Don Adams of 'Get Smart' dead

'Would you believe?' actor was 82

Monday, September 26, 2005; Posted: 3:46 p.m. EDT (19:46 GMT)

LOS ANGELES, California (AP) -- Don Adams, the wry-voiced comedian who starred as the fumbling secret agent Maxwell Smart in the 1960s TV spoof of James Bond movies, "Get Smart," has died. He was 82.

Adams died of a lung infection late Sunday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, his friend and former agent Bruce Tufeld said Monday, adding that the actor broke his hip a year ago and had been in ill health since.

As the inept Agent 86 of the super-secret federal agency CONTROL, Adams captured TV viewers with his antics in combatting the evil agents of KAOS. When his explanations failed to convince the villains or his boss, he tried another tack:

"Would you believe ... ?"

It became a national catchphrase.

Smart was also prone to spilling things on the desk or person of his boss -- the Chief (actor Edward Platt). Smart's apologetic "Sorry about that, chief" also entered the American lexicon.

The spy gadgets, which aped those of the Bond movies, were a popular feature, especially the pre-cell-phone telephone in a shoe.

Smart's beautiful partner, Agent 99, played by Barbara Feldon, was as brainy as he was dense, and a plot romance led to marriage and the birth of twins later in the series.

Adams, who had been under contract to NBC, was lukewarm about doing a spy spoof. When he learned that Mel Brooks and Buck Henry had written the pilot script, he accepted immediately.

"Get Smart" debuted on NBC in September 1965 and scored No. 12 among the season's most-watched series and No. 22 in its second season.

"Get Smart" twice won the Emmy for best comedy series with three Emmys for Adams as comedy actor.

CBS picked up the show but the ratings fell off as the jokes seemed repetitive, and it was canceled after four seasons. The show lived on in syndication and a cartoon series. In 1995 the Fox network revived the series with Smart as chief and 99 as a congresswoman. It lasted seven episodes.

Adams never had another showcase to display his comic talent.

"It was a special show that became a cult classic of sorts, and I made a lot of money for it," he remarked of "Get Smart" in a 1995 interview. "But it also hindered me career-wise because I was typed. The character was so strong, particularly because of that distinctive voice, that nobody could picture me in any other type of role."

He was born Donald James Yarmy in New York City on April 13, 1923, Tufeld said, although some sources say 1926 or '27. The actor's father was a Hungarian Jew who ran a few small restaurants in the Bronx.

In a 1959 interview Adams said he never cared about being funny as a kid: "Sometimes I wonder how I got into comedy at all. I did movie star impressions as a kid in high school. Somehow they just got out of hand."

In 1941, he dropped out of school to join the Marines. In Guadalcanal he survived the deadly blackwater fever and was returned to the States to become a drill instructor, acquiring the clipped delivery that served him well as a comedian.

After the war he worked in New York as a commercial artist by day, doing standup comedy in clubs at night, taking the surname of his first wife, Adelaide Adams. His following grew, and soon he was appearing on the Ed Sullivan and late-night TV shows. Bill Dana, who had helped him develop comedy routines, cast him as his sidekick on Dana's show. That led to the NBC contract and "Get Smart."

Adams, who married and divorced three times and had seven children, served as the voice for the popular cartoon series, "Inspector Gadget," as well as cartoon character Tennessee Tuxedo. In 1980, he appeared as Maxwell Smart in a feature movie, "The Nude Bomb," about a madman whose bomb destroyed people's clothing.

Tufeld said funeral arrangements were incomplete.

Copyright 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/TV/09/26/o...s.ap/index.html


I was a huge Get Smart fan when the reruns would play on TV. This guy was one of the best.

Hello Chief, I won't be in today or ever. I seem to have located the true dome of silence.
So long Max. We'll miss ya!

And God said, "OUCH!" and behold, from the heavens a second voice drifted down calling out, "sorry about that, Chief!"

How sad! I hope he had a good life and was happy.

What??! First John Denver and now Don Adams?

We'll miss you Don. Thanks for everything, and have a safe trip up there

When I was younger, Get Smart was one of my favorite programs. Condolences and best wishes to his family.

"Would you believe seven?"..........."Ah, well, would you believe six then?"

Get Smart was a classic! But everyone's time comes eventually.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/TV/09/26/obit.adams.ap/


I know a lot of this crew is too young to remember Don Adams as Maxwell Smart. Fortunately it has probably ran on some cable networks. I loved Maxwell Smart. He was the most bumbling hero to ever walk the Earth. He never failed to save the day, regardless of what KAOS may have thrown at him. Fact is, I think he had the first portable phone...sure, it was in his shoe, but it worked!!!

Just this morning, I got to re-live a little of my childhood when I heard his voice-over work as Inspector Gadget. I'm so glad that this talented funny-man will live on in his work.

Farewell, Don. Thank you for the years of laughter. You will be missed.


40nrockinon