@outofocus: I’m sure montebonn (or however you spelled it) was bigger for you, but in the grand scheme of things, this guy was far and away a bigger deal. The prisoner inspired every man-on-the-run movie or show from the Incredible hulk to the Fugitive. It inspired every spy series from James Bond to Get Smart. Mr. Kahn himself wouldn’t have gotten his role if The Prisoner hadn’t made Fantasy Island possible (it pretty much coined the concept of an island full of excentric to surreal characters).

It’s not something that has percolated down through the cultural monologue (like other things like Mission Impossible or Battlestar Galactica which have had successful rebirths), but it has very far reaching influences. The Prisoner was really the first show that allowed 60s level surrealism to enter into primetime drama. It (along with other people like Rowan and Martin, et al), allowed things like the Monkees, the Muppets, and Happy Days to do bizarre, out-of-this-world surreal comedy and/or drama without getting hammered for being too “out there.” It was the series that made WEIRD fascinating, rather than just kind of bizzare and stupid.