Though primarily known as a serious actor, drama was only one of the strings to Edward Woodward’s bow. A significant proportion of his stage work included musicals and music-themed shows, gaining him a Variety Club award for the Best Performance in a Musical. Singing was undoubtedly one of the great loves of his life, and his strong tenor voice graced numerous best-selling albums – the enthusiasm for his work shining through.
With the success of Callan, Woodward became a household name – this popularity giving him the chance to show his lighter side in three light entertainment specials in the early 1970s for Thames Television. Sadly only the first one still remains in the archive, but it ably showcases Woodward’s whimsical side; jokes and music abound, while his guests in this show include Beryl Reid, Patrick Cargill and Russell Hunter. The highlight of the show, however, is the Callan vs Father, Dear Father sketch – something that no self-respecting Callan fan can be without!
The original transmission master of The Edward Woodward Hour was junked back in the 1970s but an off-air video recording has survived. This has been restored as much as possible but viewers will notice a drop in picture quality compared to other programmes of this vintage.
Got on Netflix in November and was able to to get the first DVD of The Equalizer, which wasn't exactly a good thing as I am now beating my head against the wall wanting to see the rest of the series. I remember when the series came out, but really didn't remember most of the episodes. Then about 15 years ago I had friends tape the episodes when they were rerun on USA, I think it was. I had all but a few episodes on tape and then the tapes were accidentally dumped into water - don't ask.
My thanks, Neotrinity, for all the great postings - I had a blast reading all the pages of this thread back to the beginning.
So to join the discussion, I'll throw in my 2¢ worth on Beyond Control. Although I know it's been suggested that Control was asking to become one of McCall's clients, I think - and I hate to do this because in the end it's all really what some writer has penned - but I think he wasn't asking so much to become a client as he was asking for McCall to run interference for him, as he said he just needed a free hand for 24 hours. So it didn't sound to me like a call for help but more like he was asking for a favor. Any thoughts?
Yeah, I think that pretty much sets the stage for the differences between the two men and how they approach the same thing. They certainly do play off one another very nicely and very professionally. I was curious - in Beyond Control when Control tells McCall that Exten is a front and McCall reacts with a "No, is it really!" in what is meant to be sarcasm, does anyone know if that line was ad libbed? And I also apologize if I don't get the quotes exactly right.
What's interesting is I have also been ordering what DVDs are available from Hawaii 5-O and Moonlighting in the last month or so (I am taking a dive straight back into the 80s) and I am seeing Equalizer people all over. Jessica Harper did a great job in Hawaii 5-O and Robert Joy just showed up in a Moonlighting episode I saw tonight. Great actors, both of them.
There are 10 full episodes of The Equalizer here on Megavideo. If you're not familiar with Megavideo, you just click on the episode, click on the red button, wait for it to go green and then click on the green button. If you're not a paying member, you can watch, I think it's 72 minutes of video and then you have to wait 30 minutes to watch another 72 minutes. The picture quality isn't very good and these aren't the best Equalizer shows, but for someone like me who's just dying to see the rest of the series, it'll do for now.
Oh yeah, if your full screen video is jerky, just right click on the video, select Settings and uncheck Hardware Acceleration. Problem solved.
You're welcome and you can just call me Ro - everyone else on my other forum does.
I am still in shock and watching the videos as fast as I can (before I watch them again). Some I barely remember and I may not have had as many on tape as I previously thought because some I don't remember seeing before. I just finished watching Mission McCall and it's very interesting watching these shows now with the added benefit of time - I get so much more out of them and I am more aware of the acting and the nuances, plus I understand more of what's actually going on in the shows.
I have to admit, those scenes between Control and McCall are starting to grab hold of me. It irks me that there's so pitifully few of those scenes, but I guess that's what makes them so special.
And I heard the rumor that Russel Crowe was trying to do a new Equalizer movie with himself playing the Equalizer. I can't imagine him even beginning to come close to Mr. Woodward, either in his acting or his portrayal of McCall. But I was wondering - either of Edward Woodward's two sons look like they could slip into that role with ease. Has anyone asked them? I was also wondering if they would bring back William Zabka as Scott, now grown up and continuing his father's work. Maybe Keith Szarabajka could be roped in as well. The question, of course, would be who could ever replace Robert Lansing as Control, as if anyone really could.
OK, must go back to the real world for a bit........
Ah, to heck with the real world. Would that I could call on The Equalizer sometimes....
I'm having a wonderful time watching the episodes. For some reason I seem to have picked all the ones together that had Control in them (I understand there were 29 of those?) and it's fascinating to see them all together. I finally had the thought that although the show was called "The Equalizer", it would have flopped without Control to use as an alter ego for McCall. And it's also so interesting to see that although the other characters grew and evolved, Control never did. He never really changed. We never know his name, where he lives, his hobbies or interests, his women friends, if any, and only one little snippet of background information. He spends a lot of time comforting McCall and sometimes the other characters, but who comforts him? What an enigma! Was that all intentional?
And I'm thinking of an idea for an Equalizer game with questions to answer, like:
What is the code to McCall's safe house? What is Control's phone number? What is the license plate number of McCall's Jag?
And maybe about 50 or more in that vein. Would anyone be interested?
Hello, I'm French and I discovered Equalizer last year. I decided to write reviews for my website (as I did for other series like The Streets of San Francisco or The Untouchables). Here is the first season. The second in one week. It's in French but you can nevertheless see the ratings and the pictures.
Hmmm... I watched Shadow Play and I must have missed something. Where did Gage actually threaten to reveal Control's real name? Did I miss something in a previous episode? At any rate, it wasn't the answer which more or less blew me away, it was the change of expression on Control's face, or rather, how he changed to no expression at all. And that, I think is what made The Equalizer so good - two great actors who could communicate an entire sentence by just changing their expressions. You don't see that too often today. Most actors now rely on well they can jump and run or how fast they can say their lines. Listen to how well Woodward and Lansing can take a simple line and make it sing with the show. Or draw it out or end the sentence on a high note when you expect it to go down or add all the little nuances that add flavor to a conversation. And make it all sound perfectly natural.
Speaking of communication, it was a treat to watch Howie Seago in Silent Fury. I saw him in an episode of ST:TNG and I was impressed with him then too. Who needed a translator? Talk about conveying your feelings!
And speaking of expressions, in the episode Hand and Glove, did anyone catch Scott's expression when the girl he thought was in trouble said he was the father of her baby? I was watching the girl, of course, and caught Scott's expression out of the corner of my eye, so I played back that scene and watched him instead. That was unforgettable and hilarious!
I'm still going through the episodes on that link. So far, I think there are 3 missing: First Light, The Child Broker and naturally, Memories of Manon, part 1. Part 2 is there, wouldn't you think...? Whatever, I'm just happy to be able to watch the series again.
A Special Christmas Carol (
And a Most Harmonious, Healing,
) Department:
