues & Alleyways"? I love this series not for the plots that went nowhere, but for the great cast of Robert Vaughan, Nyree Dawn Porter (deceased) in a pseudo-Italian accent and the very handsome Tony Anholt (deceased) who looked decorative, spoke with a French accent and was always elegantly attired). A special mention needs to be made for Yasuko Nagazumi who plays Harry Rule's talented and elegant personal assistant. Check out her hairstyles and creative costumes!

This series epitomised the stylish early 70's when men wore fitted suits, silk neck-scarves and sexy shoes, when women wore outrageous dresses, make-up and very high, creative hairstyles.

Another Gerry Anderson production (I'm a fan of his work, especially UFO), this series was very much like "The Persuaders", set all over continental Europe and featuring some interesting guest stars of the day. The locations alone are worth watching for.

Watch this series just for the fun and the retro memories. Don't take the story lines too seriously - it was just the early 70's; and that's what mattered!

I remember seeing this series in Saint Louis, running as the last thing Sunday night. As an old fan of "The Man from UNCLE," I was curious to see Robert Vaughn playing an older, cynical, grouchier version of Napoleon Solo. Vaughn's personal liberal sentiments occasionally showed through, in one episode involving a military intelligence case. His Harry Rule character showed nothing but contempt for the way the military operated and its goals.

On the other hand, there was a small amount of goofiness. One episode I recall had Rule and his Italian costar stopping a neo-Nazi plot. Instead of contributing the gold they seized that was intended to revive the Third Reich to a charity cause, they stuck it in a Swiss bank. Not precisely heroic behavior.

One other note: Faberge, the perfume company, made the series (it was "A Brut Production") and the show contained a lot of "barter" spots for the Brut line of men's care products.

The Protectors is an effective globe-trotting action series from the 1970s about an intrepid group of investigators lead by Harry Rule, with consistent help from the Contessa di Contini and Paul Buchet (although poor Paul sometimes just pops up for a scene or two). Each episode sees the group take on villains and solve crimes, but the 25-minute episodes do mean that things are a bit abrupt. Indeed, some episodes lack clear resolution, introduce villains late into the drama, and the feel of others is a bit like flipping the channel 25 minutes in on a 50-minute drama and then picking up on the action as it isn't always clear why the team are on the case. Robert Vaughn is as cool as usual and Nyree Dawn Porter wears some eye-catching 70s hats, but more time per episode would have been a good thing.