Don Adams Of 'Get Smart' Dies
Actor, 82, Was Also Voice Of Inspector Gadget & Tennessee Tuxedo
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Play CBS Video Video Don Adams Dies 'Get Smart' TV icon Don Adams died at 82 from a lung infection. Bob Schieffer reports that although the Cone of Silence never seemed to work, the comedy on the show usually did.
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At left: Don Adams and Barbara Feldon, in character on "Get Smart," show off an arsenal of secret weapons hidden in her coat. At right: Adams as Maxwell Smart in a 1995 revival of the show. (AP (file))
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Way ahead of its time: "Get Smart" agent Maxwell Smart used a shoe phone - a wireless phone hidden in his shoe - decades before the first cell phones hit the consumer market. (AP (file))
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In addition to Maxwell Smart, Adams was also the voice of cartoon characters Tennessee Tuxedo and Inspector Gadget. Above: waving to photographers in New York three years ago. (AP (file))
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Photo Essay Don Adams Recalled He was Maxwell Smart, Tennessee Tuxedo and Inspector Gadget. Here is a look at the funnyman's life and career.
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Interactive Bond-O-Rama Shaken, stirred, or otherwise, something is always going on in the world of James Bond. Here's a quick look at 007, his girls, and his gadgets.
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Photo Essay Everybody Is A Star See some of the celebrities who are joining the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Adams' friend and former agent, Bruce Tufeld, says the actor died of a lung infection Sunday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. He had broken his hip a year ago, says Tufeld, and had been in poor health ever since.
While his career spanned over 40 years, from appearances on the Ed Sullivan, Rosemary Clooney, and Merv Griffin shows, to the voice of cartoon characters Tennessee Tuxedo and Inspector Gadget, and guest roles on everything from "Playboy After Dark" to "The Love Boat," Maxwell Smart is the role for which he will be remembered.
"It was a special show that became a cult classic of sorts, and I made a lot of money for it," Adams once said 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."
As big in its time as "Seinfeld," the "show about nothing," was in the 1990s, "Get Smart" allowed America to laugh about the world of spies that was the Cold War and the rapid pace of change in the 1960s, when it seemed that a new gadget was invented every day, sweeping away the familiar in favor of mysterious devices which might or might not work.
Spy gadgets inspired by and poking fun at the ones in the James Bond movies were a staple of "Get Smart," especially the shoe phone, Maxwell Smart's way out of many a tight spot — decades before cell phones burst onto the scene.
New roles for women and America's place in the world as defender of freedom were also major themes of the show, written by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry.
Adams as Agent 86 found himself constantly outpaced by brainy and beautiful Agent 99, portrayed by Barbara Feldon. And with World War II only twenty years in the past, it wasn't unusual for villains to have a distinct German accent.
As the inept Agent 86 of the super-secret federal agency CONTROL, Adams captivated TV viewers with his antics in combating 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.
©MMV, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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