"The Sentimental Agent" (1963) TV series

User Rating:

5.2/10   

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

28 September 1963 (UK)

Genre:

Crime

Cast

Carlos Thompson

...

Carlos Varela (13 episodes, 1963)

Runtime:

60 min (13 episodes)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono

Company:

Incorporated Television Company (ITC)

Movie Connections:

Follows "Man of the World" (1962)

Coolest character ever

The series told the adventures of an Argentine businessman, owner of an import-export company seated in London. The character was first introduced in an episode of Man of the World, a 1961-62 series starring Craig Stevens as world-rambling photographer Michael Strait.

The original name was Carlos Borella, or Barella. Even though that family name sounded adequately Argentine (because it sounds Italian) it does not exist, and it probably was a misspell of the Spanish name Varela, so in this series, the name was corrected accordingly.

Carlos Varela was played by the Argentine actor Carlos Thompson (for several years married to German actress Lilly Palmer) who was exceedingly handsome and 40 years of age at the time. The character often dressed on a white suit, worn a hat and he was always incredibly suave & debonair. (At the time I was aged 11 or 12, and I wished I could look and act as cool and assured as Varela-Thompson.)

Each episode, Varela was called to exotic locales, to solve problems where his company or his friends were involved. He never carried a gun and things were always solved with wit over brute force.

It was a favorite of mine (although I admit that I paid far more attention to the imposing central character than to the plots) but there were problems. In addition to the usual low ratings, it seems that, unlike his Spanish or his German -which were fluent- Mr. Thompson's command of English was somehow limited, a fact that created shooting difficulties.

Claudio DG Argentina