18 Interesting Facts About Don Adams

1. #001

   Rather than take a large per-episode paycheck for Get Smart (1965) ($12,500 a week), Adams chose a smaller salary and a 33% share. The gamble paid off; the series has been airing for decades.

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2. #002

   During World War II he served in the United States Marine Corps and took part in the landing and battle at Guadalcanal, where he contracted malaria.

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3. #003

   His two best-known roles (Maxwell Smart and Inspector Gadget) were James Bond imitations. Get Smart (1965) parodied spy stories. Although the Inspector Gadget character was behaviorally closer to the bumbling Inspector Clouseau, it featured the unseen villain Doctor Claw, shown as an arm stroking a cat, a clear reference to Bond's villain Ernst Stavro Blofeld.

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4. #005

   While serving in the Marine Corps, one of his duties was drill instructor.

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5. #008

   He disliked the (badly timed) laugh track in the Get Smart (1965) film.

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6. #009

   At first he was not interested in making Get Smart (1965), a James Bond spoof, and came on board after learning that Mel Brooks and Buck Henry were involved in the pilot script. The first name considered for the role was Tom Poston, but Adams, who was then under contract to NBC, was promoted for the job by the network.

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7. #010

   He was one of the first (if not the first) stand-up comedians to have his own sitcom.

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8. #013

   He and Barbara Feldon remained good friends during and after Get Smart (1965).

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9. #014

   He disliked the two Get Smart (1965) revival films and the sequel series. He admitted that he only agreed to appear in the film for the paychecks.

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10. #015

    In 1999 he played Maxwell Smart once more, this time in a successful series of Canadian TV commercials for the "Buck-a-Call" long-distance service.

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11. #016

    He was a close friend of "Playboy" publisher Hugh Hefner and spent one night a week playing cards with Hefner (and his other friends).

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12. #017

    He claimed he changed his surname from Yarmy to Adams because he was tired of always having to go last at auditions, which he said were (wrongly) usually held in alphabetical order. In reality he took his stage name from his first wife, the singer Adelaide Adams, with whom he shared a bill on the nightclub circuit.

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13. #021

    Don Adams was part of a comedy team called The Young Brothers with Jay Lawrence.

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14. #022

    Don Adams is best remembered by the public for his role as "Maxwell Smart/Agent 86" in Get Smart (1965).

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15. #023

    Don Adams left DeWitt Clinton High School in 1941, his final year there.

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16. #024

    Before becoming a comedian and actor, Don Adams worked as a theater usher.

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17. #026

    Don Adams began pursuing engineering designs but was unsuccessful, so he tried comedy and won a talent contest that was seen by talent scouts, which led to appearances on shows such as Steve Allen's and carried him further up the ladder to fame.

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18. #028

    Although Adams was skilled at hand-to-hand combat in real life, the fight scenes in Get Smart (1965) required the use of a stunt double because the series' insurance would not cover him.

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